Today's the day! The day of my last administered BEP drugs... My final bag of bleomycin! And as a cerebration(?!) those nice people at The Christie really speeded through the whole process. They were really busy but somehow everything was done-and-dusted by, what, 13:30!
They somehow have me down on the notes as "pathetic male" when it comes to the cannula part. Admittedly I don't much like that bit, and admittedly I did faint on the first bleo outpatient appointment - but there were mitigating circumstances, and it did take them three attempts. Anyhow, because of this they still managed to find me a complementary foot massage lady (Joanne). Sadly she didn't arrive until after the cannula, but that meant that I could just enjoy the indulgence!!
So that's it for treatment. My oncologist came in for a quick chat and we (he!) booked me in for my CT scan and follow-up visit at the end of November/beginning of December. So those are the dates to look forward to.
Showing posts with label bleomycin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bleomycin. Show all posts
Friday, 29 October 2010
Saturday, 23 October 2010
23/10/2010 Day 53 - One bag to go!
Yesterday (22nd Oct) was Bleomycin day, and went without a hitch. I got to the hospital (quick stop at Costa Coffee for a brew and a cake) on time and they were (unlike the last outpatient visit) really quick. I've obviously been there a lot, because I knew everyone of the staff this time around.
Shortly after being shown to my "room" sensual Julie arrived and was straight in with a foot massage - very nice, and totally distracted me from the cannula experience! (Which I have to say was probably the best cannula incision that I've had to date).
Bloods came back fine and I was off... Not only that, my immunity injections (and sleeping pills) came back within half an hour, so the whole thing went like a dream...
Back home, kids and dog spending the night at the in-laws, feeling much better (on the up after the chemo blues) so last night was pretty good as well.
And now (next Friday) just the one bag of poison left to go... :)
Shortly after being shown to my "room" sensual Julie arrived and was straight in with a foot massage - very nice, and totally distracted me from the cannula experience! (Which I have to say was probably the best cannula incision that I've had to date).
Bloods came back fine and I was off... Not only that, my immunity injections (and sleeping pills) came back within half an hour, so the whole thing went like a dream...
Back home, kids and dog spending the night at the in-laws, feeling much better (on the up after the chemo blues) so last night was pretty good as well.
And now (next Friday) just the one bag of poison left to go... :)
Friday, 8 October 2010
Don't judge books by there cover...
Today's bleomycin was dealt with by a male nurse called Jim. Jim is enormous - think of a nightclub bouncer in an ill fitting Tuxedo and you won't be far wrong. But his cannula skills... brilliant. No pain (well hardly) on the stabbing bit, and definitely no pain on the pulling out bit. Utterly brilliant - couldn't ask for more, oh yes I could, sadly no foot massage today... but I'd rather no pain than pain-plus-sensual Julie!!
08/10/2010 Day 38 of 63 - I don't need a lecture!!!
Today has been interesting, I haven't posted for about a week, but that's good - because I've nothing to say (about my "favourite" subject...) Basically this last week I've been on my white-blood-cell boosters, the (quite dreadful) cold I got seems to have gone, some residual could-stuff but no big deal. So I've been working a bit from home, and basically feeling altogether better/happier with my lot.
Today, being Friday is bleomycin day, so what should have been 2/3 three hours at Christies. Well firstly, and most importantly, bloods were find and bleo was administered - so result. What I didn't mention last post was that I got myself a week's prescription of sleeping pills. These are/were a means to an end - I have not (other than with the aid of drugs at the last Christies "stop over") slept at all well. And I know why - it's the chemo-drugs, it's my body;s reaction, it's my over adrenilised body and mind. And I know that sleep is very good for you, and given everything that's going on in my body at the moment probably even more important.
I also know that you shouldn't become dependent on things like sleeping pills. Well hey, I know that, and currently they are a means to an end. And also with my week's supply I tried a couple of nights of not using them - to see if "Mr Busy Head" would let me sleep, it didn't so the next night I took one. I like to think I am somewhat of a responsible adult.
