The time has finally come - in a few moments I'll be off to Dorset to enjoy what I think is a deserved break. I believe I've packed everything - famous last words - and I am, of course, taking far too much. Which isn't a problem for me as I can't carry anything so it'll be up to my slaves for the week to deal with it all.
I haven't managed to email everyone and I apologise for that - I'll do it when I get back, obviously. Thanks again for all the messages and emails, and behave while I'm away.
24 March 2007
20 March 2007
Post #40
And the news is rather good. I had my follow-up appointment this morning where I got the results of the tests carried out on the cancer and sentinel lymph node. It's all clear, which means I won't be needing another operation. The node was clear and they removed a large enough margin around the tumour. Actually they removed far more than required as they'd decided that my tumour was 16 mm large but it turns out it was only 8 mm. So that's that. I have to say that as soon as I was told that I didn't need further surgery my mind went blank - I could see and hear the consultant talking but I completely missed what he said. Thankfully my Mum was with me and she filled in all the blanks once we left. Anyway I'm celebrating in style with a pasty, sushi and a doughnut.
I've got an appointment to see my oncologist in a few weeks time. I'm quite confused as to what's going to happen now. I thought I was going to see a radiotherapy consultant first but no appointment has been made. It looks like I'll be starting Herceptin and Tamoxifen (hormonal therapy) more or less straight away - although a chemo nurse had told me I'd probably have to wait until November - and I might be getting Herceptin for two years rather than the one year I was expecting. I'm a tad confused right now but I suspect I'll get all the answers once I see my oncologist. I'm not that fussed right now and determined to make the most of my four weeks of freedom, not least my week-long holiday in Dorset next week.
My hair's still growing but it would be more accurate to describe it as fluff with a receding hair(fluff?)line. At the same time some of it has fallen out but this could be because it's quite weak and therefore more prone to fall out. I'm looking forward to seeing what it plans on doing next.
That's me off for the time being. Hope you're all well and enjoying life.
I've got an appointment to see my oncologist in a few weeks time. I'm quite confused as to what's going to happen now. I thought I was going to see a radiotherapy consultant first but no appointment has been made. It looks like I'll be starting Herceptin and Tamoxifen (hormonal therapy) more or less straight away - although a chemo nurse had told me I'd probably have to wait until November - and I might be getting Herceptin for two years rather than the one year I was expecting. I'm a tad confused right now but I suspect I'll get all the answers once I see my oncologist. I'm not that fussed right now and determined to make the most of my four weeks of freedom, not least my week-long holiday in Dorset next week.
My hair's still growing but it would be more accurate to describe it as fluff with a receding hair(fluff?)line. At the same time some of it has fallen out but this could be because it's quite weak and therefore more prone to fall out. I'm looking forward to seeing what it plans on doing next.
That's me off for the time being. Hope you're all well and enjoying life.
16 March 2007
Getting there, slowly
First of all, thanks all for your messages - still very much appreciated.
Well here I am, slowly recovering from the operation. It wasn't too bad but I did struggle when coming to - I guess I'm just one of these people for whom general anesthetics is a bit of a nightmare. This wasn't helped by the fact that I emerged at 6pm and the recovery unit closes at 7pm. I was feeling rough - nauseaous, dizzy, groggy - and they were literally trying to push me out of the unit. This has left me quite angry because I got there at 7.45am, as requested, but had to wait until about 3pm for the operation (they actually changed the order of the operation list: I was initially supposed to go first but someone decided to put me last. It was only when a nurse got a bit annoyed with this that the order changed again and I was second on the list). They made me wait for a while in the recovery room before the operation so I was able to see what happens there - people in various states come and sit there, and either sleep, drink, eat or watch TV depending on their state. They get a blanket and people taking care of them. They only leave when they are well enough, and this can take a few hours. I was asked to get out of bed and dressed within 30 minutes because I couldn't stay there. At the same time I was being told that there were no beds available so I'd be better off trying to get home. I really wasn't happy about this. A bed was finally found - I was able to recover and then make my way home. I will have a word with the consultant on Tuesday, when I get my results back, and I might make a formal complaint about this. No one was nasty or anything but I really don't think the treatment I received was good enough. Still, I'm home, I'm ok if a little tired and dizzy at times. The scars are not too painful and I'm able to eat and sleep reasonably well - so all in all things could be a lot worse.
