Only July 9, 2010 I had my fourth intravenous Ixabepalone chemo treatment. I remember that both Dr. Paul (Rose Med) and Dr. Koenig (MD Anderson) said I could do “4-6 treatments”. When I went in I asked him if it could be my last one and he said YES!!!

This was my final chemo treatment. In one year I have recieved 10 chemo treatments. Since August 2009, that puts me at 9 months of chemo with a 3-month break (during the time I didn’t know it was coming back). It was bitter-sweet, teary eyed moment. My friend Krystal accompanied me:

Dr. Paul. He’s not always a midget:

Sarah, one of my nurses. It was cool because we were close to the same age:

However, this does not mean that I’m now off of the oral chemo – Xeloda. You know, my BFF that causes the awesome hand / foot syndrome. I’ll have to stay on this a few more months until I finish radiation. This is also why it’s hard for me to play gigs this summer.

OUCH:

Warning: this is not pretty. I am showing you this solely for educational reasons. I am not asking for your sympathy. The hand / foot syndrome also causes extreme peeling of the skin – no matter how much moisturizer you use. This occurs after the pain goes away. It is completely and utterly bizarre. For me it means holding off on pedicures or wearing those cute sandals I bought last summer. Good times:

My side effects from this last treatment were the absolute worst. I haven’t been completely honest (or telling) of every single thing I experience. But I will say that for the first time out of the 10 treatments, I found myself vomiting. Whereas in the past it would be a week of nausea. This lasted off and on all last week. In addition, my dehydration was so bad that I had to go into Rose Med 3 times last week for fluids. This is despite how much water I drank. Overall I received about 3.5 liters of saline. Is this behind me now? ABSOLUTELY. I am fully recovered and am thankful I may never have to experience that again. Good thing I stopped at four, huh?

I am not always happy:

This also changes my plans for Houston. There’s a certain time frame you must begin radiation following the completion of chemo. So instead of arriving October 1st and enjoying the month of Colorado’s beautiful Sept like I had originally planned – I now have to be there August 24th. I will be there for 7 weeks (47 days) from Aug 24 – Oct 9th and receive 6 weeks of daily radiation to my left breast (minus weekends). This is crazy. It only gives me one month to plan and prepare and find a place to “live” for 7 weeks. It’s been very stressful.

I have applied at the Church Apartment Ministries for an apartment for $39 or less a day. No religious affiliation to their church required. However I am on a waiting list and there’s no guarantee. Thus, there’s a chance I’ll be paying in the ballpark of $55 a day – which is actually the low-end you’ll find with extended stay hotels or furnished apartments. Let’s say that the church apartment thing doesn’t work out. I’m looking at spending around $2,700 total for a place to stay. Insurance does not cover lodging.

On July 30th I finally get my arm port removed!!!! That thing has wreaked havoc on me. The incision never fully healed, it created skin rashes due to my allergy to tape on my skin (certain Band-Aids) and it caused a clot. Duuuude! I will have to stay on blood thinners for 6 months. I didn’t have a port last time so thankfully I was spared. It’ll be a good day when I get this dorky thing out of me. Sorry guys, I’m NOT a fan!! It’s the damn truth. Hey, just being honest.

Here’s yet another non-awesome photo. No sympathy please. This is an example of the havoc. It took a while for the bruising to go away:

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So guys… I provided some telling photos here. But I want to reiterate that I’m NOT asking for sympathy. This is merely to tell my story, educate, and, for me… to be completely honest about what this journey is really like.

Let’s just say, although the facilities were nice, the staff was compassionate and total professionals and they took care of me, I’m happy to not have to sit in one of these nice chairs or see this room again! Yay for me!!

Now onto Houston. A new adventure awaits…

Elana