Now today, maybe because the Bleo ran late, may be because the consultant didn't hear/was busy, but they didn't sign me up for a second week of sleeping pills. So by the time 15:00 came around and my missus (and me) really need to get back home/to the day job, it became clear that even if/when they did give me a prescription it wasn't going to get fulfilled very soon. So I rang my doctors, got an appointment (16:30) and told the nice Christies people that I'd get my GP to do it - job done, or so I thought.
Got to the GP's on the stroke of half past. Got to see a GP (not mine, one of the locums, I think) and told him that as a means to an end I could do with a 7 day prescription for these sleeping pills. To cut a story short he gave me the prescription. But, and a big but, did I get a lecture on the "evils" of sleeping pills and how there are other ways of helping me (like anit-depressants!!!???!!!) and if I need any more then we really should think about something else... and then went on to write a longgggggg note on my records about this whole event.
I was staggered, given that I am 6 weeks in to chemotherapy (and that's a whole load of nasty drugs that can screw your brain and body up with), and that I've had to cancer operations and radiotherapy. And that all this is in/on my notes. Did it not occur to Mr GP that I might actually know why my brain is "busy", that I am in control of myself and know why I want the pills and why/how I should use them. What I don't need is an inappropriate lecture about their evils and I sure as hell don't want to go the anti-depression route - and that certainly isn't appropriate at the moment given where I am up to...
I like to think I handled it in a mature and sensible manner, but it was a close run thing...!
Today, being Friday is bleomycin day, so what should have been 2/3 three hours at Christies. Well firstly, and most importantly, bloods were find and bleo was administered - so result. What I didn't mention last post was that I got myself a week's prescription of sleeping pills. These are/were a means to an end - I have not (other than with the aid of drugs at the last Christies "stop over") slept at all well. And I know why - it's the chemo-drugs, it's my body;s reaction, it's my over adrenilised body and mind. And I know that sleep is very good for you, and given everything that's going on in my body at the moment probably even more important.
I also know that you shouldn't become dependent on things like sleeping pills. Well hey, I know that, and currently they are a means to an end. And also with my week's supply I tried a couple of nights of not using them - to see if "Mr Busy Head" would let me sleep, it didn't so the next night I took one. I like to think I am somewhat of a responsible adult.
Now today, maybe because the Bleo ran late, may be because the consultant didn't hear/was busy, but they didn't sign me up for a second week of sleeping pills. So by the time 15:00 came around and my missus (and me) really need to get back home/to the day job, it became clear that even if/when they did give me a prescription it wasn't going to get fulfilled very soon. So I rang my doctors, got an appointment (16:30) and told the nice Christies people that I'd get my GP to do it - job done, or so I thought.
Got to the GP's on the stroke of half past. Got to see a GP (not mine, one of the locums, I think) and told him that as a means to an end I could do with a 7 day prescription for these sleeping pills. To cut a story short he gave me the prescription. But, and a big but, did I get a lecture on the "evils" of sleeping pills and how there are other ways of helping me (like anit-depressants!!!???!!!) and if I need any more then we really should think about something else... and then went on to write a longgggggg note on my records about this whole event.
I was staggered, given that I am 6 weeks in to chemotherapy (and that's a whole load of nasty drugs that can screw your brain and body up with), and that I've had to cancer operations and radiotherapy. And that all this is in/on my notes. Did it not occur to Mr GP that I might actually know why my brain is "busy", that I am in control of myself and know why I want the pills and why/how I should use them. What I don't need is an inappropriate lecture about their evils and I sure as hell don't want to go the anti-depression route - and that certainly isn't appropriate at the moment given where I am up to...
I like to think I handled it in a mature and sensible manner, but it was a close run thing...!
Saturday, 18 September 2010
2010/09/17 - Day 17 of 63, I didn't swoon!
