3/19 - Day 1 of Chemotherapy

Today was the first day of Kristine's chemotherapy. The day began at 9 and we left the cancer center at around 4. Kristine did really well and was feeling no pain by the end of the day. She received two drugs during her treatment, Adriamycin and Ifex, along with lots of hydration fluids and anti-nausea medication.

Returning home we met with our home care nurse. She walked Kristine’s mom and I through the steps needed to administer the post-chemo drug (Mesna) and hydration fluids. The whole kit was comprised of 3 large boxes of equipment and an IV pole and monitor. The whole experience was a bit overwhelming. The drugs and fluids are delivered intravenously through a “port” on Kristine’s hip and everything needs to be sterilized and carefully handled. Just call me “Nurse Ryan.”

She’ll receive similar drugs and treatment for the first cycle of her chemo which will last for a total of 4 days. She’ll then have 2 weeks “off” before her second cycle begins – repeating the whole process over again.

The first week of the cycle consists of daily chemotherapy. She’ll be relatively weak but still functioning. The second week she will find herself in her weakest state. Her blood cell count, and in turn her immune system, will be at its lowest point putting her at a higher risk of infection. The third week will be her best. There are no treatments during this period just time to reenergize for the next cycle of chemo.

Kristine is scheduled for three cycles of treatment lasting a total of 9 weeks. She'll then be evaluated to see how well the chemo worked. Either surgery or more chemo could follow.

We got some good news. The new CT scan taken on Thursday of last week showed that the tumors had not progressed much from the previous scan over a month ago. This was an encouraging sign that the cancer is not as aggressive as we feared.

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