CHEMOTHERAPY – The second and final cycle of chemotherapy started 14 Oct 2024. It was a long day of sitting in the chair as the various infusions were fed into me. Appointment started 10.30am and lasted until 3:17pm. I was infused with about 5 litres of saline solution and chemo drugs (pemtrexed and cisplatin). And, I was advised to drink lots of water and fluids. As a result I am peeing up a storm which is good, but on the other hand being woken from sleep with a screaming bladder every couple of hours leads to a certain amount of sleep disruption. The medical oncology (chemotherapy) doctors expect side effects in Cycle 2 to be te same intensity of Cycle 1. That was good news. SO far they are right. Overnight no issues and only the mildest queasiness (no full on nausea or vomiting).
RADIOTHERAPY – After chemotherapy infusions it was time for a radiation treatment. One of the machines (there are 5 machines) was not in service and needed maintenance. That meant that more patients needed to have their treatments on the working machines so appointment times were delayed. My scheduled time was 3:40pm but I did not get in until 4:50pm. Luckily I am not working and we are able to pretty much work around appointment schedules. It must be difficult for people who have work or other commitments that they cannot re-arrange when machine breakdowns or patient issues cause delays. As I have mentioned before, doctors and nurses have been warning us that Week 5 (starting 21 Oct) is likely to be a rough week as the cumulative impacts of daily radiation are likely to induce burn and inflammation of my oesophagus. This will make swallowing past the inflamed site uncomfortable/painful and I will probably require pain killers to help me eat and drink. Not a pleasant expectation. Hopefully we will be able to get through it all without me losing too much weight that might force reduction in dosage or halting of treatment. Again, it is a wait and see what happens reality.
Michele van der Sander says:
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