To avoid morbidity, let’s fast forward to the end of radiation. I only had two treatments remaining. So I was in a distinctly good mood as the technician strapped me down. Seven tracks of the cd later he unbolted the mask, lifted the creepy looking white mesh thing and said the two words you DO NOT [...]
Archive for May, 2008
Fried by Radiation…It’s a Good Thing?
Posted in Personal, tagged cancer, esophageal cancer, head and neck cancer, radiation, supra glottal cancer on May 18, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Angels with My DNA?
Posted in Personal on May 15, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Your cancer diagnosis will strip bare the façade around you and your family to reveal the core character of those you love. After my diagnosis, the bond between my new husband and me strengthened. I gained a beautiful tie to my youngest daughter. Connections to my older daughter, a sister and a brother-in-law disintegrated. Overall, [...]
A Marriage Made in Hell…Radiation with Chemo
Posted in Personal, tagged cancer, chemo, esophageal cancer, radiation, supra glottal cancer on May 14, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
By the time my esophageal cancer was diagnosed, it had advanced to a T3 or T4 cancer, involving the lymphs as well. My treatment required six weeks of radiation and six chemo therapies. Dr. Oxford encouraged me. “You’ll be fine. You can beat this. You were in good physical shape when you were diagnosed” I, [...]
A Star Wars Light Show…Radiation and What to Expect
Posted in Personal, tagged cancer, head and neck cancer, radiation, Sammons Cancer Center, supra glottal cancer, throat cancer on May 7, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
I was paralyzed with fear during my first radiation. The technicians at Sammons Cancer Center had tried to assuage my fears. I just had to holler if anything went wrong. They’d be with me in a nano second. With all that comfort and reassurance finished, they instructed me to undress from the waist up, don my hospital [...]
Buying the Wig.. Another Joy of Cancer
Posted in Personal, tagged cancer, chemo, chemo therapy, human hair wig, radiation, synthetic wig, wig, wigs on May 7, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Real advice from one who’s been there
So, you’re ready to be chemo-ed. What is the fate of your hair? As the voice of experience, I can tell you: your hair won’t fall out right away. In fact, my hair loss was so slow in coming that I thought I might escape baldness altogether. But one [...]
Ethyol…A Completely Biased, Nearly Post-Humous Anecdotal Evaluation
Posted in Personal, tagged chemo, ethyol, injection, radiation, salivary glands, taste buds on May 5, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Who asked me if I wanted to take Ethyol? With my irradiated brain, it’s possible I missed or misunderstood the question. But I can’t imagine I’d misunderstand the side effects if they’d been described to me.
Ethyol is given daily, injected into the abdomen, left side one day, right side the next. Yes, the injection [...]
Getting Hosed for Cancer
Posted in Personal, tagged ethyol, peg tube, yeast infection on May 5, 2008 | 2 Comments »
As my treatment progressed, I found the tube didn’t handle certain foods well at all. The pic attached shows a tube similar to mine in length and attachment. It is not, however, my abdomen or tube. Carnation’s Very High Calorie Breakfast Drink, a whooping 550 calories in one can, tended to clog the tube easily. [...]
Choosing a Cancer Cat, One of the Joys
Posted in Personal, tagged American Short hair, cancer, Operation Kindness, Persian, Rescue cat, tuxedo on May 5, 2008 | 1 Comment »
When I began this blog, I promised to be both optimistic and informative. So far, the focus has been informative. It’s time for one of the joys.
Because my husband travels, my daughter is almost two hundred miles away, and I know no one in Dallas, Wayne suggested a pet. I wanted a dog, but [...]
More Preparation Unique to Head and Neck Radiation
Posted in Personal, tagged denture, head and neck cancer, necrosis, radiation, radiation mask, radiation tattoo on May 4, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
the loss of the teeth, tattoo, mask making
