Radiation Time

Tomorrow will mark my first full week of radiation treatments. If I could sum it all up for you, all I would have to say is this: it's a piece of cake! All of the worrying I was doing when the thought of radiation was first brought up now seems unnecessary. Sure, it's a serious procedure, but it's nothing compared to chemotherapy!

The entire thing takes about 10-15 minutes. All I do is lay still on a table (in my mold!). I don't feel a thing. I have have to go every morning on weekdays for 17 treatments. My last one will be on March 4 (which is also my brother's birthday - he told me that would be the best birthday present he could get! Aww).

I don't have any side effects yet, but the doctor told me that I may experience some fatigue and some skin changes in the areas where the radiation occurs (mainly, some skin discoloration). These don't worry me. Like I said, a little fatigue is nothing compared to being nauseous, bloated, tired, cranky, and miserable 24-7! And the best part of getting radiation? No needles!!!

I don't mean to take this procedure lightly; I am aware that getting radiation includes some risks. However, I can't help but feel overjoyed that the worst is over. In three weeks, I will be finished with all of my cancer treatments. March 10th I will have the last appointment with my oncologist until June.

Eight months have passed since this entire journey began and I can finally say that I'm feeling like myself again! Not only does my hair continue to grow in, but my eyebrows and my eyelashes have also come back! I don't need to wear false lashes or pencil in my eyebrows to look human. Of course, this means that hair growth has restored to my whole body. I'm back to shaving my underarms and legs every day, just like old times! (I never thought I'd be so happy about THAT, but I am!)

I suppose the little things mean so much more to me now. Like walking up stairs -- I can do that!!! And eating?! I can do that too! I don't need to take any medications, and hey! I can even go to the gym and take yoga classes now because I have the energy to! I've been waiting for this for such a long time, and I'm overjoyed that that time is finally here.

Next Question: Radiation or Not?

Aaaaaand I'm alive!

This week I feel like a human again. Human? you ask. Yes, human. This week is what I would call one of my "human weeks," in which I have energy and feel like my normal self. Days like these feel great - my stomach doesn't bother me, I'm not high on medication all day or drowsy, and I enjoy my food. I wish every day could be like this!

But alas, this Friday I will have to go in again for another treatment - treatment number 5b, to be exact (or #10). After this Friday I will only have TWO more chemo treatments to deal with. Good God the finish line is so close!!!

My next steps are to decide whether I will be receiving any radiation after my treatment. Last week I met with a radiation specialist (who interestingly resembled David Bowie) and we went over my options. Of course, he recommended I get a full dosage of radiation after my treatment, especially because I have a large, bulky mass (tumor) in my chest cavity. However, since I am responding so well to my chemotherapy, my oncologist might recommend something different, whether that be no radiation or a lighter dosage of it. It's really up for the radiation specialist and my oncologist to determine after I get my PET scan results at the end of my chemotherapy treatment.

Of course, this all brings up many thoughts. Mainly, what's the risk involved? Well, if I don't get radiation, there is a high chance - I was told an estimated 40 percent chance - that the Hodgkins can grow back in the same area. If I do get radiation in that area, it will kill any remaining cells, however, it will increase my chances of developing secondary cancers in the future such as breast, lung, or throat cancer - at about an estimated 20 percent chance. So what's the lesser of two evils here?

Here's what I was told about the radiation:

If I get a full round of radiation, it will be about 15-17 treatments, which would take place once a day, every day Monday through Friday (so it would be about three weeks). The treatments themselves would take about five minutes and be just like getting an x-ray. The radiation specialist told me that the side effects would be much less severe than chemo, mostly being just fatigue and maybe some light burning on my skin.

The hard part is to think that after all this is over, there is still a semi-high chance that in my future I will have to go through this all over again, despite what methods I decide on after chemo. I'm not happy about that. However, I am just trying to focus on getting over this hurdle now so I can start living a healthier lifestyle. I need to take one day at a time!

