
Today Dan's mom joined us for chemo Monday.
24 Radiation Treatments down, 11 to go. And, 6 chemo treatments complete, only 1 to go!
Every chemo day starts with lab work, then a consultation with the doctor and/or NP, the chemo IV drip followed by an observation period. The day is finished off with a radiation treatment. In between each of those steps, there is generally a waiting period.
Today, Dan's lab, chemo and RT schedule showed that he'd be at the hospital for 9 hours...which is way too long for his current level of fatigue. Up until now, we have been really patient about the waiting periods. WE respect all of the medical people on Dan's team and we have come to realize that when we are waiting someone is getting all of their questions answered, in an
un-rushed fashion. And, when we are getting all of our questions answered, someone else is waiting patiently.
However, where Dan is at fatigue-wise with the radiation therapy and pain medication, much waiting didn't seem like a good idea today.
I thought the day was going to go off without a hitch when I called someone on his team early in the a.m. and got his appointments consolidated down to a shorter time. This enabled Dan's mom to go and visit with friends who live near
Froedtert, I got Sam out to the horse barn, Alex went to play and Dan slept.
When we did go in for his lab work, we thought we were going to have the shortest chemo day ever. And, it might have gone that way if the lab who has to draw his blood before his chemo is mixed...could have drawn his blood. It took them one hour, three people and many pokes for them to come to the conclusions that Dan was dehydrated and his veins were collapsing. Bottom line, even with a pediatric needle, they couldn't draw blood.
Unsure of what to do, we went to the chemo area and found someone on Dan's team to tell them we couldn't get the blood work done. I also called my sister to see if she happened to have access to a man's shirt...since the lab work was stressful to Dan and with his current state of fevers and sweating...he was soaking wet. Leave it to my sister to have a man's large shirt she had won tucked away in a drawer in her desk. She immediately came and gave it to us and listened to our frustrating lab story in horror. Apparently,
Froedtert has a team that specializes in hard to draw blood...she thought they should have been paged. Dan was littered with band-aids where they had tried to get access to his veins. His blood pressure was also higher than I have ever seen it.
When we met with his team, they were a little frustrated. We were more than an hour behind and there was no blood to be analyzed, thus they couldn't get him into the chemo process in the time frame
allotted. They
explained that Dan was not dehydrated, although his veins were responding to the chemo and radiation and sometimes at this point in the process
they get less cooperative. They were a little frustrated at what Dan experienced in the lab.
Our NP said that she'd find someone on her team to get Dan done with one poke, and she was right. Although, in the process, the clock was ticking away. We were loosing ground to get Dan's chemo treatment in along with his radiation treatment. There were several discussion regarding moving chemo to Tuesday or skipping today's radiation.
However, in the end, his team came through and got both the chemo and the radiation in. (An important thing both for his treatment and for his moral). It did mean that the radiation department had to stay open until 7:00 p.m. (There normal closing time is closer to 4:30 or 5:30). I commend all the people who stayed late and so Dan could get his treatment.
We already lost one treatment day, we don't want to loose anymore.
During his consult, they were happy that Dan had found a way to manage the pain by experimenting with his pain medications over the weekend. They said the ulcers and blisters in his mouth are typical for this stage of the process. On a good note, over the past two weeks, Dan's pain has been escalating exponentially (oops, that's not the good note). Here' the good note, we finally found the combination of pain relief that works for him. I was concerned how much higher we should continue to up the dose and I was given assurance that Dan is at the peak point pain-wise that he will endure through treatment. (that's the good note) So, while it's pretty bad pain, it's being managed well...and, we can stop worrying about a new surge.
We spent a little time talking about food. Dan has the desire to eat and swallow, although, he can't handle more than runny eggs and liquid supplements. His NP suggested I whip up some things of interest in the blender to see if that offered any success. It didn't :-( Dan misses eating, chewing, swallowing, tasting. Although, two to four weeks post treatment, he should be able to start to experiment and, hopefully enjoy, food again.
Once again, we were warned that the radiation continues to work 2 weeks post-treatment. So, those won't be picnic weeks...but, once we get there on the calendar, we know that we won't have to drive to
Froedtert daily...and, we are hoping that then his body can truly start to heal.
After Dan was shuttled away to the radiation room, I left him in the capable hands of his mom so I could run one errand and stop by and see my grandma, who I haven't seen since Dan was diagnosed. My visit with my grandma was run short as Sammy called to tell me that dad looked very stressed when they arrived home and she was feeling a little uncertain as to what to do. I came home to find Dan running another 103 degree fever and feeling miserable. Our tiny short chemo day...had turned into a 9 hour day with travel. And, it was quite hard on Dan.
Shortly after I arrived home, Dan was able to take some medication, get some sleep and work through his fever. Eventually, when we were all ready to call it a night, Dan managed to come downstairs and sit with the family for a little while.
When he went to bed for the night, he was still traumatized by all the needle pokes. He understands the discomfort of the radiation treatments and the chemo treatments, but he felt the hour long "pin cushion" experience was cruel and unusual in light of all he has been dealing with. I felt bad that I didn't seek out some extra help for him. Now we both know, if it takes more than one poke, we can find someone on his team to help us.
On a great note, I think I would have been far less calm about the situation if Carol (Dan's mom) hadn't been along. She was so calm and level, her presence helped me stay calm and level too.
Well, except for my evening rant with the kids...drats...I wish I had a little more energy to focus on the kids where my body wasn't filled with a day's worth of tension.
On a
wonderful note, after getting home so late, it was nice to be treated to a wonderful homemade meal of mac and cheese,
applesauce and bread from Susan in my
book group. Julie, my neighbor, coordinated some extra meals for us...and, each one I think I can get by without, and each one I wonder what I would have done without it. The meals from neighbors and friends have been wonderful blessings.
Someone wrote me today...most of
of all remember that not even a sparrow falls to the ground apart from God's will (Matthew 10:29), so there is a reason for all of this. (Thanks, Kitty)I'm sure there is a reason. Sometimes it is hard to see in the midst of the situation. But, when Dan is recovered, relaxed and healthy again...I am sure the reason will reveal itself.
Margaret