The Chemosabe March Cruise

3boys4me

Afternoon sisters,
It's great to hear so many of you are finishing up with Chemo. Congrats! And my thoughts go out to all of you who are suffering from SE's.

I got off at the last port - temporarily. I had my follow up MRI and according to the oncologist, the tumors are gone. This is great news, but the surgeon isn't sure what to do with me. Remember I had neo-adjuvant chemo (chemo prior to surgery) to shrink the tumors. The surgeon is sending me for another mammogram this week. Sounds like his plan is to do a wire localization and an excisional biopsy and also take the sentinel nodes. Hopefully they will come back clear. However, regardless of the results, my oncologist insists I rejoin the cruise soon thereafter, so I will be back to finish the cruise with you.

Hugs to all,
Lisa

rosebud1962

I can't believe it when I read all the "last one". WTG..Congrads and I hope everyone's se are minimal...rosebud

maxgirl

Look at all those LAST ONES!! It seems like we've been stuck on this boat forever -- it's almost hard to believe that week by week we're reaching that last tx. Congratulations to this week's graduates -- Nancy, Lisa, Angel, MissS, dmknanny!

I had a third MUGA scan last week and found out today that the ejection fraction is back up where it was when I started treatment. Phew!

BettyeE: Too funny! I was laughing out loud too. And it is so true -- "they" really have a nerve! LOL

Keenie: Thanks for another good laugh at the mental picture of you baring that boob to the sun for all to see.

MissS: Don't tire yourself out too much with cleaning -- you have such a good excuse for a messy house!

Angel: Sorry you're having to fight both the infection and your allergies on top of everything else. Sounds like you had a nice getaway for your son's birthday.

Melissa: I'm so sorry you've been having such a rough time. No wonder you dread the next treatment. But you'll be able to do it and in a short time not only will the tx be over but so will the side effects. Vent as often as you need to get through this.

Jacque: Thank you so much for that ray of hope about feeling better, and then even better. Can't wait!

dmknanny

Congrats to Grammy Nancy on last tx today - YIPPEE!! - and thanks for keeping track of all of our reservations on this cruise. Congrats also to Lisa, Angel & MissS in joining me at the bar for last call this week - and to BettyE and Marshabel, and everyone else, you'll be joining us soon too!
Am including a picture of my Dad and me taken this past Sunday. He was diagnosed with lung cancer 2 weeks after my bc diag, but has not gone to the Dr and is not having any treatment. I can not argue with him over his decision - we all have to choose what we feel is best for us personally. Anyway, he has not had his hair cut since November (and he's a Navy man who always sported a crew cut) so my daughter, granddaughters and I went to visit them at the beach and she gave him a "trim"........
Since we are both bald and both wear glasses, in case you are unsure as to who is who I am the shorter one (and I'm 5'7")........
Diana [image][/image]

Just had a thought......does our cruise ship have a name? If not, I suggest we christen it the TIT ANTIC ...whaddya think??

I hope everyone who is experiencing SE's has a better week, and NO ONE needs to be hospitalized this time around. You are all in my prayers
Diana

bugs416

I have a quick question: My mom just had her 6th neo adjuvant treatment (doen with 4 AC, now on her 2nd T). My sister, who is visiting her, tells me that my mom has a some redness on her cheeks and nose. Kind of like a sun burn. What is it? Has any one experienced anything similar?

Healing hugs,
Bugs416

dmknanny

my face and neck are flushed for a few days after tx - the onc nurses told me it was expected and OK............I had A/C then Taxol and experienced it with both....

3boys4me

Sometimes the redness can be caused by the steroids. How is she responding to the neo-adjuvant treatment. I also had neo-adjuvant and don't know of many people who are going through the chemo prior to surgery. Hope it is successful.

Anonymous

Bugs,

That's the beautiful Decadron flush that makes us look so healthy.

Diana,

You look so gorgeous!!! I love the Tit Tanic. Perfecto! I feel bad about your dad. My dad died from lung cancer. When he was diagnosed they told him he had about 4 months if he didn't get tx and up to two years if he got it. So he got rads and he ended up dying two weeks after his last tx. His doc said he had responded well and he was shocked. I took my dad to his txments every day for two weeks, and then went back home. Now I'm getting tx in the same place. Kinda sad.

Max,

I didn't wear myself out cleaning. LOL But I had a great time visiting with my friend til the wee hours. Now I need a nap (my new favorite thing). Congrats on your Muga score. I knew you could do better if you studied!

