July

• I finished my first cycle of the chemo pill last week, had a week off, and started the second cycle yesterday
• The pill thought I was feeling too good, I guess, and decided to make life more "interesting" for me
• It's making me nauseated now, so that even water makes me gag
• And my belly is so swollen, I think the baby might arrive any minute
• Good thing I'm not craving pickles or I'd be worried!
• Maybe tomorrow will be a better day

• Well, it took a few days, but the pill finally decided to behave itself
• My nausea has gone away and I'm feeling much better
• The hives had started to come back, but now they're gone, too
• I like it when my life is less "interesting"

• Did I say that the pill was behaving itself??
• It decided to go after my feet and hands in a big way, making them burn and very uncomfortable
• I was keeping ice on my feet all day to help with the burning, but when the skin started to crack on my hands I called the oncologist
• He said to stop taking the pills
• I was due to stop in a couple of days anyway
• I'm feeling much better now - my feet and hands are back to normal
• On Monday I will go in for another round of CAT scans
• Kathy will be coming up on Tuesday and we'll all go to the oncologist next Thursday to get the scan results
• Keep those prayers coming for a good report!

• Today we went to see the oncologist and got mostly good news and some not-so-good news
• My largest liver tumor is still the same size, but my other tumors have shrunk in half
• One of the tumors is not even visible any more
• I'm doing so well that I don't have to have another CAT scan for three months!
• No more barium smoothies for three whole months!
• In six weeks I'll go back just for blood work and to see the doctor, but no scans
• The not-so-good news is that the chemo pills are making me feel bad
• I'm going to hang in there and get all the TLC I can to get through this
• The oncologist wants to keep me on the pills since they're working so well, it's just a matter of whether I can tolerate the side effects
• I'm sure going to give it a try

• I went to see the surgeon this week for a follow-up
• Everything from the surgery is healing very well
• The oncologist's office says the results of my latest liver function test weren't conclusive, so next Wednesday I will go to a specialist to have my liver secretions tested
• That nasty chemo is still showing me who's boss
• This past week has been pretty rough, with lots of pains in my belly, losing balance when I walk, and absolutely no energy
• I've been sleeping most of the day, and all night, too
• I'm so glad I'm still getting cards and emails from all of you or I wouldn't have made it through last week
• Today I'm feeling much better - I'm "walkin' and talkin'" again
• Maybe Tom and I will even be able to go out to dinner tonight
• I bet my cook would like to have the night off!