Chemo. It Ain’t No Party!

I got a call from Dr. Shah this morning to tell me that the 30^th birthday surprise party I was planning for my daughter, Bethany, would have to be cancelled…or at least rescheduled until significantly later.  Sorry, baby girl.  (Yes, she and I have already talked.)  Cancer can be a real party pooper!

This whole trial thing was supposedly going to be a walk in the park!  I give them 21 vials of blood; they make little killer dudes out of my T-cells, put them back in eight weeks later, and whalah!  Well, I learned this morning that it’s not going to be quite that easy.  Even though we expected some possible side effects, we did not expect this….

They have now decided that I will be inpatient and receive a 3-day round of two chemos [fludarabine (which I’ve had) and cytoxan (which I have not)], then a day to receive the cells, and a day to make sure I don’t have any weird side effects from the cells.  So just five days or so, as long as everything goes as planned.  Dr. Shah sounded almost as upset as I was when she told me.  Neither of us wanted to have to go through all this again.  But she said that it would be better because it would make room for the T-cells to do the work they are being created to do.   Well, when you put it that way….

I already know the side effects I have with fludarabine :( and cytoxan is the one that makes you lose your hair!  Man, I just got it all fluffy again!  She said that the dose may not be enough to make me lose it, but we won’t know until we’re there.  So, here we go again.  Low blood counts, fever, nausea, chills, no appetite….  Let me see, chemo or planning my baby girl’s birthday party?  Pretty sure I’d rather plan a party!  But if I have another round of chemo now along with these fighter T-cells, maybe I’ll be planning her 40^th birthday party ten years from now!  That would be most excellent!!

So, sweetheart, plans have changed for now.  But know that Mama’s got Plan B cooking!  Cancer ain’t gonna take the party outta this gal!