Treatment 5

Hope everyone had a merry Christmas!  I was feeling really good, other than dreading the next day of chemo.  My favorite gift was a new Vera Bradley bag to take to chemo.  I had a bag I bought and the zipper already broke so that was a bummer. 

Treatment 5 was a little different this time.  They insisted on giving me IV benadryl to prevent my allergic reaction I had last time so that made me loopy and sleepy.  I think I'm still feeling the effects of it today sleepy wise.

The meeting with the oncologist was interesting.  He said that he still wants to see the larger nodule in my left lung come out regardless of it changing size or not throughout the rest of my treatments.  So after all my treatments are done it looks like I will have another surgery.  I am just kind of glad to have some kind of definitive answer on that even though I don't like it.  He is being cautious about it so I guess that is good.  There is no good way to biopsy it because of its location deep into the lung.  So this will be the best way to find out what it is.  The surgery would be at RI hospital, not the same hospital that I had my colon surgery at so I am kinda bummed about that, I liked it there.  It will be a thoracoscopic surgery so there will be small incisions and my stay should be similar to how long I was in the hospital for my colon surgery.  So I guess it's good I won't have anymore big incisions I can just add to my plethora of holes I have all over my body, can't wait for bathing suit season :(  I seriously already feel like I look like I had shards of glass go flying at me and leave cuts all over my torso. 

The thing that still remains and could still remain unknown for a while is whether or not I am stage III C or stage IV.  If they take out that nodule and pathology report comes back saying it's not cancer, then what about the 3 smaller spots on the right?  We will just watch those through scans for months to a year after to see if they change.  This is what makes it hard because if it hasn't traveled to my lungs they will probably want me to do radiation on my colon area.  This is because if it hasn't spread to my lungs they want to try to decrease my chances of recurrence in my colon.  I am not thrilled about the idea of radiation for many reasons, it only increases my chance of it not recurring in my colon by 5%, not a lot.  And the long term and immediate side effects are very long and scary.  I will have an appointment with a radiologist to discuss this at some point.  It would be 5.5 weeks of going M-F to be zapped, so a total of 28 times.  Yikes!

is it cancer in my lungs or not?

We had my apt with Dr. Ng this morning.  It was a very confusing visit to say the least.  This lung surgeon seemed to have differing opinions from my oncologist.  Some of them give us some hope although it was good and bad news. 

The good news:  Dr. Ng is not convinced that the spots in my lungs are cancer.  He said that the PET scan does not guarantee what it showed as lighting as being cancer.  This is not what I was lead to believe when the oncologist read me the results of the PET scan.  The other good news is that the spots on my right lung that we were lead to believe showed up recently as the cancer spreading to my right lung, were actually there on my first scan back in September.  So this means that the nodules could be something other than cancer and that we don't have proof that it was quickly spreading.  Dr. Ng did not seem to believe there were any changes between the scans (which is good news).

The bad news:  we don't know that it's NOT cancer.  This means that we need to wait until another few months to do another scan and see if there are any changes.  If the spots grow, I will need surgery to remove them.  If there are more spots this is bad because the surgeon only wants to remove about 4 (which is how many spots I have), if there are more than that the quality of life in my lungs decreases and I would be losing too much of my lungs.  If the spots grow he suggested changing my chemo because it is not being effective in the lungs.  I feel like it's bad news to not be able to have surgery because it means the cancer is too far along and is spreading too fast and not responding to the chemo.

So basically we pray that there are no changes at all with these spots because that would mean that they are not cancer and are not responding to the chemo either way.  We will do a scan in a few months and if there is some shrinking or growth we will know that it is cancer.  So it's a waiting game. 

Dr Ng 10am Fri

I just got a call from the lung surgeons office that I have an apt tomorrow at 10am!!!  I am so excited that I can get some answers so soon!

Dr Safran scan interpretation

I did get to talk to Dr. Safran earlier today.  He said, "This was a good scan after 4 treatments."  He also said that the spot in the lungs on the left that is bigger we had known would need to be surgically removed and he didn't expect the chemo to shrink it.  He did say that he thought the spots on the right lung that were smaller had indeed shrunk a little bit. 

