Post Radiation Pain – May 28th 2011

May 28, 2011 Pam Leave a comment

Well, just when you thought you had jumped through all of the hurdles… got through the surgeries and radiation, a new symptom has developed. About the middle of May, I started to get a dry cough and some pain in my rib cage area, on the radiation (right) side. It’s pretty bad and feels like someone has taken a fist and punched me in the ribs from inside. It burns and the pain goes to 8-9/10 when I cough, take a deep breath or sneeze. It also hurts very much to lay down, and to recline in recliner.

At first I wondered at a pneumothorax (partial) but I don’t think so, as my respirations seem to be ok. It feel pleuritic, and that is what my family Dr felt as well, that it was pleuritic pain. Last week she listened to my lungs and thought I had good air entry, but she listened on side and back, not in front at lower ribcage under the breast, where it’s really hurting. I see my onco-radiologist on the 31st so will tell her about it. I suspect that she is going to tell me I have radiation pneumonitis as it fits as to when the symptoms started. But I can’t diagnose, so I’ll hope for the best and see if it’s just something else. 🙂

I am doing the gradual return to work and am trying to do 8 hr shifts. It’s difficult with the pain now because if I get coughing it really hurts, and if I can’t splint myself fast enough, I feel it big time. I am feeling tired, but so far energy levels holding at about 70%. I am pushing myself to get back to working full time.

I’m sounding like a whiner and I don’t mean to. I am lucky, I have a job I love, I have a loving husband, dog and family, good friends, good people I work with, good Drs. It is all good, it’s just that next hurdle is all, I thought whoever had the voodoo doll and pin had finally put it away, but alas poor yoric, is not to be.

…Pam…

Canucks Hockey, Commentary

Canucks WIN Western Conference Final game! :)

May 24, 2011 Pam 3 Comments

Wow, we are going to the Stanley Cup finals ! 🙂 Maurice and I and our friend Mike have been following the canucks for more than a couple decades, and we always get together to watch the games. Like the rest of the Canuck fans, we have been long suffering and we DESERVE this chance at the cup. What an awesome team we have this year. I have really loved some past canucks players for their hearts and guts (Trevor Linden, and Martin Gelinas come to mind quickly) but there is a long list of canucks who have found their way into our hearts. A a fan, and a Canadian, I love the sport and I love our team.GO CANUCKS GO!! WE ARE ALLLLLL CANUCKS!!!

This team, this group, from the start, has had a magical feel to it. It’s felt from the beginning that this was our year. I have believed it, and am not one of these fans that falls off the band wagon if they lose or have a bad game. Instead, I feel we need to support our team. I think Kesler and Bieksa are both awesome players who give us 100% efforts. The Sedins are both a marvel and their talents so many that we see new nifty moves all of the time. Every player on this team has given us a great effort so far. They have put it all out there and battled. They deserve more credit than they get. So does Luongo, he’s played so well, and he stole this game 5 for us, standing on his head.

The referee’s however, seem to have all been given a set of Mr Magoo coke bottle glasses. Many times we screamed our outrage because the ref’s would not call a penalty against the opposing team, when we were clearly tripped, slashed or hooked.. yet, the other teams seemed to get away with so much, and we were called on penalties that were seemingly phantom calls. The first 4 games of the Sharks series, I believe the players were even confused as to what is and what isn’t a penalty. Torres for charging?? I don’t think so… he took 1.5 strides.. NOT a charge. I’d be angry too Torres.

What about at the end of the game when Kesler gets sucker punched in the face by Clowe? To me, that should have 2 minute penalty to start the next game. Why should he be able to get away with that kind of mugging?

It is awesome to see everyone supporting the canucks and I hope the fans keep it together and keep it safe. 🙂

We are SO excited, not just because it’s our team, but it’s the only Canadian Team in the playoffs so the Canucks will try to represent, and will be watching the games and cheering from our familyroom!

While I’m posting, I’ll take a sec to do a hockey rant. Why should the east be able to dictate when our games are held? a noon game on a sunday? What?? We finally get a sunny day, but can be gardening? NO.. there is a game on, so of course we are going to be watching it… Noon? Really? come on…. why should WE be the only ones inconvenienced.

…Pam…

Health Issues

May 6th -healing

May 6, 2011 Pam 8 Comments

Hi everyone 🙂 Sorry for the long space between posts.

Well I’ve been to the family Dr a couple of times since the radiation was completed. I was told by all Drs that the radiation would continue to make changes in me for 2-3 weeks and I could expect that the skin would continue to change. Well it did, the skin under the breast had continued to redden and get angry looking, and finally the skin broke down. When I saw my family Dr she looked at it and said “ouch”. She advised me to try canesten cream on the area x 2 days, because it’s just the sort of place yeast likes to go. I did that, and it did seem to be helping some, but the skin continued to break down and be open, with blisters and open areas, so I started on the flamazine cream that I had been prescribed as well. (They told me not to use it unless area’s became the size of quarter or so and open) . My family Dr advised I start taking it after the 2 days of canestin and so I did. After about 2 days of that, it felt so much better and the angriness of it started to subside. Now it’s still healing but it’s much more comfortable.