I can't do much at the moment but I'm about to go and sit outside for a bit as the weather's quite nice. Then I'll start tackling my emails - and this time I mean it. There's quite a long list so I doubt I'll be able to email everyone today but I'll do my best to get them sent in the next few days. Hope you're all well and looking forward to a good weekend.
Well here I am, slowly recovering from the operation. It wasn't too bad but I did struggle when coming to - I guess I'm just one of these people for whom general anesthetics is a bit of a nightmare. This wasn't helped by the fact that I emerged at 6pm and the recovery unit closes at 7pm. I was feeling rough - nauseaous, dizzy, groggy - and they were literally trying to push me out of the unit. This has left me quite angry because I got there at 7.45am, as requested, but had to wait until about 3pm for the operation (they actually changed the order of the operation list: I was initially supposed to go first but someone decided to put me last. It was only when a nurse got a bit annoyed with this that the order changed again and I was second on the list). They made me wait for a while in the recovery room before the operation so I was able to see what happens there - people in various states come and sit there, and either sleep, drink, eat or watch TV depending on their state. They get a blanket and people taking care of them. They only leave when they are well enough, and this can take a few hours. I was asked to get out of bed and dressed within 30 minutes because I couldn't stay there. At the same time I was being told that there were no beds available so I'd be better off trying to get home. I really wasn't happy about this. A bed was finally found - I was able to recover and then make my way home. I will have a word with the consultant on Tuesday, when I get my results back, and I might make a formal complaint about this. No one was nasty or anything but I really don't think the treatment I received was good enough. Still, I'm home, I'm ok if a little tired and dizzy at times. The scars are not too painful and I'm able to eat and sleep reasonably well - so all in all things could be a lot worse.
I can't do much at the moment but I'm about to go and sit outside for a bit as the weather's quite nice. Then I'll start tackling my emails - and this time I mean it. There's quite a long list so I doubt I'll be able to email everyone today but I'll do my best to get them sent in the next few days. Hope you're all well and looking forward to a good weekend.
14 March 2007
The Day After
This is Elizabeth adding the message on behalf of Anne-Marie. Just a short note to say she is back home, the operation went well, and she was able to come home yesterday as planned, although very late in the evening. She will update when she is feeling a bit better. There is not really much pain, she is just a bit knocked out by it all. Keep posting your messages, they are a great encouragement to her.
12 March 2007
Wetland Centre photos
Here are a few photos of a great day out. And thanks for all your messages, emails, texts, e-cards, cards and phone calls - I can't thank you enough.
The day before...
I have been surprisingly - by my standards anyway - non-anxious about tomorrow but it is slowly kicking in. I've never had an operation and I don't even remotely like the idea even if I can't see a way around it in terms of treatment. Not much I can do really. I'm just stuck between not wanting to have the operation/wishing time would slow down, and it being done and over. So I'm trying to get on with it. I've got to be admitted at 8am tomorrow and make my way to Nuclear Medicine, where they'll inject a radioactive dye into my body in order for the surgeon to spot the sentinel node (the one that'll be removed, basically). Then I'll have a wee wait as the operation will take place at 1.30pm. It should take no more than one hour. Once I've re-emerged and they consider me fit enough I'll be able to make my way home - this is the moment I can't wait for. It looks like it's going to be a long day but better that than spending any nights in hospital.
I'm on a mission to keep myself busy today and will be going off to the Wetland Centre in Barnes very soon. So far the weather looks fantastic and the temperatures should reach 17C - this should make for a great day out. Like most of Europe at least it's been an exceptionally mild winter and the wildlife is already out in force - let's hope there'll be no more cold snaps.
I'd better be off. Hope you're all well and managed to enjoy your weekends. I still haven't started on my emails and I apologise for that. I had lots of plans for last week but ended up spending most of my time resting as I was exhausted. Ah well.