The plan for now is to have Dr. Safran talk to Dr. Ng (lung surgeon in providence) and they are going to set up an appointment for me to meet with Dr. Ng.  He said that the earliest they would want to operate is after 6 treatments but we need to talk to Dr. Ng to find out what he wants to do.  So for now we are just waiting for the apt date with Dr. Ng. 

I am not looking forward to another surgery and was really secretly hoping that I wouldn't have to have one but I guess I need to face the fact now that I definitely will.  Just hoping it doesn't impact my AZ trip, but hopefully we will know that soon.  

CT Scan of Lung 12/17-results

I don't have too much information to give but I do have the results of the CT scan done yesterday on my lungs.  I was told that it showed no changes from the last PET scan.  I wasn't able to get a hold of the Dr yet.  I gather that this means that all the spots are still there and they haven't grown or spread which is good but they haven't shrunk either.  Not exactly what I wanted to hear. 

3 of the many things to be thankful for

I have been feeling much better this round.  I'm not sure if it's staying on top of my meds or all the ginger I have been drinking.  It sounds easy but taking my medication at certain times and making sure they don't run out too close together is really important and I think that might be part of the reason I was feeling so sick last time.  So I am grateful for this time being better!

So I have been meaning to do another post about some of the things I have to be thankful for.  Here we go:
1. My job and my awesome company that I have worked for 10 years this coming January.  It seems odd for me to even say "my job" because I haven't worked in over 3 months.  I do however, still have a job to go back to as far as  I know and wonderful people to work for and with.  The Senior Vice President organized a photo opportunity of some of the employees at the company with their Ploutz Power bracelets.  The photo below shows what I was presented with.  It has a nice saying on it: "Once you choose hope, anything is possible.  A friend is a hand that is always holding yours, no matter how close or far apart you may be.  With heartfelt wishes in support of Leah and the entire Ploutz Family:  A collection of SEA CORP hands with "Ploutz Power" BANDS!

2.  My hair!!  I didn't want to jinx it but I think it is safe to say that I will not be losing my hair.  I have had 4 treatments and I don't show any signs of my hair falling out or even thinning!  I am very excited about this! 

3.  My friends and family.  I have had 699 unique visitors to my blog.  This means there are so many of you out there praying for me that I don't even know and have never met!  And it is working.  I feel so loved and supported through all of this and that is the best we can hope for. 

My friend Christine has been sending me flowers that she crochets every other week and I now have a beautiful bouquet of them.  She prayers for me while she makes them and sends the prayer along with the flower, how cool is that?! 

Another friend of mine, Cheri, gave me this wonderful frame that has our last name spelled out with letters found in nature.  It is now hanging in our entry way.  The frame says "Strength does not come from physical capacity.  It comes from an indomitable will." Ghandi

My friend Kim ordered more Ploutz Power bracelets.  If there is anyone that hasn't received one and would like one please let me know!

 

Silent Auction for Boston Celtics Tickets!

Leah and Bryan's friend Mark has generously donated a number of seats to be auctioned off that benefit Leah's fund and will be in your hands before Christmas. Below are the details provided by Mark:

Silent Auction for Boston Celtics Tickets 

Every dollar will go directly to Leah and Bryan Ploutz.
The following games and seat locations are up for auction, starting now!

Wednesday January 9th 7:30pm vs Phoenix Suns
2 together Loge 10 Row 11: Opening bid $220/pair

Friday February 1st 7:30pm vs Orlando Magic
4 together Section 321 Row 1: Opening bid $168/for all 4.

Saturday March 16th 7:30pm vs Charlotte Bobcats
2 together Section 329 Row 9: Opening bid $92/pair

Sunday April 7th 6:00pm vs Washington Wizards
3 together Loge 7 Row 7: Opening bid $195/for all 3.

Please email all bids to: MarkPietrantonio@gmail.com

Please include your name and phone number, in addition to the game(s) and bid(s) you are submitting.

High bids will be updated daily as a comments on this blog post or you can email Mark.

Auction Ends Thursday December 20th at 1PM.  Winners will be contacted that evening.  

Payment can be made through the donation link on Leah’s blog or a check can be sent directly to Leah and Bryan.  Tickets will be in your hands before Christmas. If there are any questions please email Mark or call him at 339-793-1452.

almost 1/3 of the way there

I had my 4th chemo round today, so I am almost a third done, I still have the pump on so in 2 days I will be done with 4th treatment. 

