My new normal

Hi,
I had a fun weekend in Chicago this weekend with neighbors and seeing Ryan play in his band, Stache. It's always best times to see the band, Ryan and Kelli and friends! I suited up in a hat, cover up, took a chair, drank plenty of water. Enjoyed it tremendously!  It was a good refresher and time away. Today we are traveling back and my body is not doing as well. I thought I had escaped the side effects from my first treatment but that certainly has not been the case. I am not dealing with nausea which is good. I am dealing with soreness, fatigue, rashes, mouth issues. I figure it will get better in next couple of weeks just in time for the next tx on June 27. Still holding out hope that I don't lose all my hair. Today is certainly not one of my better days but I believe tomorrow will be. :)

I don't want to bore you with details over next couple of weeks so I may not post a ton.  If something changes, I will post. I will be checking in to let you know how I am doing.

Xoxo. Amanda

Phillipians 4: 6-7

Phillipians 4: 6-7
"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.  Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.  Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.  His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."

My Resolution

Well, last night I felt actually pretty good. Ate dinner well. Went to sleep at around 11:30pm. Didn't sleep soundly but slept pretty good to 5:30am. Woke up feeling really great. So I decided to hang out with Jack today. However, at one point Jack looked at me and said "Mom your face and neck are very red". It was just before that I started to feel like a weight was coming down on me. I thought I am doing too much. I am on the couch now. I am at about 80% now. Not bad.

I did find out that the HER2 positive result was a good result because it offers more therapeutic options in the long term with Perjeta and Herceptin. So that is good.

I have been processing all of this. Spending a lot of time thinking about what this all means because it is so easy to go down the "what if" road. It's self indulgent to think about it and it's inappropriate (for now)...

So, most often, these are my thoughts...I resolve to LIVE my life. I am getting well with this medicine.  I am to feel good knowing that I am on the mend.  I am to take advantage of feeling well and good times.  I am to not waste time on sweating the small stuff or worrying about petty things or the "what if's".

I truly believe my breathing is already better which means it is truly working! Hot dog!  Lol! We will take this day by day, week by week, month to month, year to year.

I continue to feel God's presence and guidance. I thank you for your love and prayers!

First Treatment Done.

It's 6:38pm on Tuesday 6/7/16. The long dreaded first chemo treatment is over. It was definitely not as bad as I made it out to be in my mind.

Got there at 8:30am. Left at about 2:45pm. Had a room with a bed. Next time should be a little shorter. Got the needle in arm.. Perjeta first, then Herceptin, then premeds, then Taxotere.

Four years ago, there were two powerful drugs prior to getting Taxotere so I probably had a lot of residual effects from those. Now as far as chemo goes, the Taxotere is essentially by itself.  The other two drugs (Perjeta and Herceptin) are given intravenously but are in a different family of treatment- technically not chemo.  We are going to do this cocktail every 3 weeks for 3 rounds before we assess how it is working.  This is all a process, not necessarily 1 or 6 and done.

This is Stage 4 cancer. We are attempting to prevent growth of these cells and starve them to kill them. I believe this treatment plan will do that. From how I understand this process, once the current cancer is killed and I have the all clear, we will drop the Taxotere and I will continue on Perjeta and Herceptin (one or both) forever, every 3 weeks. With this, we will attempt to further starve any cells and prevent growth. It's sort of like what we have attempted to do with the Tamoxifen pill to block estrogen to the cancer for past 4 years.

...more tomorrow on how I am feeling and doing.

God is with us. Thank you for your love and prayers.

Round 2, Day 1- Amanda's Army of Angels Vs Cancer

OK, here we go...Day 1 (technically Day 7, I got the news on Tues 5/31) (absolutely surreal that I am writing this to you)

Quick story on how I got here...

In March 2016 (4 years and 4 mos after 1st diagnosis), I was coughing and then started experiencing shortness of breath and some wheezing.  I was up to running 6 miles a day and just like that, I couldn't do it anymore. I saw a Nurse Practitioner who gave me steroids, antibiotics, inhaler and none of it worked.  End of April, I called my oncologist, Dr. Rachel Harper with Lexington Clinic in Lexington, KY and she ordered a chest X-ray, Pulmonary function test- they were normal.  She ordered a CT scan to see if there was a clot from the Tamoxifen.  That's where she found enlarged lymph nodes that were causing the problem.  I got a PET scan a few days later to see if there was uptake anywhere else in my body from top to bottom.  The clusters of lymph nodes around my chest and lungs were the only "hot spots".  So, I got a biopsy shortly where the pathology showed that my cancer was, in fact, back in these areas. 

Doctor says its "very treatable".  This is good.  In the morning 6/7/16, I am starting a chemotherapy cocktail that will be intravenously injected Perjeta, Herceptin, and Taxotere.  I had the Taxotere in my last treatment.  I will lose my hair and have other stupid side effects, like nausea, losing fingernails eventually, etc.  I currently do not know how long we will be at this.  Right now, I will get this treatment every 3 weeks. 

Family are doing well (I think). We are all feeling a range of emotions at any given time.  I am overwhelmed, sad, happy, frustrated as heck, anxious, freaked out, impatient, encouraged...and more all at the same time, all the time.  I am sure Chris and Jack are especially feeling this same way.  We are doing a good job at keeping fear at bay and living our normal life.  As I have mentioned to some, our mode of operation is "normal".  I say that now, but I reserve the right to change that slightly after tomorrow's treatment.

Your love and prayers are appreciated. It is surreal that we are on this journey again.  If I haven't talked to you much, its because I can get very emotional.  I would tell you not to worry, but like Jack told me, "You are my mom, I am going to worry."  I think I am close to many of you out there who are going to worry.  I love you for it, but be encouraged.

Here we go again. Cancer is back!  Chemo was supposed to start today and it starts tomorrow 6/7 at 8:30am. I am testing this blogspot to see if it's working again and my friends can come on this journey once again!

CELEBRATE! ONE YEAR!

As of November 3, it has been one year since my diagnosis.  Today (11/14) is one year ago that I started chemotherapy.  I had a CT scan this week and it is clear!  NO CANCER!  :)  Its been a lot to celebrate.  I finished all my treatments in August.  I am doing really well.  I will have another surgery in August 2013.  Last night I took a picture of the exact time one year ago on my watch that is in the  website header above. 

Does it seem like a year went by? Yes. Now that I am cancer free, I am excited to see what the next year has in store. This time of year will always be a marker and a reminder in my life. A reminder of how much I am loved by my family and friends and a marker of how to live out every moment God has given me in this life. Though, there is one thing that hasn't changed and won't change...I will always need 5 more minutes!!

I am so thankful for this season without treatments and without cancer.  I am thankful for the Christmas season, the lights, the trees and trimmings, the music, the bustling, the kid's excitement, the planning, the meals, the quality time.  I hope and pray that you and your family will enjoy it as much as I will, this year and every year. 

I spent some time reading my blog from last year on these days, reflecting on those times beginning treatment, what I felt like, etc.  I praise Jesus that it's done.  There was nothing more than God's grace in those days.  That I was playing with my son, not overly sick, blood levels stayed up...nothing but God's grace.