Robin's First Chemo -12/14/04

 
Just a brief update since the last message:

Robin had surgery on Monday (12/13/04) to implant a "Porto-Cath" in her chest (just below her right collarbone). This provides an easy-to-find "plug" for the chemotherapy, with a catheter that runs into her arteries near her heart. The purpose is to ensure they hit the arteries, which can handle the toxins, and avoid "spillage" on other tissue that would be "burned" by the harsh chemicals. The surgery went well, but Robin is such a cheap drunk. The anesthesia knocked her out all day... as a matter of fact, when we got home at about 3:30, she went straight to bed and finally got up for the first time about 10:00pm. We went back to bed at 10:30.

Today (12/14/04) at about 12:30, we met with Robin's Oncologist, Dr. McClure regarding the results of the CT and Bone scans. The bone scans showed nothing but a little arthritis. The CT scan showed one (or more) inflamed lymph nodes in close proximity to her trachea on the right side. It is not positive that this is cancer (but it probably is). The doctor ordered a PET scan which may not prove anything conclusive, but will shed light on what it is. If it responds to the chemotherapy, that will add to the evidence. The only conclusive proof would be a biopsy, which would be invasive, expensive, and really wouldn't change the therapy.

After this consultation, we met with their financial counselor. She explained what the insurance would pay and the amount for which we would be responsible. All I can say is, "Thank Goodness for Insurance!!!" Rough numbers are:

Round of Chemo - $8,000 (Robin needs at least 8

of them)

Red Blood Cell Boost - $3,000 (per injection if needed)

Blood Platelet Boost - $4,000 (per injection if needed)

White Blood Cell Boost - $6,000 (per injection

if needed)

Not to mention the surgery, tests, consultations, etc., etc., etc.

Then we were taken to the Chemotherapy room. Robin sat in a recliner, and they hooked her up to four bags through the Porto-Cath, one at a time. First was a saline solution to flush the catheter. Then they gave her a bag of stuff to keep her from getting sick from the chemo (can't remember the name, but she has similar stuff in pill form to help her for the next few days). Then she received the real deal: a bag of "Docetaxel" followed by a bag of "Cyclophosphamide". It all went really well. The Chemo took about 3.5 hours. When she finally got unhooked, I said, "Shhhh. Listen. I can already hear the cancer cells dying in agony." To which she replied, "All I can hear I my hair screaming, 'Why have you done this to us?'"

We left the facility at about 5:00pm. Robin didn't seem to feel badly until the ride home when she said she was starting to feel a little "woozy". Actually, I think that my driving always makes her feel a little "woozy". I tried to get her to go out to celebrate, but she didn't feel up to it. I took her home and went out to get her prescriptions filled. It is now about 10:30 at night, and she doesn't seem to be feeling much more worse than woozy, with a bad taste in her mouth (and a little sore at the Porto-Cath).

I'll add more when there is more to tell.

Larry

================================================