I still am feeling some fatigue but am hopeful that it will lift soon. I am at about 60% of my normal energy levels, but am on a stretch of days off now so hopefully that time will allow more rest and the levels to rise. I am starting back to work, which for me is a blessing. I feel like me being back to work gives me some normalcy back. It’s been a strange year healthwise and I can’t say it’s been easy. I am hoping the worst of it is done. Since last June 2010 = pinched nerve C6-7, still ongoing numbness in fingers of right hand from that, Vaginal bleeding x 2 out of the blue, gyne consult and 3 pelvic US and 1 surgery (D&C) , Torn Left knee MCL (partial tear), routine mammogram and that showed the cancer, then repeat US’s, biopsyx5, then surgery Jan 11, Surgery Feb 1 as metastases to lymph node, then 5 weeks of radiation and 5-6 boost shots, fatigue throughout and continuing, my dad died Feb 22nd, so I flew home to be with my mum, sister and brother… and so now I am finished all of the treatments, and am on pills x 5 yrs, and get blood work done every 6 months or so. Plus I’ll have to have more frequent mammograms.

The hope is, that the cancer that spread to the 1 lymph node, did not even microscopically go elsewhere in my body. The hope is that I am cancer free. 🙂 Once this breast heals up, I will feel like I’ve jumped the hurdle and am back on the road to health.

I am doing a gradual return to work to see if I can get back to my regular hours. I have done a couple of 4 hr shifts and I’ll admit I was surprised at how tired I felt after each of them. I am doing another block of 4 hr shifts, and then will gradually increase so that I am back to doing my 12 hr shifts. It feels good to be going back, and I’ve been gone 4 months so there is some catching up to do, but it will be alright. 🙂

Thanks everyone who has called or phoned or visited, and helped me through this. It’s been one hell of a long haul. I hope it’s over!

…Pam…

Health Issues

Post Radiation – April 22nd

April 22, 2011 Pam 4 Comments

I finished the last treatment and boost treatment on Tuesday April 19th. It felt so good to be finished this all. It has been tiring. I had a headache all of the next day, and I’m not sure why, perhaps a stress letdown or something, I don’t know, but I am not prone to headaches so it surprised me.

I had to go to the hospital and get 9 vials of blood taken from me and see the nurse for clinical trials. I am taking part in a clinical trial called MA 32. It involves taking a pill a day x 28 days, and then 2 pills a day x 5 yrs. The pill can either be a placebo or metformin 850 mgm I don’t know which I have. The theory behind the trial they are testing is to see if early stage breast cancer patients do better with metformin than those who don’t take it. I believe they found women who were already diabetic and taking metformin seemed to have better results for both survival and have less recurrance rates. Anyways when I met with my cancer Dr, Dr. Oja initially, I asked him if there were any clinical trials that were going on that I would be suitable for, and he told me about this one. Suits me. 🙂 I like the idea of being part of a possible solution to help fight this disease.

The radiology gals warned me, as did my radioncologist, that the radiation will continue to affect my skin and symptoms x 2 weeks. I have to say that is true. The skin continues to get more fragile even though the treatments have stopped. I am getting some pains in the breast, like zingers, and the crease/fold under the breast is red and raw and open. I continue to put hydrocortisone on it. I do have a prescription for flamazine, but I don’t have bigger weeping areas bigger than a quarter yet. The Dr told me to get the prescription filled if that happened.

I did a soak of the breast with cool water today and man did that feel good, it took some of the heat out of the breast for a time. They said to use saline soaks but I am not going to do that, I can’t see putting saltwater on the already irritated and open skin, so I’m sticking with water. 🙂

Yesterday we went for a walk in one of the woodland parks, and it was lovely. We went to Surrey lake park, and there we saw an eagle nest, with mama eagle’s head sitting up high in it, and daddy eagle came circling the nest. Cool stuff 🙂

I’m trying to make myself get up and do stuff, just to push through this fatigue. I have to say for the first time in months (even before the diagnosis I had told the Dr. I was feeling fatigue ++ ) (no doubt because of the cancer I didn’t know I had then), I woke up this morning and I don’t feel like an absolute dishrag. The morning is early yet, but I am hopeful that the bone crushing fatigue I’ve been feeling might actually be lifting. Hope. 🙂 Fingers crossed, and lets see what today brings. If I can get this inflammation down in the breast area, then I might feel like I’m getting back to normal here. The Dr told me they are inflaming the breast every time they radiate it, and I have not had alot of pains/zingers thusfar, but I am getting them now that the actual treatments have stopped. WEIRD. 🙂

…Pam…

Health Issues

April 18th 2011 – Monday

April 18, 2011 Pam 3 Comments

Today was my 24th/25 radiation treatment. One more to go!

