Cycle 1 - Almost Done

This is Mom's last day of treatment of cycle one. She will finish up the IL-2 around 11:00 tonight and be able to come home sometime tomorrow. She has been so strong throughout these four straight days of chemo. I couldn't be more pleased about how things have gone. Her nurses were raving yesterday about how great she has responded to the treatment, and how positive she always remains. Mom has definitely won them over and made good friends with the nurses. They all love her. Mom has only gotten sick a handful of times the entire week. She has had two slight cases of the chills and a low grade fever, all of which were expected. She has also developed a little rash on several parts of her body. Interestingly, they tell us this is a very good sign, because it is one indication that the cancer does not like the treatment and is acting out against it, producing the rash. We all told Mom we hope her whole entire body turns into one huge rash. Her biggest problem during the week was battling consistent low blood pressure. I would guess her average blood pressure these four days was about 85/45, with several readings around 75/40. Of course they pumped her full of more medication to try to control this, but it has been a constant problem. They seem confident it will go up to manageable levels once she is off the chemo.

Mom's energy level is understandably extremely low. She drifts in and out of sleep a lot, but when awake, her mind seems clear (OK, well, as clear as Mom's mind gets --haha--just kidding--if you know Mom well, I know you are laughing!). I watched the Louisville-Providence game with her on Saturday and she'd close her eyes for a couple of minutes, then pop up to cheer at the right time. We'd high five and then she would dose off again for a sec. The game was close until the end. While her eyes were closed she kept asking, "How we doing?". She told me her eyelids felt like weights were attached. Thanks to us, Louisville closed out the game strong and won again.

After this first cycle, Mom has three weeks off at home. Then cycle two starts -another 4-5 days at University Hospital. The same regimen of chemo will be used . We are anticipating this next week at home will be tough. Mom's energy level will remain very low, as her body is processing all the chemo. The doctors/nurses tell us by the end of this second week, the chemo and its effects should be gone for the most part, and Mom should start to regain a lot of her strength. By the forth week, Mom should be back to 100%, ready to look cycle two in the face. The great news is that Shan and the kids are flying in Feb 24. I know that will pump Mom up tremendously and put her in high spirits to face cycle two like she did this first.

Thanks for all the prayers. Love, Boogie