My Prognosis

Before leaving for Panama, I had to have another round of CT and bone scans. It was the usual scans that I have every three months. I had mentioned that some of my blood levels were going up and were unexplained. If nothing came out on the scans, Dr. K wanted to have some other tests done.

Well, I got a call the day of my scans. Dr. K had gotten the results. She needed to get in contact with me because she would be gone for two weeks. My cancer had spread to my liver. There were spots on my liver that had not been there before. She ordered a CT-guided biopsy.

The week before leaving for Panama, I had to go in for a CT-guided biopsy of my liver. They sedate you with "twilight" anesthesia. You are out but they can ask you to do different things and you can respond. Then using the CT, they guide a needle to a specific area to get a sample of the cancer.

For my first CT-guided biopsy (of the cancer in my spine/hips), I was knocked out and could not remember anything. For this biopsy, I remember waking up a few times and looking at the doctor. He was guiding the needle into those spots on my liver. He said something and then I felt a jabbing pain. It hurt. I was in and out of consciousness. I kept hoping that I wouldn't wake up or remember anything. I do remember.

It took two hours for me to wake up from the sedation. I felt achey - your liver is on your right side under the rib cage. Thankfully, they didn't have to go between my ribs to get to my liver. If that had happened, recovery would have taken longer.

Now what?

Tomorrow, I will be going to see my oncologist. She wants to start oral chemo with a drug called Xeloda. My close friend has gone through chemo and she said that the oral type is a lot better than the intravenous kind. Very thankful for that.

I was grocery shopping when I got a call from the pharmaceutical company that is shipping the Xeloda to me. It was a bit scary. For example, they said that it is ok for me to handle the medicine because I will be taking it. But, if someone else has to handle it for me, they have to wear gloves. There is nausea, mouth sores, hand/foot syndrome, lowered immune system...

Am I afraid? Hello......... I would be lying if I said I wasn't.

Please pray for me. Also for my family. They have to watch me and take up the slack for what I can't do for them.