Thanks to all who have congratulated me in advance for graduating Thursday. I wish I could wear a cap and gown to tx. Hee! We need to meet online for a little graduation partay. Everyone is invited, we don't mind if you're slated for summer school.

Love you guys!

Miss S

LisaSDCA

Diana - what a fabulous picture! You look superb! Not at all like a woman nearing the end of a course of chemo. I say again - you are inspiring! All the best to your father - I can imagine it is tough accepting his choice when it is your dad.

My sister, bless her heart, came in from No. CA yesterday afternoon to help me through this infusion tomorrow. She came early because it has gotten so the two days leading up to the treatment are psychologically very difficult for me. I cannot even speak or write about it without retching. Just having her here to keep me distracted and encouraged is priceless.

This morning she received a call that her husband was rushed into emergency surgery at 6 AM. He'd been at the ER since about midnight and it took that long to diagnose an esophageal rupture. It is rare - and very serious. The rupture is life-threatening because digestive contents spill into the chest cavity. Obviously, she is on her way to the airport now. I am writing to ask you for positive thoughts and prayers for my whole family.
My poor distraught sister is upset about leaving me (of course, I sad "GO!Go NOW!") and is anxious to be there by the time he wakes up - and it will be close. Fortunately, SW has hourly flights between SD and SFran, but she is still several hours from possibly being at the hospital.

Prayers, please.

Lisa

GrammyNancy

Well girls I offically graduated 2 hours ago!!!! NoMoCheMo!!!! (I pray) Thank you everyone for your good wishes.

Max...Very nice to hear about your Ejection Fraction returning to pre chemo levels.

Diana...so sorry to hear about your Dad...my prayers are with him. My Mom had lung cancer which mets to the brain...she did do rads to the brain..the doc told her this would give her 3 to 4 months....she so wanted to spend one last Christmas with the family. She did get much better and was shopping with catalogs....you should have seen the credit card bills (thought my Dad would have a heart attack). She did not make it until Christmas...she died on Dec 15th but this was the right choice for her. It is so hard when it is your parent, but we must let them make the decision that is right for them.
Love the name for the crusie ship...it cracked me up! You look marvelous girl!!!!

Bugs...I get that redness on face and neck for about 3 or 4 days after each tx...I'm told that is from the Decadron (a pre med).

Lisa, I'm so sorry to hear about your BIL and I'm praying and sending positive thoughts for your whole family. I'm praying for you that you get over this difficult time and just think tomorrow you'll be a graduate!!!!

Angel and Lisa, I hope you can enjoy your last calls tomorrow...no over indulgence!!! Will be thinking of you Marsha also as you step to the bar. Please make sure those other 2 behave!

Taurie, we haven't heard from you in a while...give us a shout and let us know how you are doing.

Love ya,
Nancy

dmknanny

Nancy
Order whatever you want - this round is on me!

Lisa
Good luck with your infusion tomorrow....you can do it! and I'll be praying for your sister & BIL

Diana

rosebud1962

My prayers are with you Lisa in this time of need. Be the little train that could..Rosebud

fireba

Lisa, I'm wishing the very best for your BIL - and for you tomorrow.

Congrats to everyone who is finishing (and has finished)! Can't believe we're all coming to the end! Of course, this afternoon I walked to pick up my daughter from school and almost passed out in the heat. I had to lie down in the school nurse's office with an ice pack and some apple juice until my husband came to pick me up. Geez.

Sara

jacqniel

I had a lengthy post that disappeared - grrrr . This time I am going to write it in Word and then cut and paste!

Lisa, prayers for your BIL. Please let us know how he is doing. Prayers, too, for you - it won’t be long now! I am sorry your sister can’t be there to hold your hand - but remember, we are all there with you in spirit - so hold onto our many hands!

Diana - it has to be hard accepting your father’s wishes. Prayers for you both. By the way, I don’t know how you wore your hair before, but you look lovely bald . Now, I don’t think you should stay bald (LOL) but I think short hair would be darling on you!

Congrats to ALL who have or will soon finish your chemo! Way to go!!!!! You did it!

Angel - thanks for asking about the wedding. The date is set - July 26, 2008, the church and the reception site (http://www.rochesterartcenter.org/information/building_eventspace.html/ ) booked, bride’s dress ordered, and rehearsal dinner site selected (http://www.victoriasmn.com/). I don’t plan on looking for a dress until closer to the wedding since my weight could fluctuate greatly depending on what chemo/treatments I will be on. It would be LOVELY if I could get on some type of treatment that would allow my hair to come back by then, but what will be will be. I will cross that bridge when we come to it. After all, the wedding isn’t about me.