I'm on a mission to keep myself busy today and will be going off to the Wetland Centre in Barnes very soon. So far the weather looks fantastic and the temperatures should reach 17C - this should make for a great day out. Like most of Europe at least it's been an exceptionally mild winter and the wildlife is already out in force - let's hope there'll be no more cold snaps.
I'd better be off. Hope you're all well and managed to enjoy your weekends. I still haven't started on my emails and I apologise for that. I had lots of plans for last week but ended up spending most of my time resting as I was exhausted. Ah well.
05 March 2007
Relative freedom
The fact that chemotherapy is over hasn't quite sunk in yet - possibly because the side-effects are still all too present. As such I'm not spending too much time worrying about the operation, which takes place next week. I had to go in last Wednesday for a pre-op evaluation - a complete waste of time but I guess it's got to be done. There's nothing to report there - everything looks straightforward. I briefly saw a consultant to check whether Vicky could still be detected - and she can, just. This saves me from having to undergo yet another procedure that would have enabled the surgeon to locate the mass.
I'm now confronted with a whole week with no appointments and relatively few side-effects. I've no firm plans - and judging by the forecast for this week I think it's better to see how the weather is on the day and make a decision then. Of course it'll depend on fatigue mainly. I'm a bit desperate to go out and do things - and food shopping remains a huge favourite. Don't ask.
I've now started to help on designing a basic gardening course but I've realised I'm not quite sure what is expected of me so I'll need to look into that. I have to admit not having done much in the past week or so - I'm spending a lot of time reading, and enjoying it, but I'm getting to a restless phase again. There are quite a lot of things I'd like to do but the ongoing treatment is preventing me from getting involved in most things. Talking of treatment - again - I received a bit of bad news. Nothing serious as such, just the news that there will be break between radiotherapy and Herceptin, which means that I probably won't be starting Herceptin until November. This is frustrating because when at uni I chose to go full-time in order to graduate last summer. The plan was then to get some work experience and move out of London this summer. When diagnosed I thought I'd just have to postpone my plans for one year, but now it looks like I'll have to wait two more years. Still, my time will come at some point, surely.
In the meantime I'm managing to get glimpses of wildlife - well birds really - with the use of bird food placed on the cherry tree in front of my bedroom window. Only great tits, blue tits and starlings are actually feeding on it but thankfully the proximity of Battersea Park and the Thames means that I've spotted herons, parakeets, black birds and other more common birds flying around. I even saw my first robin. I get very excited about such things these days - I hate to think what state I'll be in when in Dorset...
Hope everyone managed to get a glimpse of the eclipse.
I'm now confronted with a whole week with no appointments and relatively few side-effects. I've no firm plans - and judging by the forecast for this week I think it's better to see how the weather is on the day and make a decision then. Of course it'll depend on fatigue mainly. I'm a bit desperate to go out and do things - and food shopping remains a huge favourite. Don't ask.
I've now started to help on designing a basic gardening course but I've realised I'm not quite sure what is expected of me so I'll need to look into that. I have to admit not having done much in the past week or so - I'm spending a lot of time reading, and enjoying it, but I'm getting to a restless phase again. There are quite a lot of things I'd like to do but the ongoing treatment is preventing me from getting involved in most things. Talking of treatment - again - I received a bit of bad news. Nothing serious as such, just the news that there will be break between radiotherapy and Herceptin, which means that I probably won't be starting Herceptin until November. This is frustrating because when at uni I chose to go full-time in order to graduate last summer. The plan was then to get some work experience and move out of London this summer. When diagnosed I thought I'd just have to postpone my plans for one year, but now it looks like I'll have to wait two more years. Still, my time will come at some point, surely.
In the meantime I'm managing to get glimpses of wildlife - well birds really - with the use of bird food placed on the cherry tree in front of my bedroom window. Only great tits, blue tits and starlings are actually feeding on it but thankfully the proximity of Battersea Park and the Thames means that I've spotted herons, parakeets, black birds and other more common birds flying around. I even saw my first robin. I get very excited about such things these days - I hate to think what state I'll be in when in Dorset...
Hope everyone managed to get a glimpse of the eclipse.
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