It was interesting today to say the least.  I had some chest pain last time with the pump on followed by a few days of heart palpitations.  I wanted to make sure the Nurse knew this so I told them and now if the symptoms reoccur they want me to come in.  Also they gave me something to prevent it.

I also had another allergic reaction with a rash on my chest and back.  This is common and a lot of chemo patients get benadryl as a premed drug but I have huge issues with benadryl in the IV form.  They wanted to give it to me but I ended up getting xanax instead and a pill form of benadryl.  The IV benadryl just hits me so hard, last time they said they gave me a low dose and I literally felt like i was levitating.  Some people might think that would be cool, but anyone who knows i haven't done one drug in my life or smoked anything knows I do not enjoy out of body experiences or anything like that!

Wish me luck with these next few days!

stronger

My cousin Rachael showed me this video on you tube today and I was so inspired by this girl.  Check it out, I wish I could be as cool as her!  Stronger I cancer video

my mommy is here

I forgot to tell everyone that my mom finally arrived last week!  I hadn't seen her since after the surgery before any of my treatments or port and it is so nice to have her here.  Need I say more, really? 

I am doing much better today, finally had a dinner last night that didn't consist of toast!  Thanks to Bryan's mom for cooking for us all weekend!  I am trying to get into the holiday spirit and decorating the house and I can't wait to make loads of cookies with my mom and Elly.  Everyone who knows me, knows how much I love baking and I haven't baked one thing since I got diagnosed, so there is a lot of make up baking to do!  Yum!

A new day

I haven't posted in a while because I haven't felt good at all.  I have been battling the nausea and had really rough evenings with it.  Today is a new day and I hope to be doing better today! 

I meant to tell everyone that I have a CAT scan scheduled for Dec 17th.  Dr. Safran wants to check on my lungs and see how the cancer is responding to the chemo.  So that is something to pray about!

Amazon Link

Hey everyone, this is Ben. The Amazon link is going great, thanks! I heard someone is not seeing the right column on this blog which contains the link, so I'm putting it in this post and at the very bottom of the blog site.

Click Here -> Shop Amazon anytime you're going to shop at Amazon. Amazon will credit Leah's Fund (no additional cost to you) a tiny % for any items thereafter which you add to your cart and purchase.

And to answer a few questions about it:
1) Yes the link simply takes you to the Amazon home page (you won't see any special messages confirming this). From there you can continue shopping as usual.
2) If you already have an item in your cart before following the link, it won't count. You can always remove an item and then follow the link and add it again.
3) You do not have to follow the link before every item you add to your cart. Just follow the link once and you can spend a few hours and shop with any items you add to your cart counting.  Once a product has been added to your cart, it's associated with Leah's link for a number of days, you don't have to purchase it immediately.
4) If while shopping you go to another website that has a link to Amazon and you follow it, then that would take precedence and become the site getting credit for referring you to Amazon for any products you add to your cart thereafter until you followed the link here again.

If you want to read the earlier post explaining more about the Amazon link: click here.

Trying to love it

I continue to have an infection in my port. I was, fortunately, able to get chemo today through it. the dr put me on a new antibiotic and we are hoping it goes away soon.

 

  Unfortunately all of my side effects seem to have intensified this time. I have the daggers in my throat and I can't touch anything cold with any part of my body including exposure to the cold air on my face. My calves continue to ache really bad when I walk. I also somehow have managed to partially dislodge my pump connection to my port and the visiting nurse should be by shortly to help me with that. Overall I am nervous about the days to come and hoping I can continue to do walks outside but I might have to go to a treadmill where it's warm!

Black Friday

I hope everyone had a nice Thanks Giving. I went up to Maine to be with family. I spent most of black Friday in the ER. I had noticed on Thanks Giving that my port looked like it was getting a little infected along the incision. I called my Dr Friday morning and they told me to go to a walk in or an ER up in Maine to get it looked at. The port has a direct line to my heart so getting an infection there is not good. Also my body can't fight off infections like it should because of the chemo.

We headed to a walk in around 10am and they sent us to the ER.  We finally got back to my cousins around 3pm.  They actually did get me right into a room so that was nice.  I had to have a round of IV antibiotic which took about 1.5 hrs to run.  Then they gave me oral antibiotic pills to take home.  They did labwork on the actual wound and lots of blood work.  No results yet.  I plan to go to my chemo appointment as scheduled on Tuesday and the port looks and feels a lot better now.   Not how I wanted to spend part of my trip but I am thankful for the Drs knowing what to do and for antibiotics!