I have a tremendous amount of respect and trust for my oncologist and nurses, so I am sure that together we can all come up with the best possible course of action to take after chemo.

**note: I'd love to hear opinions/experiences about radiation from anyone reading this. Not sure who comes across this blog, but I'm interested to hear what others have to say!

Almost In Remission!

Great news - my halfway-mark PET scan revealed that I made "remarkable progress through chemotherapy" and my doctors said that my tumor is now so small that I am close to remission! The best part? I won't likely need any radiation after my treatment because I'm responding so well to the chemotherapy.

Well this just ROCKS!!!

That being said, I received my 7th treatment yesterday and it went by so fast! Why? Well, my long awaited desire to make cancer crafts finally happened! There is a cart full of crafts that I saw once but never again until yesterday, so I took full advantage. I painted this little picture frame (yes, being CRAFTY at CHEMO!).

Between the good scan results, the crafts and the controlled substances I was on for my nausea, I was having a grand 'ol time!

Anyway, this means that I've now completed 7 out of 12 chemo treatments. I'M OVER THE HUMP! Thanks to all my friends and supporters I have been nipping this thing in the butt!

Special thanks to the following people who have come with me so far and sat through hours of chemotherapy with me:

(I am now taking offers for further visits. All I can offer you are some awesome crafts and a Jamba Juice! And my ETERNAL LOVE AND DEVOTION.) Surprisingly, this is the same thing Satan lures people in with. No fears, Mandy = NOT Satan.


My grandma - first visit
My brother, Jaymes - 3rd visit
Bryce S. - 4th
Rob M. - 5th visit
Danny C. - 6th visit
Alessondra A. - 7th

(I've only been to one treatment alone, but my friends have made it point to keep my company ever since then! You guys are the best.)


Hey do me a favor: ***SUBSCRIBE TO MY BLOG!!!*** See right there in the upper right of this blog? ----> DO IT! :) It will take two seconds.

Time for a PET scan!

Since I'm half finished with chemotherapy, the next step is to get a new PET scan done! Let's hope that the melon-sized tumor in my chest cavity is MUCH smaller by now.

The chemicals may be killing my cancer, but as you can see, they haven't managed to kill my sense of humor. (Some might argue against the "sense of humor" part. Don't worry, the chemicals haven't leeched into my brain either.)

New port, same attitude.

Good news! I'm officially one third of the way finished with my treatment! Take that motherf****r Alice!!!

Today was chemo treatment number 4 of 12. Doesn't seem like much, but knowing that I am one third of the way finished makes everything feel so much better and definitely keeps my spirits high!

Today was also the first time I used my new port. I had it surgically implanted in my chest yesterday. It makes chemo SO much easier (despite all the pain caused by the poking and prodding it took to access it under all the swelling. FUN TIMES!).

For the past several treatments I had been receiving my chemo through IVs, which hurt my veins for days after. It also took much longer for me to receive my treatment. I'm not going to lie - the drugs are some serious stuff! It burned in my veins so much that the nurses had to slow down my dosages. So what would normally take an hour took two and a half. What a great way to spend a Friday.

So hooray for the port! Anyone getting chemo should have one. It makes life a whole lot easier. Now time to celebrate!

Ready, set, CHEMO.

I'm about to get my first chemo treatment and I'm not really sure what to expect.

I mean, I'm going to be hooked up to a machine. Am I going to turn into a vegetable? And I going to be sick? Will I be the youngest person there?

The one thing I'm really concerned about is whether I will feel okay enough to go to my friend's birthday party tomorrow night. Oh, the worries of a 22-year-old cancer patient! Hah.

Knowing me, I will do whatever it takes to feel okay. I hate feeling down and being negative. So bring on the drugs! And I'm ready to give cancer a run for it's money. I am beyond determined to live as normal life as possible so this is a good first start. Wish me luck :)