Round 2, Cycle 1 Completed!

Round 2…
Yesterday went well, my blood count was up so I was able t finish my first full cycle of chemo! One full cycle down, and five more cycles to go. The past couple of weeks have been going well for me, as my energy has been pretty good except for a few days here and there were I feel pretty tired. I have been taking it pretty easy lately and just have been taking care of myself so I can stay on schedule as much as possible.

This past weekend was nice and relaxing. We were able to take advantage of the nice weather on Saturday and went out on the boat. I felt fine the whole time and even enjoyed some O’Doul’s. I hope the weather will finally break soon so we can get some more time out on the boat.

My hair started falling out a couple days ago, so instead of it slowly falling out, Rachel took the clippers to my head. She did a pretty good job except for the fact that she didn’t realize that the #1 blade protector had fallen off and continued to shave my head with no blade cover. She had to shave my head again because of the length difference. It really wasn’t a big deal because I will be bald soon anyways. It is definitely weird having a shaved head, but it is super easy to get ready in the morning, not like it was hard before.

It is so hard to explain how your body feels once the chemo has been administered. It doesn’t feel like any illness I have ever had, but my stomach feels weird and my body plays tricks on me. If I am stationary for a while, I feel fine. But if I move around, sometimes I get a little loopy. I have had hiccups three times since I got home yesterday from treatment. I slept most of the afternoon yesterday, and I slept in pretty late this morning. I think a good way to explain how my body feels is that I feel like I have extra weight pushing down on me, hopefully that makes sense.

I have never been a huge soccer fan, but I am enjoying watching the World Cup, it is nice having live sports on the TV in the morning! That and On Demand have been helping me relax lately, and I am super pumped that Whale Wars is back for another season. If I had the chance I would love to go on a six month expedition on the Sea Shepherd. If you have not seen the show, check it out on Animal Planet.

I am still continuing to work, and work is going well. At the same time, if you know of anyone looking to purchase or sell a home, please let me know. I am always looking for new business, and any referral is much appreciated.

Please feel free to ask my questions about my cancer, treatment or anything else. I try to respond to everyone and if I have not, I apologize about that. I hope to have a more humorous post in the near future, today I am just feeling a bit tired. I hope all is well with everyone, and it will be nice to see some of you this weekend at Brock’s Softball game.

Week 2...

Week 2 of Chemo…

This is a good week as I do not have treatment this week, but I do have lab work. I have to go to the oncologist for blood work to make sure my blood counts are up. I am sure they are up as I have only been in treatment for one week…So, this afternoon I will go in for a blood draw and I think that is about it. Overall I am feeling pretty damn good right now! I get tired by about 4-5pm in the afternoon and I find my self sleeping a bit more. I think the first few days were rough because of the steroids they put in my body and my body didn’t know if it was tired or if it wanted to rock out! Now, I feel pretty much normal except for the fact that all of my fingertips have this numb tingly feeling all the time now. I don’t know if it is the medication I am taking or if it is the chemo. We are thinking it is the Allopurinal I am taking for my liver.

Last Friday I had to meet with the Radiologist to talk about the chances of having to do radiation after my 6 months of chemo was completed. Well…it looks like I will have to do 4 weeks of radiation after I am done with my chemo treatment. I wasn’t surprised by this and what the doctors have determined is that the large mass on the right side of my neck is a cluster of lumps and is classified as “bulky” which means that most likely the chemo will break down the lumps but there will most likely be some residual of the lumps. The only way to completely get rid of it is to zap me! Honestly, the radiation sounds much more appealing compared to chemo, so I have no problems having to do 4 weeks of radiation after chemo. It would be 5 days a week for about 20 minutes a day. The side effects are not too bad and most of them are temporary, but I could have some permanent issues with my thyroid. But there is a very simple fix with medication for that, so I am not worried about that at all. When you weigh out the pros and cons and keeping the goal in mind to be cancer free at the end of the treatment it is a no brainer to move forward with the radiation treatment at the end. If everything goes according to plan I should be all done by mid January and hopefully skiing in Whistler sometime in February. Oh yeah, it will be nice to enjoy a cocktail then too!

