Chemotherapy Treatment | Cytoxan & Taxotere (CT)
Tomorrow morning we head to the hospital for my first chemo infusion. My anxiety is strong, as we prepare to make our go-bag. Laptop, Ipad, chargers, mints, masks, gloves & socks, snacks, etc…
As you can see by the pills I could start my own pharmacy. Mike was so sweet to label the lids with a fun little reminder of what each one is. The positive take is all the meds cost us $0 since I hit my max out of pocket for the year.
Decadron 8 mg – I take 2 the day before, the day of, and the day after chemo. This medication is to reduce inflammation & lower the body’s immune response.
Zyprexa 5mg – One tablet by mouth every evening for 4 days. This is mostly used as a mental/mood stabilizer, but for me, it’s to prevent nausea & vomiting.
Lidocaine ointment was prescribed to put on 1 hour before I head to the hospital to numb the skin above my port.
The medications above will be refilled every 3 weeks for my chemo treatments.
ALL FOR NAUSEA/VOMITING
Lorazepam/Ativan 1mg – Nausea/Vomiting
Lorazepam 1 mg – Nausea/Vomiting
Zofran 8mg – Nausea/Vomiting
Prochlorperazine 10mg – Nausea/Vomiting
MASTECTOMY MEDS:
Gabapentin 300 mg – As needed for Nerve blocking
Oxycodone 5mg – As needed for pain
SUPPLEMENTS & OTHERS MEDS:
Claritin – It has voodoo magic to help counter the bone pain from the Neulasta steroid injection I’ll get 24 hours after chemo.
Vitamin D
Zinc
Scar-Away
B12
B-Complex
Glutamine
Wellbutrin
Lexapro
Amlodipine
Tomorrow we head to the hospital to check-in. From there I’ll have a staff member gain access to my port, flush, and do a blood draw. After the blood count is cleared then I’ll move into the infusion room to start my chemo drip. They’ll go extra slow tomorrow to see how I react to the medication.
I will also be icing my toes and fingers during treatment. It’s said to lower your chance of getting neuropathy. Neuropathy = tingling, burning, weakness, or numbness in the hands and/or feet. This will keep me from doing anything with my hands for a portion of my treatment. Getting neuropathy is a big fear. I kind of need them for my jobs.
CHEMO COCKTAIL will contain 2 drugs: Cytoxan & Taxotere (CT)
The anxiety of yesterday was high. The hardest part of all this is the unknown. You read the literature, you hear others’ experiences, and you hear everyone is different. Through this journey, I’ve prepared for the worst and hoped for the best.
9:50 AM – We start the morning off by gaining access to my port, flushing, and doing a blood draw. The specialist that helped me was actually a nurse that I’ve seen for a different surgery a few years back. I remembered him for his wit and bedside manner. As I was waiting another patient peaked in to say good luck. She had heard me talking in the waiting room about how I was feeling about the first infusion. These encounters happen with many hospital visits.
After the nurse was done, they took us back into a room to chat with the physician and discuss what was coming and answer any questions we may have. From that point, they walk you into the infusion room. Seat #23 seemed to be a good choice.
11:00 AM – The same nurse came back and handed me a paper cup filled with 6 different medications. All anti-nausea. I’ve never consumed so many pills in my life!!! They waited 30 minutes for those to kick in before hitting go on the infusion. In the meantime, a gal from the pharmacist came by to discuss the other meds we have at home and the order in which I should take them. It was the main question we had, but they beat us to it. There was a point I had a wave of “oh crap I may get sick” but it passed rather quickly.
The time came to begin. In the pictures, you’ll notice one full tray of random supplies. Those were set just in case I had a bad reaction to the Taxotere infusion. They started me out slow, and after some time had passed they cleared me to bump up the flow. Here we go!
12:15 PM – In true Danyel style as soon as I was cleared I had to make a dash to the restroom. Got back to my seat with no issues, but realized coffee was no longer in the “safe zone” to be drinking. The thought of drinking more made my stomach turn. Dr Pepper (Mike) got me set up to make sure I was hydrating.
Time to watch a movie. But first, Mike got me situated with ice for my toes and hands. Neuropathy is a side effect of the chemo and it’s said if you ice them during the treatment it seems to help. I’ll do anything to keep that from happening. My hands are my lively hood for both my jobs.
Once the Taxotere bag was complete onto the Cyclophosphamide. That bag drained pretty quickly since it doesn’t seem to cause as many issues with patients.
1:45 PMThe First (CT)infusion is complete. 1/4 of the way there! Grabbed some lunch since I was feeling ok.
5:45 PM – Took a nausea pill just to keep things at bay. They say as needed but also said it’s safe to be on the cautious side the first few days after the infusion to stay on top of it.
Prior to bed, I took another pill that I take in the evenings before bed for the next 4 days.
TODAY: We go back to the hospital for a 4 pm steroid injection. This one has me nervous as the side effect most common to this drug is severe bone pain. Weirdly enough Claritin seems to help with that. *fingers crossed* everything stays at bay.
They say days 3-5 are the worst, which is why we strategically planned my infusions for Wednesdays. I’m trying to work as much as I can during my good days.
THANK YOU all for the texts, emails, comments, and calls. You guys really know how to make a girl feel loved.
