I do, I do!!! My last radiation treatment will be November 4th. Whoohooooooo!!!
So six left. Doable, I think.
There's some confusion about when the surgery will take place. The Fry Doctor thinks 4-5 weeks after chemo is done, and the chemo doc thinks I can include two weeks of chemo into that rest time. I suspect it will depend on what the surgeon prefers.
I'm not sure how I feel. On one hand, let's just get all this shit done and over with. Please. But then again, I've mostly opted NOT to think about surgery at all, or the outcome. My rational mind knows the tumor and surrounding tissue (ie my rectum and anus) need to come out. Is it stupid that I keep thinking about missing my anus? I never thought I'd be all weepy about my anus. I mean, it's there, it's doing its job. We don't argue, my anus seems to be a nice, um, organ? Muscle? It seems kind of...sad that I won't have it anymore. And scary. A whole new lifestyle has been dumped into my lap out of nowhere.
It's not that I don't think I can handle business. I know I can. Despite my last few weepy, feeling sorry for myself days, I'm tough. I am absolutely going to keep on keepin' on. This whole thing has been like walking through a dark tunnel. There are twists and turns and ambushes, most of the time I feel like the flashlight flickers and cuts out too much. I want to get to the light at the end of the tunnel, of course, but what will the ramifications be exactly? That's what can be really hard sometimes.
Anyway, overall, it's awesome news that I'm for sure almost done. The Fry Doctor mentioned that I should watch out for peeling skin around my anus. Well, isn't that guy just so full of fun and happy news?? It apparently happens in about 20% of the rectal cancer patients he sees. Since I'm such an aloe fanatic these days, perhaps I'll escape that side effect too. The diarrhea is bad enough, thanks.
Speaking of, the Fry Doctor again talked about ways to control the disgusting mess coming out of my ass. He mentioned the BRAT diet, and kind of laughed and said, "And I don't mean brats." As in the meat. At that point I was thinking more about getting to the bathroom than his corny jokes. He's such a card.
And I'm already feeling better and I've only had two doses of cipro, so that's good too.
i wonder if the 'white diet' on www.karenhurd.com would be helpful. The intestional tract has a record of quick healing since normally the cells inside are brand new every 3 days...might be worth cking out her site and look under the topic of ulcerative colitis or something similar to find the specifics on the white diet-let me know if u can't find it. I have it printed out too.
ReplyDeleterenee
Thanks for the link! Right now the goal is to control the diarrhea as much as possible. It's not going to go away until after radiation is all done because the radiation scrambles cells so badly and has a greater affect on cells that divide quickly (like small intestinal cells). It honestly doesn't seem to matter what I eat, but things like applesauce (apples have pectin, helps bind stools), rice, toast, bananas...mostly really mild things is what I've been eating for the last week or so.
ReplyDeleteWhen I'm done with radiation, I think that white diet would be helpful for getting me back on track, although I'd have to find subs for the meats. :)
Hi Sheri,
ReplyDeleteI just got the link to your blog and wanted to say THANK YOU so much for writing it. We've been thinking about you and your family a ton and now will follow you on your journey. Love your humor and straight forward writing, curse away, please!!! Yeah for Nov. 4th coming up soon and may the halloween candy get you there a little easier.
Take good care!
Lori Fares