This past weekend was great, Rachel’s parents flew in from Louisiana and spent memorial weekend with us. We had a great time just hanging out and doing a little work around the house. Actually Rachel put her dad to work! Mr. Randal ended up installing a TV in the guest room and also added a ceiling fan to the master bedroom. I am pretty excited for the fan because the upstairs of the home can get pretty warm in the summer. Rachel and her mom (Miss Verelda) enjoyed the outlet mall in Marysville and we all had a great brunch at Salty’s on Sunday. I put the chuck wagon on and threw down some good eats; I would love to eat that food every Sunday! Monday Miss Verelda cooked up some amazing food, Chicken something (I wish I knew how to spell it, but I think you would pronounce it like Free Cason, but I am probably way off) it is like a chicken gumbo, but a little thicker with potatoes and she also adds egg to it. Of course it is served over white rice and it tastes so good! We had a great time just hanging out talking about the wedding and just relaxing. I am very excited to be a part of their family and I feel extremely lucky that my family and Rachel’s family all get along so well.

Thank you all again for messaging, texting, calling and stopping by. I am amazed of how many people are keeping me in their thoughts and I will always be grateful of your support. I will keep you all posted!

My First Chemo Treatment.

First day of Chemotherapy…

Wednesday was my first day of chemo treatment and the process really isn’t that bad, I don’t recommend you go out and try it, but I really wasn’t that bad. My chest is still bruised so the nurse injected me with lidacaine to numb up the area before she put the inch and a half long needle into the port in my chest. I didn’t feel a thing this time! I received a number of different injections through the IV; the first was antibodies with anti-nausea medicine and steroids. Then I received a test of Bleomycin to make sure my body didn’t have a reaction, I didn’t have one so that was good. After that they gave me Adriamoycin and Vinblastine through a syringe that is hooked up to my IV. Once that was done I was hooked up to a drip bag of Dacarbazine that takes an hour to drip into my body. Once this is done I received the final dosage of Bleomycin. I might be getting wrong if the Vinblastine was the one that took an hour long and the Dacarbazine was through a syringe. But I think you all get the picture…The cancer center is really nice and everyone that works there is very friendly. I just watched the Discovery Chanel and hung out with Rachel.

I felt great going home, and I felt really fine when I got home. Rachel and I needed to clean the house because her parent’s fly in today so I helped by vacuuming the area rugs. That wasn’t a great idea, when I was done I started sweating pretty heavily out of my head. I sat down for about 20 minutes and when I stood up I felt really light headed and dizzy. I took some medicine to help with nausea and drank a bunch of fluids. I felt much better a few hours later, I felt I had a touch of the flu but I was not throwing up or anything. I was curious to how I was going to sleep through the night, but I had no problem falling asleep. I woke up at 4:30 this morning with a stomach ache and didn’t fall back asleep until about 6ish so that was the only hiccup.

Overall I am so happy that I finally have the treatment going and start moving forward. I cannot wait for the next six months to be over, but I just have to take it one day at a time. I really hope I do not have to follow up chemo with radiation or more chemo, and I don’t think that will be the case. I just want to be healthy and back to normal before April 9, 2011 (that’s our wedding date, we are getting hitched outside of New Orleans at Oak Alley Plantation, the plantation home and grounds are absolutely amazing). The only time I get a little emotional right now is thinking about the wedding and wanting to be healthy for it and be able to celebrate it with my family, friends, and of course Rachel. I am positive I will be just fine by then, but It is just a matter of getting there…I just never pictured myself at the age of 28 having to go through this. But like all you have said, this is just a little speed bump to get over. Again, thank you for all your response and messages, they really mean a lot to me. I hope you all have great extended weekend and enjoy the time off! Cheers!

P.S. I have posted a picture of where the doc has cut me open. The top scar is where I had my lymph node biopsy and the scar at the bottom is where the put the port into my chest. You can kind of see the bruising by the bottom scar and that is from the doctor fishing the cord from the port to my main artery.

Chemo Starts this Wednesday...

It’s another update…
Here is the short version. Last week we received great news that the cancer is not in my bone marrow, so the cancer is in stage 3. I start Chemotherapy this Wednesday at Puget Sound Cancer Center.