My son (the one getting married) is coming home to stay for a few weeks between his job in Des Moines, Ia. (his last day is Thursday) and starting law school (first part of August) in St. Paul MN. He will do some landscaping work for a friend of ours here in Omaha to fill his time and earn some extra money. It will be nice to have him home!

I am disappointed, as I was suppose to help judge a July 4th parade in a little suburb of Omaha. I did it last year and it was a hoot! However, after checking my calendar I realized that my chemo is that week, so I won’t be feeling like sitting out in the heat on a platform, making nice with people. Sigh.

One of the reasons I am so chatty tonight is I am trying to keep my mind off of my tests. I had scans today to see if the chemo is working. As you know, waiting is the hardest part of this procedure. Hopefully I will hear tomorrow or Thursday. Until then - I would certainly appreciate prayers!

Anonymous

Lisa,
I am so sorry your BIL is going through this trauma. I am lifting you and your family up in prayer. I'm praying also for the Lord to be of extra comfort to you tomorrow.

Jacque,
Waiting is horrid! I am praying for good news! May the Lord hold you in His hand.

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Psalm 91:1

Miss S

GrammyNancy

Jacque, many prayers being sent for you as you wait. May your test come back quickly and with good info!

Hugs + prayers,
Nancy

playwriter

Prayers for you and your BIL, Lisa. Let us know how he is doing.
Prayers to you, Jacque, may the chemo have zapped everything it was supposed to!

jacqniel

Miss S - thanks for the verse - and everyone else - thanks for the prayers!

The verdict is in - and it, for the most part, is good news. The onc nurse called to say she was relaying a message from my onc (who has been out with surgery and who is now coming to the office to do paperwork, but is not seeing patients, yet).

Here is the message concerning my scans:
* fluid around lungs is less
* there is no fluid around the heart
* there is less activity in the bone
* there are new spots in the lung, but are too small to measure. We will keep an eye on them.

She relayed that my onc said that if the last bit of news made me nervous, he would call me. It makes me nervous, so I expect a call from him today or tomorrow. I assume the treatment will stay the same, but I will wait to see what he has to say when he calls. I have other questions that I forgot to ask the nurse - such as have the lymph glands decreased in size, etc.

The wait is over. The verdict is in. I am happy for the most part, yet a bit concerned. I will just put it in God's hands.

GrammyNancy

Jacque, so happy that your wait is over even though you have some questions unanswered, i'm sure your onc will call you soon. My prayers will continue and if you don't mind I will add you to my church's prayer list. We have some mighty prayer warriors.

Nancy

jacqniel

Nancy - I would appreciate being put on your prayer list. I am a firm believer in the power of prayer.

dmknanny

Jacque,
So glad to hear the news was, for the most part, positive. Will continue to pray the the new spots are nothing to be alarmed about, and that things will be looking better for you every day. At least you know SOMETHING now, and the wait is once again over.
"Cast all your care upon him, for he careth for you" 1 Peter 5:7
Diana

playwriter

Good, positive news, Jacque. All the days for you were written in God's book before one of them came to be. You are such a joy to know.

LisaSDCA

Welcome good news, Jacque - although I know you'd like more questions answered. I am mightily impressed by how quickly you got your results. Also good to hear that your onc. is on his way back!
I am joining my Chemosabe sisters doing the NO MO CHEMO dance. It was a tough infusion (why would I expect otherwise?!?) - we arrived at 9:15am and got home about 4:15pm. That did include about 15 min. waiting around the pharmacy for them to figure out screw-ups that they had had all day to solve.
ANYWAY - I went out waving to all the staff, even did a little shimmy-shuffle-off 'dance'. I had taken in a batch of brownies, so they were all in good spirits, too.
Before my tx., I spoke to my onc. about just continuing by adding a quick course of cisplatin or the like, that have shown to be effective against triple negs. - just for insurance. He said "Unequivically NO" I said okay - then when can I get this port out?
He wants me to wait 8 weeks for my blood to settle down (both my white and red cells are really whacked out) and then I can do it. Well, that's getting close to when I hope to be beginning my surgeries, so I asked if there was any reason they couldn't just rip it out during bilat. mastectomies. "Ya know, that's a realy good idea!" he replied.
So that's the plan. Once I finally find a DIEP surgeon.
Then unfortunately, we had to confront that my tumor markers are elevated. Not high, but still, they really shouldn't be. phooey So we will redo them in a month. I've also got orders for a bone scan to check out why I have daily pelvic pain (for months, but getting worse, and my gyno exam is a-ok). Kaiser does no scans at all during staging, so this should be uhm, interesting.
Came home to another gorgeous basket of goodies from my sister (despite the fact that she has had her whole life in complete upheaval these past couple of days). The big balloon says CONGRATULATIONS! on it and the basket is filled with gourmet munchies and lots and lots of chocolates (truffles, bark, etc). I took the balloon outside and tied it to the rosebush climbing on my front porch for all to see.



