Spring in Regina

The boys are ready for the football season!

Well, I am recovering from the viral infection although the cold part seems to be hanging on, which is yucky, but managable.

I saw my oncologist today, and things appear stable, and I continue with the same treatment, same dosage of Xeloda. I will be rescanned later in May to see if it is still working to keep me stable.

Cheers to all, and thanks for looking in on me!

A New Week Ahead

Well it was a tough week for me. A nasty viral infection certainly took hold and had me out for the count for several days. Likely it doesn't help that I continue to take my chemo, which also increases fatigue and general crapitis feeling.

I ended up on two antibiotics and the blasted fever continued on into Friday, causing me much angst, phone calls to cancer clinic, and some negotiating to save me an even more dreaded trip back to ER..... I should have gone Friday night, but in reality I could not face the Friday night crowd, so I packed up ready to go, then I stayed home, watched my temp, monitored myself and decided every hour what to do... and then near morning, the temperature just improved! Spent the rest of the weekend in bed, and finally today, I think I am on the mend!

So, this week is looking up! It's a new week, hence the spring like floral photo......And the good news? Well, despite tremendous amounts of hacking, coughing and nose blowing, I was able to breath relatively well.... So I think that is a good sign of things to come, at least that is my determination.

Cheers to all for a peaceful, virus free week. Wash your hands like maniacs, this last one hit all of us Schweitzers despite our OCD-like behaviors around the hand-washing.

Joanne

Detour - another blasted trip to ER

Well, a very slight setback. I developed a fever the other night, and when you are on chemo, a fever is never ignored.

The above picture, of course, is generous, the actual number of medical personnel I came into contact with after 6 hours was actually very scanty and they weren't smiling either. Actually, the lab and x-ray techs were very cheerful, the rest, not so.

So.... a lousy night was spent in ER, while they checked me up and down for infection, x-rays, blood tests, and blood cultures, urine tests, etc.... All my tests came back perfectly good, but since I obviously have picked up something, I am on anti-biotics as prevention. ER is a terrible place for cancer patients, because you are not exactly an emergency, you are a "Maybe" emergency, and immune suppressed at that, so in danger of picking up all the crap floating around the emergency room. But that is the system and so that is how it goes!

We've all had a nasty cold and cough.... and the combination of cough with my lung problems has been particularly nasty. But, hopefully it will improve soon, and I am thankful it was nothing serious. The coughing is interupting my sleep tonight (that's why I'm up and on here!), but otherwise I "feel" very well.

My good friend Janice is here visiting me fromWinnipeg, what a treat....

And, Mom and Dad arrive home from the USA tomorrow! It will be great to see them back at

"home"...

Monday Update

Seems like Monday might be a good day to try and update my blog and my "book of the week" (see link to the right of the page). I'll do my best..... that way you don't have to keep checking in....

So, on this Monday, well...... everyone in my house has been sick with quite a bad cold & cough.... Michelle and Craig too..... I seem to be spared the worst of it, but I do have a sore throat and a bit of congestion and extra cough (which sucks since that is also a symptom of my lung status, it plays with my mind).

Gord recovered quite well, but Brian has actually stayed home from school even after Easter Break, and is feeling really tough. So we are mostly laying low, watching movies and keeping it low key.

The U of M pair are in the midst of finals... I'm looking forward to seeing them when they are done!

That's it for now... Joanne

Scan results: Stable

Well, that's the word: no change since the last scan. Although it seems odd, this is a "good" news scenario, since at the very least, the Xeloda is working to keep the cancer from growing. Of course, "better" news would be for all the cancer to disappear, but that is a bit of a reach for just 3 cycles of a gentler chemo. I do still have some symptoms (cough, shortness of breath) so this result is more or less what I expected, and I am very grateful that the disease has been halted, at least for the moment. AND.. everything else (liver, bone etc...) remains clean.

So, my oncologist (Dr. Chal Chal) is very happy with both the results and with my improved functioning. And I am doing better on a daily basis, just doing the ordinary things of life. He is optimistic for continued improvement, and will rescan after 3 more cycles.

So, I continue with the same chemo, Xeloda, same dose.... I will likely have a bit of trouble with my feet, but we will keep the dosage as high as possible for as long as possible.

Thank you to everyone who keeps checking in on me and for your posts, too.... I feel like a very ordinary person, just doing what each of us would do in the same circumstance, so I feel that praise is unwarranted and I can't really imagine you are talking about me! But it is so nice to see your responses.....

So, for me it is a time of gratitude and patience. "Hope is patience with the lamp lit" - Tertullian.

Cheers - Joanne

Shopping fun

OK, this was a lovely, huge fitting room in Nordstrum Rack - designer section - where we learned about how some fitting rooms are nice and luxurious, unlike the dumpy variety we are usually in. Success all around, as all the girls (including Kelly) found a dress. The Sherlocks in particular will be stunning at upcoming weddings, graduations, etc...

And thank you to Loretta, who gave me a little shopping spree as a gift, what fun, and here is the proof that I really was in the store, and had a GREAT time choosing a gift. And yes, it was St. Patrick's Day, and we are nothing if not faithful to the wearing of the green.

This is my week off Xeloda, and I am quite sure that I am feeling better, people keep telling me I sound better, and I am certainly a little more active, which is very enjoyable for me. My feet have begun to hurt (as expected for the side effect called Hand-Foot Syndrome), but that will be managed with dosage, as long as the drug is working. That story will be told soon, as I have a CT scan on Thursday, and will know the results on Tuesday, April 10.

In the meantime, for Easter, Gord, Brian and I are headed to Minot, ND along with our friends, Anne, Chuck, Ryan and Chad. Michelle and Craig are unable to make it, but they were home this past weekend. Making a trip to North Dakota for Easter brings back many fond memories of all the years we did that as a family along with the Reidy family, so I will be happily thinking of that all weekend. Wonderful memories, I hope our kids have as much fun as we did back then, and the grown-ups hope to get a few hands of bridge in by the pool as well!

And of course, there is a Target in Minot, and who isn't happy just being in a Target store?

Happy Easter all... I will check in next week with the results of my CT scan.