Kelly Cops Chemo !

Dear Veinly Interested Friends,

Woke up to get ready for my intrepid date with more drugs than I have ever injested in all my life. Cycle 1 of six cycles of chemo over 18 weeks.

Only to find that apparently I was waaaaaay more stressed than I had realised because I could not move my right arm above my shoulder line, nor turn my neck left or right, nor lead off to walk moving my neck a nano second before my torso without a shooting and frozen like pain that prevent me from moving until it passed. Shampooing one's hair proved tricky as did towelling and dressing.

When I am this stressed I apparently scrunch my shoulders so high that they touch my earlobes and there they nestled all night and not even constant stretching, turning, adding and losing pillows could force a more relaxed position. They were there for the duration. It was a bad night and a slow start to a long day.

But arrive we did and headed straight to Level 5 to meet the team at the Chemotherapy Day Unit. They have the ubiquitious waiting room so here is the ubiquitous shot of me waiting. More bad daytime television on offer folks as one can see from my delighted expression, so I played more Candy Crush Saga on the ipad.

We met with Nick, a Clinical Nurse Specialist I think, who took us through what was going to happen today and what a truly staggering array of possible side effects that I was going to get to take home with me, all of which are a complimentary part of the service. Before I detail those eagerly anticipated extras, Nick detailed the three types of chemo being administered and the process of how it will be administered.

For this and the next two cycles of chemotherapy, I will be getting shot into me a combination of drugs called FEC. F stands for Fluorouracil and is clear and will be infused by a pump. Second one is E. E stands for Epirubicin which is gravity fed rather than pump fed because if gets forcefully pushed into the vein and spills into tissue, it has the power to kill the tissue. Apparently this is not a good thing so they gravity feed this bright red and molasses-like consistency by hanging it high next to you. The third component in the name is C and C stands for Cyclophosphamide. It is clear and pump infused into my vein.

Nick then runs us through the range of potential side effects that comes with these lethal cocktails. In no order of preference they are;

nausea

vomiting

diarrhorea (I have finally learnt to spell this word without looking !!)

constipation

mouth ulcers

bleeding gums

hair loss (partial or total)

fatigue

metallic taste and hyper sensitivity to food smells

extremely sensitive to the sun

nail discolouration and ridges

bladder irritation

effects on memorary

Now these little side effects are from the first lot of chemo. Each cycle is three weeks apart and I have three cycles of FEC. This will then be followed, again at three weekly intervals, of three cycles of Docetaxel aka Taxotere. This is also administered intravenously via a drip and this takes about 2 and a half hours each time. In addition to those already mentioned above, this toxic little number also comes with its own extra set of extra steak knives as a take-away prizes. These include; 

Allergic reaction such as fever, chills, rash or itching, shortness of breath or continuous hiccoughs 

anaemia

muscle and joint pain

dry & itching skin

fluid retention

peripheral neuropathy (pins & needles, burning sensation in fingers and toes)     

     

In detailing the potential impacts that chemo may have, Nick stressed the importance of understanding that with a very compromised immune system arising from all these drugs running rampant and killing off both good and bad cells indiscriminately in my body, the need to be aware of any fever or infection and have it seen to as soon as possible, is crucial. Hence he handed me this nifty little "get of jail card"

Patient Priority Card

This magic card will preclude me from the need to wait hours in an emergency department in the event that I need to present to an Emergency Department (ED) anywhere out of hours, as Peter Mac doesnt have one. The only bods getting into ED ahead of me if I am there are those not breathing or unconscious!! So this precious frequent flyer card goes straight into the wallet!! Best I update my ambulance subscription whilst we are at it. I am finding that blind panic brings with it such clarity of purpose!!!!!

So with all the paperwork work sorted and the expectations detailed , we move to the next phase of the day. But before they commence the administering process we get a tour of the Chemotherapy Day Unit (CDU) which is on the fifth floor of Peter Mac. The Unit has three major rooms in use over two shifts a day five days a week. The Cathedral Room, The Fountain Room and the Treetops Room. Each room has approximately 5 - 7 recliner chairs. Here patients sit for an average of 3 - 4 hours each being administered variable treatment plans. On a busy day, the unit administers to 80 patients, which is just mind blowing.

