If white blood count is ok, I will be sitting there for 3-4 hours while the chemo drugs drip slowly into my veins via a cannula. A cannula is a thin plastic tube inserted into a vein. It has a needle in it which pierces the skin and introduces the plastic tube into the vein. The needle is then removed and the cannula taped to the skin to make sure it does not move or get dislodged.
The drugs (mixed with saline) are then pumped into the veins, one at a time, at the rate of 500 ml per hour. So I received approx 2 litres of fluids in the first cycle. The drugs I had for the first cycle were:
- Kytril - to reduce nausea and vomiting
- Dexamethasone - a steroid that reduces incidence of allergic reaction to the chemo drugs
- Zantac - reduces the amount of stomach acid, thereby reducing incidence of stomach ulcers (this one produced a burning sensation in my arm when it was going in - ouch!)
- Taxotere - anti-cancer chemotherapy drug
- Carboplatin - anti-cancer chemotherapy drug
- Herceptin - mono-clonal antibody for treating HER2 +ve tumors.
So what will I do with myself for the 3-4 hours? Well they offered me TV which I declined, instead i brought a book and sent SMS messages while sitting in the recliner chair. Some patients even doze off!
Praise God that my mum, who is with us at the moment has recovered from her bad bout of cold and cough after 2 rounds of antibiotics. She just underwent cataract surgery for her eyes the day after my biopsy and then the day after my first chemo treatment. Praise the Lord here eyes are healing well and she's able to see clearly.
Reuben and the kids all went for flu vaccinations last Saturday. Janice was having a bit of runny nose but seems to have recovered.
Please pray that I will be well and immunity strong to undergo the chemo and good response to the chemo drugs - killing off the cancer cells while minimising side effects.