I think I’m doing pretty good. My skin is getting more sensitive as the days go on. Right after the treatment my skin is fairly reddened but it gradually subsides during the day so that it is looking more darker than the other side, but the last week or so it’s been feeling more sunburnt for longer. I am having some pain especially under the right breast, the crease is inflammed and reddened but no large weeping areas. The bra certainly is a gift and a curse, as it holds the girls in place but it also can cause some rubbing on sensitive burnt skin. I do believe that I have different skin type than most people as I rarely do burn, and have a great ability to tan. The Dr’s are impressed with how my skin has held up thusfar. I’ve been impressed too, but I’ve been religious about slathering on the moisturizer 2x a day and I am putting some hydrocortisone cream under the breast along the inflamed area.

One thing they did advise this last week, was to do saline soaked wraps of the right breast. I guess they thought week 5 it would be the worse. I am not doing that, because I feel saline (salt water) on a burnt skin can dry it out more. Instead I’m doing just cool water wraps and that feels so good. Once you get zapped so many times, you start to feel cooked inside. I know that sounds gross, but it’s the best way I know to describe it. I saw my surgeon Dr Janzen last week and she said my skin looked GREAT. She said most come in with skin that is bright red and burnt ++. Maurice told her I was a good tanner 🙂 hee hee

Tomorrow is my last day of Radiation. The gals at Fraser Valley Cancer Center asked me if I am going to celebrate. I said I didn’t know, I had not thought about it. Cathy, my sister also thought I should celebrate the accomplishment of getting through the radiation. I will have to think about it. My first inclination is to say I’ll celebrate the day after it’s done, by taking a nice walk in one of the many beautiful parks in Surrey. 🙂 Energy levels continue to be an issue.

I saw the onco-radiologist on Friday, and she advised Maggie and I that the fatigue can continue for 2-3 weeks after the radiation. I am glad that my family Dr had the wisdom to recommend my gradual return to work start May 2nd. 🙂

…Pam…

Health Issues

Getting a radiation treatment April 13th 2011

April 13, 2011 Pam 3 Comments

I thought it might be interesting to see what happens when someone has radiation. I took a movie when I went to the treatment today, so it shows what happens while I am in the room. It takes about 9 minutes for the movie to run, but it shows how exacting it is, and how much preparation they do before they actually zap you. 🙂 I like the way the machine moves. The bed/stretcher I am on swings out sideways as well, when they do the boost radiation treatment.

This movie shows you what happens during a radiation treatment. We are told to not move. Even moving fractionally can mean they have to reset everything or move you back to the original position, so as you can see, I don’t move a muscle. 🙂 This was taken at Fraser Valley Cancer Clinic

…Pam…

Something About Us

Akebono Cherry Tree

April 13, 2011 Maurice 1 Comment

This year we purchased an Akebono Cherry tree from the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival committee. They try to get Vancouverites to plant cherry trees each spring. Vancouver has a long history of cherry trees, and there is a yearly festival. About 85 years ago, a Japanese immigrant donated two hundred trees to beautify Vancouver. Nowadays, streets are lined with the beautiful blossoms. It’s a stunningly gorgeous way to enter spring!

We decided to plant this tree in memory of Vern, Pam’s father, who recently passed away. He was cremated, and didn’t want a burial plot, but we felt that we wanted to do something to honor his memory. The tree is about six or seven feet tall right now, but it grows quite quickly. We’re hopeful it will flourish here, and give us much joy for years to come.

We took a few other pictures around the garden. Many years ago, when we lived in Vancouver, our next door neighbour had grape hyacinths growing. Some dropped over his retaining wall onto our property. Slowly, I transplanted them, stretching them out until they encircled our our whole yard, across the front yard, down both sides, and along both sides of the walkway, and along the front of the house! All from an original three or four bulbs. When we moved out here to Surrey, I took a handful of the bulbs with me. Slowly I’ve been transplanting them here too. Now they run all the way across the front of the house, and all along the back garden. This year I’ve started ringing our trees, and side gardens.

I dig the tulips each fall, and reposition them, and they’ve doubled, tripled, quadrupled in numbers over the years. This year, we have seven or eight batches of them! I tell you, bulbs are the best bang for the buck!

The dog planter is one that Pam really loves. He’s a little metal guy, about a fourteen inches long. We plant him with pansies or other flowering plants. He’s just been re-done yesterday, so he’s not very full yet. But he’ll look great in a couple weeks.