I've been slack with adding new posts, but there's really not much to say and life is back to its old frantic pace so there's not much time to add anything even if there was something worthy of note.
In April I had a few check up tests - a heart scan, a lung function test and a CT scan as well as the usual blood test. I went to see Dr Giri for the results and everything was fine. My lung function was 110% of whatever is normal for females my weight, height and age so that was good news.
In late May I ran a half marathon (21.1 km) and managed to finish in 2 hours, 7 minutes and 31 seconds, a time I'm pretty proud of. It was a good course, nice weather and I had trained fairly well in preparation. After that I didn't run for a while but I'm back to training again now - aiming for two runs in August.
On Monday this week I went to see Dr Giri again and my blood test was all ok.
It's been over two years since I finished my treatment. In some ways it feels that long because it's like it never happened, but in other ways it's a surprise that it was that long ago because it was all such a big part of my life.
In those last couple of years I have heard of and know quite a few other people who have been diagnosed with cancer and every time is a small of a reminder of my own disease. I think I said it ages ago in my original blog but if you, or a family member of yours, is ill for a while and you can't work it out and you go to the doctor and try something and still don't get better, you need to keep going back to the doctor to work out what it is. Keep a diary of your symptoms and weird things you're aware of in your body and get it sorted out.
Acknowledge that you will die. Work out what that means for your life. Make the changes you need to in order to have no regrets. Sort out what you think about God and what implications that has because you don't want to be caught short with that stuff. Morbid again, I know, but it's true and I don't think people think it through enough. I'm still working bits of it out, it's not a fast process, but it needs to be considered.
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Monday, March 5, 2012
Blog stats
Blogger has a new format from when I started my initial blog and it is now quite easy to see statistics on when my blog(s) have been viewed, where the people who view them are in the world, which pages have been viewed the most etc...
My original blog continues to have a few visits most weeks. I don't know if that's people seeing it in passing or if they read it or what, but it's a bit strange. The post that's been seen the most is 'A very bad spray tan' which is unfortunate for me because I think it contains a very unflattering photo of me covered in betadine in the hospital.
I suspect this one comes up when people search for things like 'bad spray tan' in Google. That's awkward because I'm fairly sure they're not looking for a horrid-looking, post-operational cancer patient in a hospital gown.
My original blog continues to have a few visits most weeks. I don't know if that's people seeing it in passing or if they read it or what, but it's a bit strange. The post that's been seen the most is 'A very bad spray tan' which is unfortunate for me because I think it contains a very unflattering photo of me covered in betadine in the hospital.
I suspect this one comes up when people search for things like 'bad spray tan' in Google. That's awkward because I'm fairly sure they're not looking for a horrid-looking, post-operational cancer patient in a hospital gown.
Chemo fatigue
Since December, there isn't much to report. Christmas was celebrated. The four of us enjoyed a week of camping near the sea. I took my hormone replacement tablets and stopped having hot flushes. The summer break was, overall, quite good.
I saw Dr Giri in February and all was well, until yesterday afternoon when my energy disappeared and today I am chemo-tired. I am fairly sure that's what it is because there aren't really any other explanations for why I would feel so weary.
I have also, during the last few weeks, been experiencing random sharp pains in the middle of the left hand side of my chest. Yesterday they happened quite a few times so today I went to the doctor to see if it was anything sinister and to get it sorted out. The ECG showed a regular heartbeat, albeit slow at 50 bpm. The doctor did say it was pretty low but that some elite sportspeople have resting heart rates around that mark. I'm not sure that going to the gym a bit and running sometimes makes me elite, but my heart thinks so. Tomorrow I'll have a blood test to check a bunch of things and I will also have a chest x-ray, just to check it out. The doctor suspects the pains are muscular-skeletal, but thought it best to check through everything.
I have a number of theories and one or more may be true. There is some evidence to suggest that ladies experience chest pain due to their HRT, so this may contribute. I feel a bit stressed at times so I wonder whether that might be part of it and the last part is the muscular skeletal aspect, which I think could contribute too. We shall see.