Yesterday was day 17, which was my third short of bleomycin (second as an outpatient). This time around, my sister came with me, which was nice because (according to google) it's a 350 mile round trip for her!
She came up on the Thursday and we had a good meal together, then Friday we (she!) drove to The Christie, stopping for coffee and a sandwich on the way, in the sun.
Once there I had a different chemo-nurse, but the same problem. She huffed and puffed and her first attempt with the cannula she said, "Oh, I've come up against a junction, sorry...", so it was out with that one and try with my other wrist! At least this time I didn't faint! And probably the reason for that was that (from the results of my blood test) that this time around I had/have a "good" white blood cell count (10.something) and platelet count (22.something).
The actual bleo was fine and everything (other than the "up a junction" episode) worked well, and no booster jabs this week...
Now I am looking forward to Wednesday, the start of cycle 2!
She came up on the Thursday and we had a good meal together, then Friday we (she!) drove to The Christie, stopping for coffee and a sandwich on the way, in the sun.
Once there I had a different chemo-nurse, but the same problem. She huffed and puffed and her first attempt with the cannula she said, "Oh, I've come up against a junction, sorry...", so it was out with that one and try with my other wrist! At least this time I didn't faint! And probably the reason for that was that (from the results of my blood test) that this time around I had/have a "good" white blood cell count (10.something) and platelet count (22.something).
The actual bleo was fine and everything (other than the "up a junction" episode) worked well, and no booster jabs this week...
Now I am looking forward to Wednesday, the start of cycle 2!
Saturday, 11 September 2010
2010/09/10 - Day 10 of 63, I swoon
Well day 10 wasn't the best day! After having such a good day 9, I thought I was climbing back towards a level of normality. To be fair the day started okay, we took the kids to school and then off to the hospital for my second week bleomycin. So far so good, got to the hospital in good time, got set up in a little room, and then...
The nurse made a bit of a fist at getting the cannula in, well she got it in but I wouldn't bleed... so she huffed and puffed, and I fainted! I put it down to not sleeping, stress and all sorts, but the next thing I knew was that I was lying down and a face (Ken) was over me saying "everything was fine...". Eventually they managed to get a new cannula in and get my bloods done.
And the bloods came back with with (as the nurse nicely put it) "less than zero white blood cells" and a very low platelet count. Anyway after a phone call to the doctor they hooked me up for my bleomycin. The doctor came to see me and decided that I could/should have another course of booster injections and that I must keep an eye on myself (temperature).
I have to say I went home feeling "ill" and crashed out straight away. That was fine, except I woke up over cooked in bed with my temperature varying from 37 - 38, which is too high for a man with no white blood cells. So this set me on a bit of a monitoring panic. However after getting out of bed and slowly "doing stuff" my temp stablised in the low 37's, and after some tea and gentle TV watching it was down to high 36.
I didn't like fainting (actually I didn't know much about it), and my wife said I was snoring!!
The nurse made a bit of a fist at getting the cannula in, well she got it in but I wouldn't bleed... so she huffed and puffed, and I fainted! I put it down to not sleeping, stress and all sorts, but the next thing I knew was that I was lying down and a face (Ken) was over me saying "everything was fine...". Eventually they managed to get a new cannula in and get my bloods done.
And the bloods came back with with (as the nurse nicely put it) "less than zero white blood cells" and a very low platelet count. Anyway after a phone call to the doctor they hooked me up for my bleomycin. The doctor came to see me and decided that I could/should have another course of booster injections and that I must keep an eye on myself (temperature).
I have to say I went home feeling "ill" and crashed out straight away. That was fine, except I woke up over cooked in bed with my temperature varying from 37 - 38, which is too high for a man with no white blood cells. So this set me on a bit of a monitoring panic. However after getting out of bed and slowly "doing stuff" my temp stablised in the low 37's, and after some tea and gentle TV watching it was down to high 36.
I didn't like fainting (actually I didn't know much about it), and my wife said I was snoring!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)