Chemo ...38, 39, Party!!!!

I have completed my 4 cycles of AC. That is adriamycin and cyclophosphamide. I survived Phase 1 of my treatment yay!!!!

PHOTO HEAVY POST COMING.....

AC#1

A week before my first chemo, I had my hair shaved to prepare myself and my kids. I'm eating frozen carrot juice here - Ice Candy prepared by my dear hubby. Eating ice was supposed to prevent mouth sores, a side effect of chemo. Seems effective, I've had only one or two mouth sores per cycle.

"Getting to know you" party with chemo. I partied with nausea, gastric pain, fatigue and drowsiness. Good thing they were not so mean to me. The party went smoothly. Chemo took almost all my hair on the third week though. Started shedding hair down south. Oh, chemo let me sweat it out with hot flushes. I thought I was having fever, my cheeks would suddenly feel hot and my head and back sweats. Wierd feeling! Hello early menopause.

My chemo buddy: my sweet hubby, I love you!

AC#2

Chemo introduced me to his friend vomitting. We only shaked hands and I haven't seen him again (yet). Again nausea, gastric pain, fatigue, hot flushes and drowsiness were glad to party with me.

I'm truly a Baguio girl, I have zigzag veins like Marcos highway that my nurses need to continuously tap my arms like how we do the "pinikpikan" so that my veins would bulge. It takes them 30 minutes to get a vein to cooperate. 

Zoom in on Nurse Flora's forehead and you'll see her sweat haha.  They asked me to get my onco to have a PICC installed.

My chemo buddy: my loving hubby 

AC#3

With my PICC line on my arm installed, no more needle poking. That line is a hollow tube inserted to a vein in my arm and extends near to my heart.

Goodbye instant baths for me. PICC line cannot get wet. Need to wrap.

I've gotten so used to my party pals. Party usually lasts for 3 days. I am feeling normal on the 2 remaining weeks of each cycle but not able to stand longer than 15 minutes. So even with so much free time, I am bed/home bound.

My chemo buddies this round: my sister flew from Philippines just to be with me and my bestie also took time. Thank you!

AC#4

My chemo buddies: hubby and son

After infusion, while waiting for our ride home. We enjoyed this beautiful koi pond in the hospital.

This round was the hardest, when I thought I would just breeze it off like the other cycles.  I had hard time breathing. My chest was so tight. AC is known to affect the heart. I got worried. I was also weaker than usual. I was sleeping like dead for 5 days. I was scheduled for routine heart scan the coming week. I kept praying and speaking to my heart to recover so that I can continue Phase 2.  On the second week, I was feeling better and heart scan result was good. 

Yay! Praise the LORD! I survived Phase 1 chemo!