4/15 - Day 7, Cycle 2: Another Cycle Down

It's been raining all day today (Sunday) in Philadelphia, one of the more relentless Nor'easter we've seen in a while. Kristine's spirits haven't been dampened though, the toughest part of her 2nd chemotherapy cycle is behind her. She finished the last of her intravenous hydration fluids this afternoon. No more flushing her port with saline (a process that leaves a nauseating taste in her mouth) and no more being attached to an IV for hours at a time. The feeling of nausea will begin to subside and she will reclaim a fairly normal appetite.

She received high fives from her sisters and me as the last remaining drops of potassium chloride were funneled into her port. It's a small milestone but one that symbolizes the upcoming two week stage of freedom and rejuvenation before entering her next cycle. Like the last cycle she'll need to be cautious for the next two weeks. Her white blood cell counts will remain low making her susceptible to infection and illness.

On Saturday we reached another milestone when Kristine, her sisters and I headed North to Ginnie G's, a salon and day spa that specializes in wigs and hair replacement. Ginnie, the owner, showed us to the wig room down a short set of stairs. The walls were lined with shelves of styrofoam busts crowned with cranial prostheses of various colors and lengths. Ginnie asked the standard set of questions: Real or synthetic (I couldn't honestly tell the difference), match your existing hair style and color or try something new? After trying on several pieces Kristine set her mind on one. It isn't electric blue, nor bright red, nor is it fashioned after Sanjaya's pony-hawk (although these were all great suggestions). It is, however, similar in color to her existing hair but a bit longer. She chose real hair over synthetic to improve her styling options (with real hair you can cut and style the wig just like you would your own hair).

After having her wig styled, Kristine moved on to the second step. She had her head shaved. Surprisingly it wasn't as traumatic for any of us as I would have expected. Kristine handled it with amazing strength. She looks very cute with her shorn cranium, even a little bad ass (pardon the profanity). Ginnie didn't shave down to the skin, more like a buzz style cut. Having worked with a lot of cancer patients Ginnie informed us that one shouldn't cut the hair down to the scalp during treatment due to the risk of infection and irritation. It's better to shave the hair short to avoid the mess and let the rest fall out on its own.

As for pictures and voting on the new styles, you will have to wait a bit longer. Kristine's not quite ready to reveal her new hair-do. She prefers to wait until her head is completely bald to conduct the voting. I did insert a little teaser for you all -- the remnants of Kristine's lost hair. It's up for sale on EBay but I don't think we can get the same million dollar asking price that Britney Spears' did. :)