Third Chemo Treatment

Yesterday I had my third chemo treatment, and on the previous day (Thursday), I had my vampire and oncology appointments. Full details on my Cancer Diary page.

Unfortunately they experienced some problems getting blood from the port this time, but on the third attempt, with me lying flat, they were successful.

Then I had my oncology appointment and saw the registrar, and I told her what a bad time I had had following my second treatment three weeks previously. She said in view of this, they would reduce the dose by 10 percent. She also doubled the dose of anti-nausea medication.

I discovered that the total number of treatments would be only eight, as opposed to the nine or ten I’d been anticipating. I have worked out that the last one should be on 16th October, and not going on into November as I had feared. This means that after the next treatment, I will be half way through the course! This makes me feel a lot better about everything.

The treatment proceeded as before, and again, despite the lower dose, I started to feel the effects during the last hour of infusion, and by the time they had finished with the final flush, I was feeling quite poorly. It wasn’t as bad as last time in that I didn’t have to take to my bed on our return home, and I managed to eat a small supper.

The effects are quite severe but not as bad as last time. This morning I rested half the morning in bed, and when I got up I felt so much better that I was able to spend an hour or two in my studio and finish the card I’d been making from part of the masterboard I made a few days ago. Photos will follow once the recipient has her card.

Towards lunch time I suddenly caved in with exhaustion and feeling shaky and nauseous, so I came down and took an anti-sickness pill. After a very light lunch I felt a lot better. I have been resting on the recliner all afternoon watching TV and DVDs.

Generally speaking, I have already started feeling a lot better than immediately after the second treatment, so hopefully I shall have a much more productive three weeks this time, which makes me feel more upbeat!

I hardly made any progress on my angel project during the last period, and I am now hoping to be able to crack on with that. I ordered a DVD on cloth art doll making and that arrived today, and I am very excited – the dolls, and especially their faces, look extremely complicated to do, but the instructions on the video are so clear and taken step by step, that I see no difficulty in managing to do it! Here’s a link to her DVD introductory video on Youtube, and I am very grateful to my blogging buddy Judy in Australia for sending me various doll-making links, including introducing me to this wonderful lady who is such an artist and such an excellent teacher too.