Apart from this, I have decided to attempt a half marathon at the end of May and so have started training. It's only early days, but so far it's been going ok.
At the end of April, I will be having a suite of tests to see how things are going, as part of the study that I participated in for my treatment. I will have a lung function test, a heart function test and a CT scan, as well as the usual blood test. I will try not to be too worried about what the tests may or may not reveal, but it will be hard. I find myself subconsciously stressing as the time gets closer. I continue to hope and pray that everything will still be clear.
In early May, it'll be two years since I finished treatment.
I saw Dr Giri in February and all was well, until yesterday afternoon when my energy disappeared and today I am chemo-tired. I am fairly sure that's what it is because there aren't really any other explanations for why I would feel so weary.
I have also, during the last few weeks, been experiencing random sharp pains in the middle of the left hand side of my chest. Yesterday they happened quite a few times so today I went to the doctor to see if it was anything sinister and to get it sorted out. The ECG showed a regular heartbeat, albeit slow at 50 bpm. The doctor did say it was pretty low but that some elite sportspeople have resting heart rates around that mark. I'm not sure that going to the gym a bit and running sometimes makes me elite, but my heart thinks so. Tomorrow I'll have a blood test to check a bunch of things and I will also have a chest x-ray, just to check it out. The doctor suspects the pains are muscular-skeletal, but thought it best to check through everything.
I have a number of theories and one or more may be true. There is some evidence to suggest that ladies experience chest pain due to their HRT, so this may contribute. I feel a bit stressed at times so I wonder whether that might be part of it and the last part is the muscular skeletal aspect, which I think could contribute too. We shall see.
Apart from this, I have decided to attempt a half marathon at the end of May and so have started training. It's only early days, but so far it's been going ok.
At the end of April, I will be having a suite of tests to see how things are going, as part of the study that I participated in for my treatment. I will have a lung function test, a heart function test and a CT scan, as well as the usual blood test. I will try not to be too worried about what the tests may or may not reveal, but it will be hard. I find myself subconsciously stressing as the time gets closer. I continue to hope and pray that everything will still be clear.
In early May, it'll be two years since I finished treatment.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
It's been forever since I last posted and there are a number of things to add.
I ran the City to Bay in September. I was aiming to finish the 12 km in 72 minutes but didn't make it, getting in at 74 minutes instead. That was my best time, so I was still happy. Dave did the run too and struggled a bit since he'd only arrived back from the UK a few days earlier.
In November I had another blood test to check the reproductive hormones. I also had my regular checkup blood test and went to see Dr Giri. As usual, I waited for around half an hour before my five minute appointment. I got the all clear lymphoma-wise and then Dr Giri said the hormone results indicated that my ovaries have failed and therefore I need a course of action as if I were a lady in my 50s. He wrote out a special little Royal Adelaide Hospital card to handball me on to the Women's Health Centre.
On Monday this week my appointment at the Women's Health Centre arrived. Once again I waited for about half an hour before being ushered into the doctor's room. He didn't really know why I was there and although he had my file, which I felt was quite organised for the hospital, he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do for me. I replied that I didn't know either, I'd just been sent from haematology because my ovaries weren't working after chemo. He said my chances of having any more children is zero and eventually wrote out a prescription for hormone replacement therapy. I am hoping it doesn't take too long for things to get sorted out once I start taking the tablets because it'd be nice to be free of hot flushes and other pesky symptoms.
That's about all as far as a health update goes. In other news, I have been able to get my other blog printed in a book and it arrived today. I'm glad to have it in hard copy. I'm not quite sure why really, because it's a bit weird to have a book to remind me of what wasn't a particularly pleasant time.
I ran the City to Bay in September. I was aiming to finish the 12 km in 72 minutes but didn't make it, getting in at 74 minutes instead. That was my best time, so I was still happy. Dave did the run too and struggled a bit since he'd only arrived back from the UK a few days earlier.
