This week I had a CT/PET scan, an echocardiogram and a surgical consult for the port placement.
CT/PET Scan:
I arrived at Imaging Alliance early (6:50am) Monday morning. I had to drink a contrast fluid before the test and they asked me if I wanted it in fruit punch (memories of throwing fruit punch up in 2nd grade made me pass on that one), lemonade, or water. I chose lemonade. They handed me 2 LARGE cups of lemonade and a straw. I went back to my seat and got to drinking. I got it all down fairly quickly, and then I started getting really, really cold, then a little bit nauseous. I figured it was because it wasn't 7am yet and I'd already had 36oz of lemonade and nothing else.
After about 20 minutes they came to get me. I was taken to a room where 1 man asked me a lot of questions (are you allergic to anything, what is your height and weight, etc.) and another man started an IV. They give you another fluid through the IV during the scan. Once the IV was in, they sent me down the hall to wait.
About 10 minutes later they came to get me and took me to a room with the CT machine. They told me to lay flat on my back and put my arms above my head. They raised up the "bed" I was lying on and it automatically put me through the machine. For those of you who've never had a CT scan, the machine looks like a very large donut. The "bed" part goes in and out of the hole. It's not loud (like an MRI) and you don't have to wear earplugs or take off your jewelry. They did a test run, then began the IV solution. They said it would give me a metallic taste in my mouth, make me warm (which I was grateful for since I was freezing!) and it might make me feel like I was peeing on myself. They assured me I wasn't. When they started the IV, I immediately felt those things. And 2 thoughts immediately came to mind: 1) That was quick, and 2) Are they SURE I'm not peeing on myself? Because it really feels like I am and I just drank about 36 oz of lemonade.
The scan was over in roughly 5 minutes. They said Dr. Yardley would get the results that afternoon. I was then sent on my way.
I had to call Dr. Yardley for something on Tuesday morning and at that time, they said the CT scan showed no other cancer spots. Praise God for that news!
Echocardiogram:
If you've ever had an ultrasound, then you know exactly how they do an echocardiogram. If you don't know, here's what they do: You get undressed (mine was only from the waist up) and put on a beautiful designer hospital gown. :) The tech comes in and you lay on a table. They use a probe with gel on the end of it and rub it on your skin in whatever area they are focused on (for me, it was the heart) and look at it on a computer. It's very interesting.
The tech asked me to lay on my left side and the probe was placed on my chest toward the left. He took lots of pictures and turned on the sound a few times and I could hear my own heartbeat. Pretty cool. He then did the same thing on my left side, my stomach (my friend, Alex, says a major artery runs into your stomach and you can feel it when you've eaten too much at Thanksgiving!) and my throat. The whole test took about 15 minutes. He said Dr. Yardley should have the results by tomorrow afternoon.
Surgical Consult:
I went back to see Dr. Cooper for him to look at my incision and evaluate port placement. The port (in case I haven't explained this) is a tiny devise, about the size of a quarter. It is placed against the chest wall and Dr. Cooper stitches it in place. Once it's in, the chemo techs will be able to feel the location of it and that is where I will have the chemo 'IV' placed. They can also draw blood from there. The port keeps me from having to get my arms stuck with a needle all the time. I will have the port for as long as Dr. Yardley recommends.
Dr. Cooper looked at my incision and said it was looking pretty good, but wanted to put some medicine on it to help it heal up quicker. It still has an open part and is still draining. He put silver nitrate on it and a band-aid. He also said I could quit wearing my extra supportive sports bras, as long as I didn't feel any pain. I call that sports bra a corset because it's hard to breathe in it! He also said we could schedule the port surgery, which we scheduled for Friday, the 13th. He said it would be my lucky day. :)
Drug Trial Decision:
I decided not to participate in the drug trial. If I got put in Group 3 (the group who actually gets the trial drug) I would have to take the drug (it's given just like chemo) for 1 year. I can opt out of the study at any time, but I would still feel obligated to finish. Also, they could never answer my question about whether or not I could go right into radiation on the trial drug, so I decided it was easier to just not participate.
My follow up appointment is with Dr. Yardley on the 11th. She will decide what chemo regimen I will receive and when it will begin. I also think I will be on pre-meds, although I don't know that for sure or have any other information on that. I will know more on the 11th.
That's all the cancer news I have for now.
Everybody have a great rest of the week and stay cool! -
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