January 13th update

Hey everyone,

Yesterday, we went to the doctor, and it seems that last week was the test of how Laurie’s body would react to the chemotherapy, and that period is now over. The rest of the cycle includes this week, when her resistance is down and then the 3rd week, which is just a week of recovery. This week, since her white blood count is down, she has to be careful about being around crowds or lots of germs and then next week is just a week of recovery. Her blood levels, which are good according to the doctor, are noted below:

Laurie has had to eat very small amounts every 1-2 hours during the past week, She can now eat regular meals, and is maintaining the nightly Ativan pill for nausea, just in case. The doctor believes the second cycle will be very similar to the first, but the 3rd and 4th may be slightly different due to the cumulative effect of the medications in her body. She is also supposed to drink lots of liquids so that the medication does not "sit" in the system too long (bad for kidneys) so she has learned that if she walks in the morning about 2-3 miles, then she can drink 1 liter of water rather easily, and then can aim for another 1-2 liters the rest of the day.

Last night she went to the “Look Good ... Feel Better” seminar which teaches make-up hints for when you lose your eyebrows, etc. She said she tried to pick up some hints and ideas but believes she will probably need help when that time actually comes. There were 6 other cancer patients there, 5 with breast cancer. According to those with more experience, the hair will go by next week, and then the eyebrows between the 2rd and 3rd treatments. However, as treatments can vary from weekly to every 2 weeks to every 3 weeks, and every person reacts differently, I'm not sure these measurements are very meaningful. Laurie also found out that the Neulasta shot I gave her 24 hours after chemo (to stimulate the growth of healthy white blood cells) did give others problems, but Laurie had none so again we feel blessed that it worked well for her.

Tonight we were treated to a delicious meal provided by Jean and Michelle from Floris ES which included meat Stromboli w/ extra tomato sauce for dipping, tossed salad, and cup cakes. Yum Yum!

Thanks to everyone for the emails, voice mails and comments on the blog. We know her schedule with the doctors, disability and insurance companies doesn't make it easy to catch her in "real time" but each prayer and thought does give her extra strength. We are so excited that she gets to go 14 whole days without another doctor visit. Woo Hoo!

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