Friday was Mom's last Chemotherapy treatment! That is something to celebrate! This will be her last time dealing with the chemo side-effect cycle!!! Everything went relatively smoothly during the treatment, it was later in the evening that the excitement happened.
We had our usual 7.5 hour day at the chemo lab. It started with her blood tests, a visit with the doctor and then off to her treatment. She got in the chemo lab about 10am and we left at 4:30pm. Her sugar level was elevated as in the past few weeks, due to the steroids. Dr. Bagai was concerned with that, so the nurse kept testing her sugar level and Mom got a few small doses of insulin. He also told her not to take the steroids at home the day after treatment. Mom was happy with that because the ups and downs of the sugar-level really messes up her system. Mom's red blood cell count was just a tad low of normal this time around too, but the doctor didn't seem concerned. Knowing that this was her last session, just made the time drag. We all wanted it over. Mom, Dad and I struck up a conversation with the patient sitting next to her and his family. They have been there the past 3 treatments. He has lung cancer and one more treatment to go. That helped make the afternoon go by quicker. Mom didn't have a reaction to the taxotere this time around. I kept watching her for reactions and this time, thankfully, she was fine. We have an appointment for the follow-up and next steps on June 1st. The doctor did mention that for sure she would be on a hormone treatment for the next 5 years. More on that when we get the official word from Dr. Bagai.
Now for the excitement! I drove Mom home from treatment. We got home and she got settled. I headed off to work for the evening at Steinmart, which is across the street from my parent's condo. I get a call from Dad at 8:15pm saying that Mom has been having a severe nose bleed for the last hour. Dad called the doctor and he said to call 911 and go to the hospital. I got there as the paramedics had arrived. I helped answer questions as they got Mom on the stretcher. Her nose was still bleeding. So much so, that she couldn't change out of her nightgown (which was covered with blood drops) or slippers. I gathered her robe and a jacket, then Dad and I headed to Fairview Hospital. . Mom's nose stopped bleeding in the emergency room. We settled in for a wait to see the doctor. I think that they were waiting for her nose to stop bleeding, before they did the visit. The doctor said that the nose bleed wouldn't be because of the chemotherapy, but her system is compromised, which does make these types of things happen. He said that would take some blood tests to make sure that the blood was clotting okay and let us decide if he would "pack" her nose or leave it as is until she saw an Ear, Nose and Throat specialist. Mom opted not to have the nose packed. Mom was released 2.5 hours after she got to the hospital. I dropped off Mom and Dad by midnight. As Mom was getting ready for bed, the nosebleed started again. It kept going for an hour, before she was able to get it to stop. Thankfully, the nosebleed hasn't come back since. What a day!!
I took mom to get her neulasta shot yesterday afternoon back at Fairview Hospital. Then, she wanted to run a few errands. She was doing pretty good. She has to get through this side-effect cycle and then she will be on the road to getting her health back. I have to say that I'm glad that I won't have to go back to the chemo lab. Not that we didn't get great care there, but it has too many negative connotations for me. I want to focus on the positive.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
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