Radiation - Days 5 and 6 - AND. . . the start of the Chemo Pill

Good Afternoon!  Yesterday was Day 5 of Radiation - all went well, as usual.  I got a little tired last night while I was trying to cross-stitch (couldn't seem to keep my eyes open) and ended up going to bed a little earlier than usual.  But I woke up feeling rested, so that's good.  Thank you, Martha (our neighbor) for the ride - we had a nice visit on the way home!  And the watermelon was great, too - thanks!!!

Today I'll go for my 6th radiation treatment and Bob let me know earlier that my Tarceva (chemo pills) came in the mail today, so I'll start taking one of those each day (for however long it takes to kill all the little buggers, I hope!!)

I'm surrounded by so many wonderful people and you've all been such blessings to me.  I really appreciate all you do for me each day - from the thoughts and prayers and stopping by my office just to check in on me to the rides to radiation or lunch or wherever I need to go.  THANK YOU!!!!!  And, continued thanks to Brandon for stopping by my home and picking me up for the ride to Ponca City each morning - I really appreciate you!

It's The Weekend!

It's Saturday afternoon.............Bob is working, of course (sure wish he could catch a break - maybe next weekend).

Yesterday was day 4 of radiation and it went quick, as usual.  It must be the radiation that's giving me the little bit of a headache because I haven't had one today - yay!!  And the numbness in my skull from the "halo" is still there some but getting better, I think.

My mom and I had a great visit and did a little shopping today - just the two of us.  I even got some awesome new shoes!!  That was fun!

I'm feeling fine and plan to do a little resting and a few things around the house this weekend, then gear up for 5 days of radiation next week.  Still waiting for the rash to appear on my head and my hair to start falling out..........eek!!

Enjoy your weekend!

It's Friday!

It's Friday and today will be my last day of radiation until next week.  It's going well - it only seems to give me a little bit of a headache, nothing unbearable.  And, I think the naps afterwards are going to be helpful, just to give me a little boost.  Yesterday I took about a 40 minute nap then mowed the back yard!!

Thank you, Barbara, for driving me to Stillwater for my treatment - you're such a great friend!  And, it gives us a chance to get caught up on our visiting!

My mom will be driving from Edmond today to get me and take me to radiation, then she'll spend the night, so we'll get a chance to get caught up too.  Might even do a little shopping tomorrow if she sticks around long enough!

Thank you ALL for checking on me all the time and making sure I'm feeling good and doing alright - I really appreciate you all!!!!

Oncologist Appointment and Day 2 - Radiation

Bob and I had our first appointment with Dr. Canfield (she's filling in for Dr. Bova). It's been an informative day. Instead of starting IV chemotherapy I will be starting on an oral chemo drug called Tarceva - just as soon as it is delivered to our house (in about a week). This is a chemo drug that is used primarily for lung cancer. It's a pill I'll take once a day for as long as it's working well. I'll have periodic chest x-rays and lab work to make sure everything is going well.

We arrived home earlier from Day 2 of radiation.  All went well there too.  Just took a couple of minutes and we were outta there.  At some point I'm supposed to experience some fatigue so we've decided that when we get home from radiation I'm going to plan on taking a nap/rest for about 30 minutes (guess I'll have to put the shock collar on Dudley since he feels the need to bark every time a car pulls up in the driveway - which is often!) 

2 down - 18 to go!!!

Thank you ALL so much for all of the nice comments on the blog - we love reading them and feel SO loved!!!  And, thank you, too, for the offers of rides back to Stillwater for radiation - I'm sure I'll be calling on you some time.  Thanks!

Radiation - Day 1

Today my dad drove from Edmond to pick me up at work in Ponca City.  Then we headed to my first day of radiation and found out that it takes longer on Tuesdays.  First they did an x-ray, then the couple of minutes of radiation, then they weighed me (yippee.....those steroids are doing the trick!), then a visit with the nurse where she asked me all kinds of questions, then a really quick visit with the doctor.  The rest of the days of the week should just be the couple of minutes of radiation.  You can't feel anything, you just lay there and they "zap" you.  Not sure when it will start making me feel tired - guess we'll find out soon enough!  Thank you, Debbie, for coming by and hanging out with my dad!  It was great to see you!  Oh yea, and my friend Susie had sent flowers to the Cancer Center for me - that was a sweet surprise!

Tomorrow we'll head to OKC to see the Oncologist and get the plan for the chemotherapy.  Feeling fine so far.  More later................

Thank you for the ride, Daddy!

NEW LOOK! YAY!

YAY!!  Mattie came home and made the blog look so-o-o-o-o much prettier!  Thank you, Mattie!!

The Start of a Plan . . . .

More appointments!


We just got back from Cancer Care Associates in Stillwater, where we met with Dr. Young, the Radiation Oncologist we met in OKC a few weeks ago.  I was fitted for a mask (it has markings to make sure my head is in the right place during the radiation).  I will be having radiation 5 x per week (Monday-Friday) for 4 weeks, starting next Tuesday, at 3:45 pm.  I was told that my hair will fall out in about 2 weeks after starting the radiation - woohoo..........should be an interesting sight!  Dr. Young spoke with Dr. Canfield (the Oncologist) while we were there and Dr. Canfield is planning on the chemo being once a week, but we don't have a schedule for that yet.

My biggest scheduling conflict now is that I'm having to find a ride home from Ponca City each day in order to be at radiation by 3:45 pm.  Both of my parents have graciously agreed to some days already - thank you!  And, many others have offered - I just have to get a plan put in place.

One of the best pieces of news today.............we have a plan for some treatment and Dr. Young said we'd work around the radiation so that we can go on our annual Eureka Springs trip in 3 weeks!  Yippee!!!!!

See you soon!