Long version… (I apologize for lack of English skills, and if I wander with my note. I am just typing on the fly, bare with me) We were very happy to have the bone marrow test come back negative, this does not change my treatment in any way, but it does reduce the chances of the cancer coming back in the future, I still have Hodgkin’s and it is in stage 3. This was the first good news we have heard in awhile, so that was nice to hear! I have had numerous tests done to make sure I am in good health to go full speed ahead with my chemo treatment. All of my breathing, echo, and EKG tests came back very good and I am in very good health which means I get to go full speed ahead with the chemo and the ultimate goal to be cancer free in 6 months. One of the lumps that was found on the right side of my neck is actually a cluster of lumps and is about 10cm long, because of this there is a chance that the chemo will not complete get rid of this lump. If this is the case, I will have to follow up chemo with spot radiation treatment. I am meeting with the radiologist this Friday to get the talks started and to see what is recommended. Overall I am doing pretty well, I have received letters, emails, and phone calls from so many people and I truly appreciate all the thoughts, prayers, and concern. This just pushes me more and more to stay positive and to get through the next 6 months. There is no doubt in my mind that I will get through this, even though I know that this is not going to be some walk in the park. I am actually really nervous for my first treatment this Wednesday afternoon, I have no idea how my body will react to the chemo.
The type of chemo treatment I will be going through is called ABVD, if you want to learn more about what exactly ABVD is please check out this website as it provides all the information and side effects, it is pretty interesting stuff(especially to me because it gets to be my “buddy” for the next 6 months). http://www.lymphomainfo.net/therapy/chemotherapy/abvd.html The doc is confident I will lose my hair, so when it comes out I will post a picture of my round face all bald. The joke is I am going to look like a giant baby…Also the doctor is extremely confident and optimistic that I will be cancer free in 6 months. Hearing this from the doc is very relieving, but I still have to put my time in and I have to do my part to make sure I do not get sick and put my body in any danger. The chemo will break down my immune system, so it is very important I do not catch any illness over the period of treatment.
I had my first blood draw last week with the Port-A-Cath, and it was actually really painful because I had the surgery for it two days prior to the draw. My chest was still really sore from the surgery and my neck and shoulder were/are still sore from the first surgery. It still hurts to drive my car and the seatbelt rests right over where I had both surgeries. I wonder if my medical insurance will cover a personal driver. It is really weird feeling the port in my chest, and my body is still getting used to the foreign object that has been implanted into my chest. I guess now I know what it would feel like to have a boob job…
Some of you have asked what I am doing for work and if I am going to be able to continue to work going through treatment, and the answer is YES! There are going to be days where I am tired or sick, but for the most part I am really hoping that I can work close to a full days of work. It’s definitely much more stressful being self-employed, but I know I can get through this. If you know of anyone who is in the market looking to buy or sell a home, I am your guy! (sorry for the plug, but I had too).
Thank you for following my progress and I am sure this will get more interesting once the treatment begins, I will update you all later this week after my body has absorbed all the fun chemicals!

Biopsy and Port-A-Cath Udpate

Monday and Tuesday were pretty busy days for me as I had my Bone Marrow Biopsy on Monday and that was an interesting procedure. They do not put you under with anesthesia, but they use some other type of medicine that makes you forget everything and not give a rats ass about a thing, fun stuff…(If I were Michael Jackson that would have been the drug of my choice, not Propofol). Everything went well, and I won’t know the results on the bone marrow until I meet with my oncologist this Friday, stay tuned. My left upper ass cheek was pretty sore from the biopsy, but it is getting much better. If they find cancer in my bone marrow, my cancer will be in stage 4. If this is the case my treatment does not change, it will be 6 months of Chemotherapy, the only difference between stage 3 and 4 is that if it is stage 4 there is a higher chance the cancer could come back.
Tuesday was my surgery for the installation of my Port-A-Cath. Here is the definition of Port-a-cath: In medicine, a port (or portacath) is a small medical appliance that is installed beneath the skin. A catheter connects the port to a vein. Under the skin, the port has a septum through which drugs can be injected and blood samples can be drawn many times, usually with less discomfort for the patient than a more typical "needle stick". My left chesticle is pretty sore from the surgery and I am a little stiff, but the pain meds help out most of the time. It is kind of weird, I have been getting hick-ups from the port-a-cath, and apparently air can get under the diaphragm causing you to have hick-ups. I have had hick-ups 3-4 times today and they are pretty annoying, luckily they don’t hurt where I had surgery. I am posting some pictures of the port-a-cath so you can have a better idea of what it looks like.
Overall I am doing very well, and again it is amazing how many people have called, text, emailed or messaged me. It really keeps me positive and I will always be so grateful and appreciative of the amazing friends and family I have. The Chemotherapy will start either next week or the following week, so the journey hasn’t really begun yet, but I am as ready as I can be. I give much thanks to my fiancé Rachel who has been a trooper through all of this thus far. I feel like I am the luckiest guy to have her in my life and she has been taking very good care of me!
A small side note that I was really concerned about was that cancer usually attacks your reproductive system first. I was really nervous going to the sperm bank to be analyzed and to see if I was fertile at all. Well...needless to say I am exrtremely fertile! ;)