In November I had another blood test to check the reproductive hormones. I also had my regular checkup blood test and went to see Dr Giri. As usual, I waited for around half an hour before my five minute appointment. I got the all clear lymphoma-wise and then Dr Giri said the hormone results indicated that my ovaries have failed and therefore I need a course of action as if I were a lady in my 50s. He wrote out a special little Royal Adelaide Hospital card to handball me on to the Women's Health Centre.
On Monday this week my appointment at the Women's Health Centre arrived. Once again I waited for about half an hour before being ushered into the doctor's room. He didn't really know why I was there and although he had my file, which I felt was quite organised for the hospital, he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do for me. I replied that I didn't know either, I'd just been sent from haematology because my ovaries weren't working after chemo. He said my chances of having any more children is zero and eventually wrote out a prescription for hormone replacement therapy. I am hoping it doesn't take too long for things to get sorted out once I start taking the tablets because it'd be nice to be free of hot flushes and other pesky symptoms.
That's about all as far as a health update goes. In other news, I have been able to get my other blog printed in a book and it arrived today. I'm glad to have it in hard copy. I'm not quite sure why really, because it's a bit weird to have a book to remind me of what wasn't a particularly pleasant time.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Antihistamines and September
I went to see the GP and she said that it was a bit early to say for sure, from one blood test, that I had ovarian failure. She told me to wait a couple of months and then have another blood test, so in October I'll have the test again and we shall see what comes back.
In the meantime, I have to put up with hot flushes, although they have reduced a bit. I asked the doctor about my itchy eyes while I was there and she thought they were due to allergies and told me to get some antihistamines. I dutifully went to the chemist and purchased some antihistamine nasal spray. It seems to have done the trick.
September is another important month of anniversaries. It was Father's Day in 2009 when I first felt the lump in my neck. It's a bit crazy for me to think that was two years ago already. The City to Bay falls in September - in 2009 I ran it with lymphoma, in 2010 I ran it after chemo and this year I will be running it in better condition than the past couple of years. I hope my time is better than those two because I'll be fairly disappointed if I can't stumble across the line faster in good health. Although I am a menopausal nanna at the moment so that may lead to another slow time.
It was also September last year when I went into hospital for the surgeon to have a little look inside my chest and take a sample. It was the Thursday after the City to Bay when I spoke to Dr Giri on the way home from the hospital and he said the lab analysis was clear and I was in remission. I might think of a special way to celebrate that on Thursday week.
In the meantime, I have to put up with hot flushes, although they have reduced a bit. I asked the doctor about my itchy eyes while I was there and she thought they were due to allergies and told me to get some antihistamines. I dutifully went to the chemist and purchased some antihistamine nasal spray. It seems to have done the trick.
September is another important month of anniversaries. It was Father's Day in 2009 when I first felt the lump in my neck. It's a bit crazy for me to think that was two years ago already. The City to Bay falls in September - in 2009 I ran it with lymphoma, in 2010 I ran it after chemo and this year I will be running it in better condition than the past couple of years. I hope my time is better than those two because I'll be fairly disappointed if I can't stumble across the line faster in good health. Although I am a menopausal nanna at the moment so that may lead to another slow time.
It was also September last year when I went into hospital for the surgeon to have a little look inside my chest and take a sample. It was the Thursday after the City to Bay when I spoke to Dr Giri on the way home from the hospital and he said the lab analysis was clear and I was in remission. I might think of a special way to celebrate that on Thursday week.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Obla-di obla-da life goes on...
The results of my blood test are consistent with ovarian failure. The chemo has screwed them up. So that means I'm experiencing early menopause. It's not nice. I don't have too many horrid symptoms but the hot flushes are pretty crap. I'm going to see my GP tomorrow to find out a bit more and see what, if anything, can be done.
I haven't really been thinking about it too much, but when I do pause to reflect I (as is often the case) am divided. On one hand, I don't mind. I have two children, I have reproduced. The ovaries have served their purpose. Their demise is just another part of the strange land of lymphoma I never planned to live in. On the other, however, I mourn the loss of those tiny kidney shaped organs. There was a possibility we may have attempted a third child but that is no longer an option. My body is letting me down again and it's sad and annoying.
