That Girl Is Poison
Chemo #1 is over. So far, so good. We got started right at 10:30 and my chemo nurse Thuy (pronounced Twee) talked us through everything. She explained the side effects and the drugs I would be given. I'll cover that in a minute. She also took some blood and they did some lab work. I'm glad to have a port instead of needing to stick a vein for all of this fun. My port is very deep, so they did have a little trouble hitting it on the first try, but the cream I was given to apply before hand completely numbs the skin, so I didn't' feel any of this. The second time was a charm and the line was in and taped down.
First I was given Aloxi, which is an anti-emetic. Aloxi and Emend (which I took before I left the house) are newish drugs and Thuy said they are excellent in combating nausea. Let's hope so. Then I got Decadron, which is a steroid. This will also help with the nausea, but it's primary purpose is to prevent any allergic reaction I may have to the chemotherapy drugs. Then I got a bag of saline to keep me hydrated. Next came Adriamycin, affectionately known as the Red Devil. This drug can be toxic to tissue like skin and veins, so it must be given very slowly to ensure it's not leaking out of the veins. Thuy said she had seen photos of patients who had been burned so badly by this drug that they needed a skin graft. I had two popsicles while I was getting the Adriamycin because some people say the cold helps prevent mouth sores. I don't know if it works or not, but it's just a popsicle. Once we were finished with that, I got the Cytoxan. This was in a bag and took about an hour to drip in. It gave me a headache, but a couple of Tylenol made that better. Once that was finished, they flushed my port and we were on our way.
We stopped in the pharmacy to pick up two prescriptions, one for compazine and one for Ativan. Both should combat nausea and the Ativan will help me sleep. So in all, I have five medicines which should combat the effects of two. As long as at least one of them does its job, I'll be happy. Nausea and vomiting could set in this evening and last through the next three to four days. Fatigue is the most likely side effect and that will probably be at its worst during the second week. My blood counts will also drop and I go back to the office in ten days to have that checked. If they are too low, I may be put on prophylactic antibiotics. My red blood count was already borderline before chemo, so they will watch this closely. 35 is the lower limit and mine was 34.9. Procrit can be given to increase my red blood cells, if needed, and Neulasta can be given for white blood cells. Let's hope I don't need either.
Right now I feel fine, just very sleepy. So I'm going to take a nap.
First I was given Aloxi, which is an anti-emetic. Aloxi and Emend (which I took before I left the house) are newish drugs and Thuy said they are excellent in combating nausea. Let's hope so. Then I got Decadron, which is a steroid. This will also help with the nausea, but it's primary purpose is to prevent any allergic reaction I may have to the chemotherapy drugs. Then I got a bag of saline to keep me hydrated. Next came Adriamycin, affectionately known as the Red Devil. This drug can be toxic to tissue like skin and veins, so it must be given very slowly to ensure it's not leaking out of the veins. Thuy said she had seen photos of patients who had been burned so badly by this drug that they needed a skin graft. I had two popsicles while I was getting the Adriamycin because some people say the cold helps prevent mouth sores. I don't know if it works or not, but it's just a popsicle. Once we were finished with that, I got the Cytoxan. This was in a bag and took about an hour to drip in. It gave me a headache, but a couple of Tylenol made that better. Once that was finished, they flushed my port and we were on our way.
We stopped in the pharmacy to pick up two prescriptions, one for compazine and one for Ativan. Both should combat nausea and the Ativan will help me sleep. So in all, I have five medicines which should combat the effects of two. As long as at least one of them does its job, I'll be happy. Nausea and vomiting could set in this evening and last through the next three to four days. Fatigue is the most likely side effect and that will probably be at its worst during the second week. My blood counts will also drop and I go back to the office in ten days to have that checked. If they are too low, I may be put on prophylactic antibiotics. My red blood count was already borderline before chemo, so they will watch this closely. 35 is the lower limit and mine was 34.9. Procrit can be given to increase my red blood cells, if needed, and Neulasta can be given for white blood cells. Let's hope I don't need either.
Right now I feel fine, just very sleepy. So I'm going to take a nap.
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