90 Going on 31
I think I now know what it feels like to be 90, and I am not sure I want to ever be 90. Maybe they will discover the fountain of youth by then (it is almost 60 years away, imagine how much medicine has advanced in the last 10 years alone…). I was hoping I would be the lucky one that didn’t get the “pain” side effects that Taxol can produce, in fact when they told me it was a possible side effect I didn’t...
The Cost of Breast Cancer
My insurance company has a website where I can monitor claims submitted by the hospital. I have always heard insane stories about how much chemo costs and how expensive cancer is to treat, so I have been watching the claims come in. This is by no means representative of what Mike and I actually have to pay (I feel lucky to have good insurance). How much the hospital charges the insurance company isn’t exactly what they get paid,...
Smoothie Finger Paintings – First Taxol Treatment
Today will forever be famous for the smoothie incident. They put me in a chair with a different kind of side tray than I am used to, meaning I hadn’t put it up properly, Dereck was on smoothie duty and got my blueberry smootie. My dad and I set ours down on the tray and BAM! They fell straight to the floor (along with my cell phone, so let’s keep that one just between us, Mike doesn’t need to know that it landed in a...
Genetic Mutations and My Soapbox
I got THE phone call tonight. I happened to be at the hospital pretty much all day yesterday, so I had plenty of time to bug the nurses about my genetic test that I have been waiting on for what seems to be ages. It has been sitting in the back of my mind as the genetic test decides whether or not I keep my ovaries (40% chance of ovarian cancer if I tested positive for BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic mutations). I had myself prepared to have...
Once Upon a Drizzly Monday Morning
Talk about an emotional roller coaster! Before my appointment today I had thought long and hard about what was going on with the incision, especially after I was fever free for two days. Every single stitch was surrounded by red angry skin and the general incision area was pink. This happened last time I had the stitches in for 3 weeks, but on a much smaller scale as I only had a few stitches that time. Honestly, I think my body hates...