Happy Thanksgiving! Amazon shopper?

Hi everyone, this is Leah's brother Ben. We're having a great Thanksgiving in Maine visiting family and hope this finds you cozy and well fed! This is a quick note about an additional way to contribute to Leah's recovery fund, for free! If you happen to shop on Amazon.com in the coming days or months: Follow the link found a little ways down on the right column of this blog each time you decide to shop and Amazon credits Leah's Fund (no additional cost to you) for any items you thereafter add to your cart and purchase.

This will not change your shopping experience or pricing on Amazon, however Amazon will credit a special account setup in Leah's name ~5% (yeah it's not much but will add up!) of any items purchased on Amazon during that shopping session. You don't have to do it before each item, just do it once before you start adding items to your cart.

Feeling like myself!

Had a GREAT day today!  I was with the kids all day and with Ben's help took care of them all day and didn't even have a nap!  I think I will be going to bed early tonight!  I also went for a 2.5 mile walk with Ben.  I ran a little bit the last few times I went for walks and felt great.  I felt really weak the next day but it felt good.  I really felt like myself today and it was so nice! 
I was trying to come up with a new past time to keep myself busy and someone had asked me, "what do you like to do?" The first thing that came to mind was, RUN! So I hope I can get back into it. They are saying now that exercise is a really important thing to do during chemo, so I am all over that!

Happy Birthday Bryan!

Just had to tell everyone that it's my husband, Bryan's birthday today!  We are now the same age!  And we all know I couldn't do this without him!  Happy birthday Bryan!

more juice!

Here was our first attempt at combining a ton of veggie goodness all in one juice blend. Look at all those veggies!

Cucumber, carrots, celery, broccoli, kale, apples

Ben the Juicer

My brother, Ben, flew into town on Wednesday and is going to be staying with us for a few weeks. He has been talking about using the juicer Bryan's Dad and Step-mom bought me. He is really into juicing and I have been excited about having my own personal juice chef! Unfortunately, no ice cold beverages for me, but I have been OK with room temperature ones and he is willing to accommodate, isn't he awesome :)

I am feeling much better today than the Friday following my first chemo treatment. It doesn't seem as though a trip back to Miriam is in my horizon for this treatment so far! As much as I love them it is so nice not to be feeling horrible!

The visiting nurse came to detatch the pump yesterday and all went well. They say around the time the pump comes off, being 48 hrs after treatment, is when patients seem to be feeling the worst. (which is what happened last time) I did ok so maybe the worst of this treatment is behind me, let's be sure to pray on that one!

Sporting Vera Bradley

Just because I have to carry a chemo pump for 48 hrs doesn't mean I can't do it fashionably! my friend Katie heard me mention wanting a fancy bag for my pump. It isn't hard to beat a black fanny pack, I mean come on, really?! I know I'm too young to get cancer but I'm not 10 and it is not 1990! So she bought me a little hipster vera Bradley bag, how cute is this!? thanks katie!

My aunt Joanne took me to chemo today. It was a long day starting with blood work at 9am and then an apt with my oncologist, who is amazing by the way. He is just awesome, love him, the absolute best. and I'm not just saying that because of his answer to my question of being able to travel. when I asked if my mom could take me back to Tucson with her for a week between treatments he was totally onboard!! Hello 80 degrees and sunshine in the middle of winter, oh yea and I'm not taking the kids, sorry Bryan! So we might be in need of some extra hands that week! I will let you know when I book my trip!

Unfortunately I'm experiencing a few more side effects already after the treatment today. I can't drink anything even slightly cool, it feels like daggers in my throat. They warned me about this last time but thankfully it didn't happen with the first round. I also continue to have my joints in my hand feel like they are locked (which makes texting a little challenging, but don't worry I won't give that up). the other major one is cold sensitivity with my skin. They suggest wearing gloves to get things out of fridge and to open car doors, I think this one is imminent

They weren't able to replace the IV anti nausea that I was allergic to but after last times incident of needing to go in 3 days later to get fluids and meds we have some pill forms I took last time that we are hoping will keep everything under control. If not you know where I will be going,and they will take good care of me!