View from the Cathedral Room of the CDU

As you can see from this pic, we are in the Cathedral Room overlooking St Pat's But I am not scheduled to receive my tretament from there. Today I will be in the Fountain Room that overlooks the Fountain in the grounds of St Patrick's. The view is similar but I didnt think it appropriate to ask a patient already in situ receiving treatment to move from their chair just so I could get a good photo for you all. It is Day 1 only after all - plenty of time for them to get to know how pushy I really am.

Nonetheless the proximity to St Pat's and being able to look at the majestic architecture over the ensuing four hours did play on my mind rather significantly. Rest assured good people, dont fear any religious fevour, conversion or homily like speeches to sprout from this mouth anytime soon, but the sheer physical presence of the church vis a vis this particular type of hospital is a real life and death juxtaposition that is quite spooky. But then I got to thinking.........

My contempt for the senior catholic hierarchy is one that I have never been shy in venting and with the recent Enquiry taking place, and George and Dennis's collective rubbish responses have only served to deepen that loathing. Their risk mitigation strategy to protect themselves and their financial corporation by blaming a dead Archbishop and others who cannot defend themselves, takes ruthlessness to a whole new extreme. They make Gina and her fellow mining moguels look like a pack of leftie bleeding hearts! 

Men of faith my arse!!

However not willing to make this stage in my process any more negative than it need be, I choose to look at the Cathedral from a different perspective. What ever else you say about those catholics, they do give good church!! And it is indeed a thing of beauty. One of my favourite vistas is when heading south down Brunswick street towards the City and seeing the wonderful spire filling the site line of the city. That and the fact that my mum got married there, so to that end it, it holds a memory of the joy and happiness she would have been feeling on that day.  Oh that and the time, when Craig and some work mates attended a wedding of our former colleague and Craig got told off by Archbishop Denis Hart (Bishop Hart as he was at the time) for chewing gum in church !!! Priceless. Felt like I was eight or nine again and back in primary school being scolded by these weird folk in dress ups. 

So, with placement sorted and my chair calling for me, I get settled into Recliner Chair 2 in the Fountain Room. 

Me ready to start the Saline Infusion

Siobhan bemoaning that she gets stuck with the cheap seats!!

They started the process with a one hour saline infusion via the pump to ensure I was adequately hydrated. Mixed in with the saline was some powerful anti nausea drugs to combat the effects of what was to come. This was then followed by the E chemo from the FEC cocktail, Epirubicin. This is the bright red stuff below. And this part took about 15 minutes only. 

You have to remain still whilst this is going in but after this you are free to roam around if you need. The other two chemos are infused via the pump that can be temporarily unplugged and the pump diverts to battery whilst you head to the loo or make a tea or coffee or nick a tim tam from the kitchen. The two latter chemos take a few hours to be infused.

Taking my new friend to the loo with me!!

Hey Clare, the colourful effects of Epirubicin just for you !!! 

So here people I remain from about 10.30 until 2.30 having the three chemos infused. They have a wonderful service of offering morning and afternoon teas, lunches, and ice creams, and have facilities there for you to bring your own food to heat up given the sensitivity and delicacy of some of the patients. The team is bright and upbeat despite so many many people looking and undoubtedly feeling very unwell.

I can't help but feel quite the fraud at this stage given my comparatively robust health. And my heart simply goes out to so many of these people who are clearly so very very ill. Again, as I have done on so many occassions, I say a silent ittle thank you to all those people who decided to become a nurse. 

We head home when its all over. No dramatic effects at first but a few hours later, two successive bouts of diarrhoea burst from my body with all the enthusiasm of a small kid on a water slide ! Not pleasant peoples I know, but I have never been one to avoid the messy side of life. And now.....neither will you!! Aren't I nice? 

However I will keep the absolute nasty details to a minimum unless I feel the need to share my awful state of neausea with you. I will have some gory distasteful stories up my sleeve to use at the right time to illicit some genuine sympathy symptons from you.

Friday and the weekend went ok  and I endured minimal effects of nausea and weariness. But I have this sense that its early days and it cant be this easy. I guess we will will just have to wait and see. 

Say No to Drugs!!!

kelly xxxxx