I want to really thank you all for your god wishes and prayers for my deaar BIL. My sister arrived as they finished his third surgery. The mortality rate is nearly 70% in cases like his, so the first few days are crucial. He seems to be holding his own in the ICU, but is being held in a coma, on a ventilator for now. They may attempt to slowly bring him out of it tomorrow. He will not be able to eat for at least three weeks and will be hospitalized for at least a month. Yikes. Prayers are greatly appreciated. The Lord doesn't even hear me say diddly-squat about me these days - it's all supplication for strength for Ellen and healing for Walt.
Thank you, sisters.
Sorry this ended up so long. Wow.
Lisa

dmknanny

Lisa,
So happy to hear your last infusion is OVER and your are DANCING the HAPPY DANCE! I go in 3 hours for my last one.......I baked blueberry and lemon poppy seed muffins so I hope they go easy on me! I don't know why I baked them yesterday - I should have known I would be up all night tonight from the decadron and they could have been fresh from the oven! Oh well.......your basket is beautiful and your sister is a kind, compassionate person-must run in the family. Thank God her husband is at least holding his own.....he will be surrounded by many prayers to help them all get through this........
Diana

rosebud1962

Congrats Lisa on finishing! I can picture Snoopy in my mind when we talk about a happy dance..lol So happy to hear that your BIL is holding his own, he's in my paryers..Hugs Rosebud

Anonymous

Jacque,

I hope you have heard from your onc, or at least will hear sometime today. Glad the news was mostly good, and at least was not terrible. You've been on my mind and I have definitely been lifting you up to the Lord.

Lisa,

Your sister rocks! I have learned from her without ever meeting her. I know this much; when someone I love goes through something prolonged, I am going to continue to remember them with gifts all through it.

I have been praying for your family, also. I know your BIL is in a very risky situation. Your sister must be beside herself. And YOU with elevated tumor markers! I know they can be effected by strange things (foods, medications, etc) and fervently pray that this is the case for you.

Congrats on No Mo CheMo. I am following Diana to the Cancer Center and will be joining you and the others this afternoon.

The Lord is with us and if we can keep our eyes on Him, He will give us peace.

Love you all,

Miss S

playwriter

Lisa, we pray for complete healing for Walt and peace of mind and comfort for yr sis and the whole family. God is a big God!
A verse to claim on Walt's behalf;
Psalm 91:16 "I will satisfy him with a long life, and show him My salvation."

jacqniel

Congrats to all who are doing the NO MO CHEMO dance!

Lisa, What a beautiful basket - and a beautiful sister! I know that it is worrisome to have our markers go up, but they don't necessarily mean that there is more cancer. Chemo does weird things to our bodies, that is for sure! I am glad that your onc will run tests to put your mind (and ours) to rest. Keep us posted!
Prayers for no evidence of disease for you and God's healing grace for your BIL.

My mom has surgery today at the med center here in Omaha. She has a knee replacement that went bad and is infected. They have to take it out and leave it out for three months to allow the infection to heal (Yikes!). She will have to be in the hospital or a care facility during this time. Her other leg was amputated three years ago and she wears a prosthesis. Poor thing won't have a leg to stand on (bad pun, I know, but I get silly when I am worried). Seriously, though, I would appreciate prayers for her, too. She has been through so much with health problems in her life but continues to have a bright outlook and just keeps on going - just like the energizer bunny.

Thanks to you all for your prayers, thoughts and verses - I do so appreciate them. No word from my onc, yet. Hopefully today!?!

GrammyNancy

Lisa, Allelulia, No Mo CheMo...dance girl dance! Prayers continue for Walt, your sister and you. What a wonderful sister you have...beautiful basket, so thoughtful and with her mind on so many things.

MissS and Diana, good luck today and will be waiting to hear how you danced the dance!!!!

Prayers, love and hugs to all!
Nancy

dmknanny

MissS
Put on your party dress and meet me in the ballroom - we're doing the DONE DANCE!! Yahoo!

Diana