Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Home

Next steps, as far as I understand them:

I have a PET scan November 7. (Yes, all of mine have been on Sundays.) If the scan basically matches the last one, chemo’s done all it can do and we stop. I'll be transferred back to my oncologist in Sac for monitoring.  If the tumors are smaller, we keep at the biochemo. If the tumors are progressing, we switch me to high-dose IL-2. That carries a risk of neurological damage; I really don’t want to go there. But it also can, if you're cosmically lucky, knock the disease out of your body forever.

It’s amazing what you can get used to. I freaked out in the hospital my first round, because I couldn’t cope with the idea of having a chest wall full of time bombs. Now? As long as they’re not growing, they’re not threatening me. I know all I need to know about living in the moment.

Today is for resting and rehydrating. Thank God for good nausea drugs.

8 comments:

kat said...

I'm glad you're home, and equally glad that you can see up the mountain path a ways and know what some of the options and hazards will be. Rest well, and know that love and prayers continue to surround you.

susankay said...

Welcome home. Always so glad to see an update. Prayers.

Alison said...

welcome to home, and prayers from my home to yours, as always...

JCF said...

Hello, Kirstin.

I'm JCF from MadPriest's.

I think I recall hearing you were fighting melanoma . . . but until today, I didn't know you were in Sacramento (as, since June, am I. Again---I grew up here).

I've got a good friend here in town who's fighting Stage 4 Lung Cancer: you fighters AWE me!

You have my continuing prayers---

And if you ever need anything "in Real (non-virtual) Life", please drop me a note: jcf1899 at gmail dot com

Kirstin said...

Thank you, everyone. JCF, I just wrote you.

Caminante said...

Kirstin, catching up... glad you are home, glad you have good drugs and may you live beautifully in the moment.

Kirstin said...

Caminante, thank you for the rock! It came yesterday. :-)

Forty Pound Sack said...

Prayers and hugs to you, Kirstin. I'm in your corner, cheering you on.