I have read some forums and reports of people who go through a period of ovarian failure but then they somehow right themselves and start to function again. It's early days, so we shall see what happens in my case.
Other than that, I intend to run the corporate cup tomorrow. The last corporate cup run I remember doing was mid September 2009 and I had a wonky turn after it - it was an indication that all was not well and I went to the doctors. I'm not sure if I did any more corporate cup runs after that, it's all a bit of a blur. Six weeks later I was diagnosed.
Anyway, life does indeed go on.
I haven't really been thinking about it too much, but when I do pause to reflect I (as is often the case) am divided. On one hand, I don't mind. I have two children, I have reproduced. The ovaries have served their purpose. Their demise is just another part of the strange land of lymphoma I never planned to live in. On the other, however, I mourn the loss of those tiny kidney shaped organs. There was a possibility we may have attempted a third child but that is no longer an option. My body is letting me down again and it's sad and annoying.
I have read some forums and reports of people who go through a period of ovarian failure but then they somehow right themselves and start to function again. It's early days, so we shall see what happens in my case.
Other than that, I intend to run the corporate cup tomorrow. The last corporate cup run I remember doing was mid September 2009 and I had a wonky turn after it - it was an indication that all was not well and I went to the doctors. I'm not sure if I did any more corporate cup runs after that, it's all a bit of a blur. Six weeks later I was diagnosed.
Anyway, life does indeed go on.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Hot flushes
I've been to see Dr Giri again for yet another check-up. I should just get used to it because they're not going to end anytime soon.
My blood test was all clear and normal, so that was nice. I did have something to ask him about though....I've been having hot flushes and wondered what it might be. He told me that it may be due to ovarian failure causing early onset menopause. Excellent. I did know that there was a chance that may happen but hadn't thought much about it. I definitely hadn't thought of actually experiencing hot flushes. I've had nanna-ish tendencies for a long time and this may be just another example of how that plays out physically.
Dr Giri sent me off to get a blood test and I'm waiting to find out what the result shows. I don't think I'm too fussed, I just would like to know what's going on. I would like to not have hot flushes though, because they are pretty annoying.
I don't think about my treatment much but when I was heading up to level 7 of the east wing the other day I realised how familiar and habitual it felt. I had to go up there a lot and it's not good to have to go into a hospital that much, unless you work there. Even though things have moved along and life has mostly found a new normal, that time and its wider repercussions still hang close to me.
Other than health issues, things have been trundling along in our household. It was my birthday yesterday and I had a lovely day. We enjoyed a tasty family brunchy/lunchy deliciousness and then then girls stayed overnight with Dave's sister while we went to the cinema, had dinner together, slept without interruption and had a peaceful breakfast.
My blood test was all clear and normal, so that was nice. I did have something to ask him about though....I've been having hot flushes and wondered what it might be. He told me that it may be due to ovarian failure causing early onset menopause. Excellent. I did know that there was a chance that may happen but hadn't thought much about it. I definitely hadn't thought of actually experiencing hot flushes. I've had nanna-ish tendencies for a long time and this may be just another example of how that plays out physically.
Dr Giri sent me off to get a blood test and I'm waiting to find out what the result shows. I don't think I'm too fussed, I just would like to know what's going on. I would like to not have hot flushes though, because they are pretty annoying.
I don't think about my treatment much but when I was heading up to level 7 of the east wing the other day I realised how familiar and habitual it felt. I had to go up there a lot and it's not good to have to go into a hospital that much, unless you work there. Even though things have moved along and life has mostly found a new normal, that time and its wider repercussions still hang close to me.
Other than health issues, things have been trundling along in our household. It was my birthday yesterday and I had a lovely day. We enjoyed a tasty family brunchy/lunchy deliciousness and then then girls stayed overnight with Dave's sister while we went to the cinema, had dinner together, slept without interruption and had a peaceful breakfast.
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