10 FebruaryHi everyone!
Here we are in
February, and I've just completed my three-monthly process - CT scan last
Tuesday; consultation with Garth Davids, the mensch oncologist, today. In the
past three months, I didn't have any Vitamin C infusions; I also didn't intend
to try anything new, but was forced by circumstance (stock issues nationwide)
to take Equisin, a generic that contains Exemestane, instead of my usual
Aromasin, which is Exemestane. And wow, did I feel the difference! I
really didn't feel like myself at all - grumpy, irritable, didn't sleep well,
etc. (No comments from the peanut gallery! 😄)
Today's
consultation:
· No change to my bones.
· The lung nodules still exist, but (unlike last
time) there is no significant change in their sizes.
· No new nodules or bone metastases anywhere.
· I still have a couple of lymph nodes that slightly
fluctuate in size, but Garth is not concerned about them - he says that various
things can cause tiny fluctuations.
He also said that
I'm looking well (which matched how I'm feeling).
There is, however,
one new phenomenon, which made him say, "You're outstandingly
different". And that is: I have some scattered soft tissue lesions in my
spleen, which is very unusual for someone with my type of breast cancer. They
may or may not be metastatic. Garth doesn't yet have enough info to tell what
they are; he is going to discuss, with the radiologists, whether or not we need
to do further investigation right now and, if so, what - it could be an
ultrasound or an MRI. If they are found to be metastatic, then we'll probably
do some radiation on my spleen, as we've proved that I respond well to
radiation.
I will also be
discussing all this with the other mensch, David Nye, as will Garth.
There is no point
in losing sleep etc over it, and anyway the only way I know I am playing host
to some cancer at the moment is because I'm told so. I truly wouldn't know, any
other way!
I've now been
seeing Garth for a year, and I continue to be happy with this process. We
continue to disagree, amicably, about all sorts of things. We've both learnt a
lot.
In other news:
We're in the last
cycle of moving next door, now that the painting is finished, the security
system upgraded, a semi-gas stove installed (I wonder why??!! 🙄), and so on. I'll send further updates on that
when it's done! (Photo: the yucca flowers outside the front door.)
17 February
Thanks again for the loving messages over the past
week, and for all your support in general.
I received the notification, today, that I'll be
having an ultrasound on Tuesday at 09:00 SA time, to find out more details
about my spleen and to plan what - if any - treatment I may need for it. Please
send some good vibes, around then!
And two days later, the last of our furniture goes
next door and we sleep at the new house for the first time.
Lots of love to all of you, and all the very best
for whatever you have on your plates at the moment! 🌹❤️
21 FebruaryUltrasound done, but I have to wait until late today or sometime tomorrow before I hear from Garth the mensch oncologist. 🌹❤️
22 February
Hi everyone - thank you for your patience, waiting
until I'm ready to tell you what's happening.
The good news is that I still feel fine, and I'm
not about to keel over any time soon.
The not-good news is that Garth told me, last
night, that the ultrasound indicated that those nodules in my spleen are - in
all likelihood - unfriendly.
There are a few options for treatment, which my two
mensch doctors have hopefully discussed today, although I haven't yet heard
back from Garth. It's likely to be either or both of radiation and a change in
medication.
Treatment is not a guarantee that it will never pop
up anywhere else, but it's the best chance of containment for as long as possible.
The fact that I still don't feel a thing prompts me
to remind you to keep checking yourselves!!! And may you never find anything.
(In parallel with all of this, it's been an
extremely busy day for both Gail and me, preparing for tomorrow's move in
multiple ways. I also had a work shift, proofreading, which was probably a good
thing!)
And may we all keep dancing, and dancing, and
dancing some more.
Lots of love 🌹❤️
