Chemo is Serious!

Later in the day, after the visit to the radiologist, we had an educational and training session in the oncology office. After hearing positive stories from friends about people that took chemo in a simple pill form with no side effects, we were in for shocking news. Yes, my cancer is treatable and curable, but there will be chemical warfare inside my body.

I will be loading my body with 23 drugs, some orally and some intravenously. I will need to visit the oncology office a couple times per week. Some of the drugs need to be administered on differing days from other ones. My pill intake will also vary daily. I must strickly follow a calendared regime--specific pills must follow certain IV drugs. Many of the drugs are designed to treat the side effects of the cancer killing chemicals. These include antibiotics, anti-fungal drugs, steroids, anti-nausea drugs, fever preventing medications, drugs to help strengthen my immune system, etcetera.

Typically, many of the worst symptoms of chemotherapy occur several days after the injection. Loss of appetite, fatigue, constipation, nausea will likely be problems. There will probably be days when I don't feel like eating at all. My mouth, throat, and digestive tract will be sore. I am suppose to wash my hands frequently and call for emergency care if I get a fever over 100.5 degrees.

Good news: I can drink alcohol, have sex, and eat anything I want. Bad news: I probably won't be interested in any of those things. Neutral news: I will lose my hair. More sobering news was that I should plan on recovering for a month after chemotherapy before trying to return to work or a normal lifestyle.

Lots of information to read this weekend about cancer treatments, how to keep your weight up, and drug side effects to watch for. The surreal part of my journey seems very real now.