Chemo Round #7

I'm a total wuss.

This morning I woke up dreading this next round of chemo. While the nausea is more or less under control, it lasts longer and longer each treatment. I also had some stomach "issues" last week (which was supposed to be my "good week".) All of this makes me want to finish chemo as fast as possible.

Then I look at my friend Robert (who I bumped into during round #6 of chemo). A year and a half ago, Robert was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer of the colon, peritoneum, and appendix. He was told he had four months to live. However, Robert is a fighter. He tracked down a specialist, had several major operations, several scary sounding procedures (e.g., Interperitoneal Heated Chemotherapy with MitoMycin-C and Deep Vein Thrombosis) , and chemo - lots of chemo. When I saw Robert two weeks ago, he was on round #17 (that's right, seventeen).

This of course proves I'm a wuss. Here I am whining about eight treatments and Robert has endured more than double. He is a brave man. I suck.

However, I may have the chance to redeem myself: today Dr. G, my oncologist, talked about the possibility of doing a total of twelve rounds of chemotherapy (i.e., four more after the "last" one).

Honestly, I'm not thrilled by this, but if it will extend my time in remission, I'll do it. And maybe, just maybe, I can be brave like Robert.

Anti-bucket List

Way back in April, when I started this blog, my friend John suggested that I make a list of all of the things I want to do when treatment is over. (John knows about this since he's had two rounds of treatment for testicular cancer.)

Sadly, my list always contains vague stuff like "watch my son Kyle grow-up and become an adult" and "grow old with my wife Marjorie."

Well, I finally have something concrete: "watch Kyle meet his grandma Vicki." Vicki lives in Australia and since it's a 24 hour flight to visit her, we haven't been yet.

A few months back, Marjorie suggested a solution: have everybody meet halfway in Hawaii. So, we are planning a two week vacation in early June of 2009 in Hawaii. I've been looking at renting a house in either Ka'a'awa, Oahu or Kailua, Oahu. This should be less expensive than staying at a resort and it should give Kyle and Vicki plenty of time to get to know each other.

However, I'm open to suggestions. If you have any advice about the Hawaiian islands (e.g., where to stay or what to see), I'd love to hear it.

Oh, and I'll try an add a few more things to my anti-bucket list.

Round #6 of Chemo

Yesterday I started round #6 of Chemotherapy.

The good news is I only have two more rounds after this; my oncologist, Dr. G., says we will not do the "bonus" four rounds.

The bad news is I started feeling queasy before I left the treatment room. Usually I don't get nauseous until the next day or later. I have a bad feeling this round is gonna be rough.

Round #5 was slightly better than round #4 - I didn't call Ralph, but I was really queasy for three and a half days (not much fun).