First Meeting with the Oncologist

Yesterday was a very long and draining day as I met with the oncologist for the first time. He was great, and extremely thorough. He explained to me that I have Multi Cellularity Hodgkin’s Disease (MCHD) and the cancer is in stage 3 and could be stage 4, my bone marrow test this Friday will determine that. If the cancer is in my bone marrow it is stage 4, stage 4 is the worst stage. The treatment between stage 3 and stage 4 would be the same, but they still need to know if it is in my bone marrow. We looked at all the slides from the tests I have been having and they found another lump on the right side of my neck that is larger then the one on my left side (the one I found) there is a lump the size of a grapefruit in my respiratory system which is outside of the lungs and underneath my ribcage, they also found lumps in my spleen. They only way to attack this cancer in my body is with Chemotherapy, which I will be starting sometime in the next couple weeks. I have some more tests today, Friday, and I have a port being surgically installed into my chest next week. This port is for the chemo to be injected into my body and also for blood tests. The nice thing about the port is that they won’t have to use as many needles in my arms. I have seen my fair share of needles the past couple weeks. The doc was certain that the type of chemo I will be on will make me lose my hair, I will feel sick at times, and I can become sterile. I will be visiting the sperm bank a few times before I start chemo just incase I do become sterile from the treatment as I do want children I the future. I was also told that I am going to have to slow way down when I am going through treatment, it is extremely important I do not get sick because my lungs, kidney and liver can be affected if I get sick. That means no flag football, no dodgeball, no alcohol, and just taking it easy. I will be administered chemo once every two weeks for 6 months, and the hope is to be in remission after 6 months. The doctor is extremely optimistic that we can beat this cancer and he also told me that I am extremely lucky to be diagnosed with a cancer that actually has a cure!!! This makes me feel so much better hearing that, but I am pretty down right now and absorbing all this so quickly has just drained me mentally. I will stay strong and I will get through this. All of our friends and family have been so supportive already and this helps me out so much. Rachel has been amazing through all this and I am so fortunate to have her love and support as I couldn’t imagine doing this alone. I am anxious, nervous, and scared all at the same time to get the treatment started. They say everyone reacts different to the treatment, so it will just be a matter of time until we know exactly how I am feeling. That’s we know for now, and I will keep everyone posted after the tests later this week. All I need to do is stay positive and know that I will get through this. All I can ask for is your support through all this.

How this all Happened

A couple weeks ago I woke up and was getting ready for work when I noticed a large lump on the left side of my neck. I asked Rachel to look at it, and she basically told me that if I didn't go to the doctor that day to not expect her to come home from work. So, I obviously went to the doctor. My primary doc was not able to tell me anything about the lump, but the Ultrasound revealed the lump was vascular, my doc quickly referred me to a vascular surgeon. When I met with the vascular surgeon the following week, he had a chance to look at some of my slides so when we met with him he told us from the start that there was a very strong possibility that I have some type of Hodgkin's or Lymphoma. Needless to say, when he said that I went pretty numb, I was not expecting that. I was expecting to hear that I had an infected lymph node and they would just have to repair it or whatever...The doc quickly got me schedule for a CT Scan and a biopsy to remove part of the tissue in the lump. This past Monday I had surgery to remove some tissue from the lump to test it for cancer, we go the results back on Wednesday and the doc was right, I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. We pretty much knew all week I had cancer, but it really sank in for me yesterday after hearing the news. I now have a bunch of doctors appointments set up for the next week or so because we still need to figure out what stage the cancer is in and what type of Hodgkin's it is. Now that I have explained how this all happened I will be updating the page as I go through each week. I am hoping to be able to inform everyone on what it is like to go through Chemo, and if I have to do radiation I will be talking about that too. I am going to keep this a very positive place and I am hoping to keep it pretty humorous as well. Please drop a line in the comments and interact as much as possible. I will upload pictures of my journey, as there is a chance that I might be getting a new hair did, but we do not know yet. Stay tuned in!