chemo 101 -
oy! jane - SO nervous this morning, literally on the verge of freaking out ... deep, cleansing breaths i tell her ... hee, hee, hahhh; hee, hee, hahh ... anyhow, that doesn't work!
bags packed, we head off - jared leaves for school, andi goes to max's house for breakfast, marlee hitches a ride with us, and we travel silently (like lambs to slaughter) to winthrop university hospital. we are there early - 8:30 am - and the staff is so nice, gentle, easy. we are shown to a semi-private space for the treatment, where i set up the dvd player, kashi bars, seltzer, meringues, pretzels, and swedish fish ... and jane settles in for the next few hours. somehow we feel better just being there, and the air of inevitability and impending doom seems to subside ...
it's nice and quiet, and they set jane up quickly. she reclines in a big comfy lounger, and i'm beside her (getting the movie helvetica ready for our viewing). everything is going fine, until they actually start the i.v. drip that has the chemo medicine in it - jane turns beet red, is burning up, and has back pain ... they immediately 'stop' the drip and call in the oncologist, who is really a fantastic and knowledgeable guy. he is there in a flash, makes some great recommendations, and gets things set up so she can handle this smoothly. she's on anti-nausea medication too, so they hope for a smooth treatment.
as it turns out, dr. hindenburg brings good news - the other 'oncotype' test has come back, even more positive than the first - jane has a very low risk of recurrence over the long term based on that cancer site that was removed - great!!!
we are back on track, medications running, all is good, jane is relaxed. we munch on snacks, drink liters of seltzer, and watch the flick - although i do have to make a quick target run for a couple of headsets as someone else is being treated nearby and they have their tv set blaring. [of course, i am stuck behind a woman at target who is refuting the price of charmin toilet tissues, then proceeds to pay with a gift card, coupons, and small unmarked bills - ugggghhhh - only when you're in a rush!].
chemo goes fine, we watch another movie titled god grew tired of us about the 'lost boys' of sudan - nothing like seeing something more depressing than your own life! i jest, the movie is extremely uplifting and highlights the positive aspects of human nature in the face of man's baser instincts. makes me reminisce about africa a little ...
so what was supposed to be over by 11 am concludes at 1 pm ... feeling and looking perfectly fine, we wrap up our goodies and leave. jane is amazing! totally okay! we pop into roosevelt field so she can pick up her wig - somehow we've imagined that all of her hair will fall out immediately upon treatment, which of course does NOT happen to anyone. it takes about two weeks, but we figured we'd be prepared.
back home, we have an enormous gourmet lunch - butternut squash bisque, arugula with roasted chicken, potato, yellow wax beans, caramelized carrots - we're stuffed! i'm delighted jane has an appetite. we do some computing, and as i'm typing i notice that my hand is going momentarily weak - on and off - which jane diagnoses as carpal tunnel syndrome (just shoot me now and spare me!).
shabbat dinner is lovingly dropped off by laury - wine, challah, flowers, homemade delicacies, and dessert - affording us the opportunity to sit down together as a family and make today a 'normal' day while having a home cooked meal ... so incredible, the effort and meaning of this thoughtful gift!
we all try on the wig - personally, i think it looks pretty darn good on all of us, and is least noticeable on jane as it is the same as her current 'do'. i'm thinking of a transplant when all of this is wrapped up!
shabbat shalom,
h
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