Chemotherapy One Persons Story

My wife went for surgery to remove two large cysts from her ovaries. During the surgery they discovered what they thought was cancer and the doctor removed the cysts and her ovaries along with a full hysterectomy. They also removed her appendix as it looked cancerous and removed any and all tissues they could find that were cancerous. The lab tests came back positive for cancer and so the battle began. Her diagnosis was stage 4 cancer of the appendix. Survival rate for this type of cancer is only 15% of women after 5 years. My wife just passed 1 year cancer free so she beat the odds with a lot of perseverance and suffering. For quite awhile the family was in shock. We didn't know what to do or what to expect and reading about such low survival rates and having the surgeon show such a negative attitude didn't help much.

Lots of tests and appointments. I took time from work and drove my wife to all of these. Our entire families would also be there regularly. I think this made a difference. A show of support and love is everything when someone is suffering.

After the first surgery and a bunch of tests they prescribed twelve sessions of chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is drugs that kill cancer cells. These drugs also kill healthy cells. They vary the drug cocktail depending on what type of cancer a person has. We do seem to be making great strides in the treatment of cancer.

Every other Wednesday for 6 months I would drive her to Swedish Medical Center in downtown Seattle. She would get a blood test and than meet with the doctor and we would than go upstairs to the treatment center and wait with all the other cancer patients. It was not the most cheerful place but I noticed that it was almost all women and some with husbands or other family members present and some by themselves. After awhile they became familiar faces. You didn't want to chit chat too much because some of their stories were heartbreaking. Some of these women would not respond to treatment.

The nurse would call my wife and she would either get her own little room or a chair in one of the large room divided by curtains. Everyone had a TV to watch and a few books or magazines. My wife would sit in her chair and the nurse would plug in the different drugs in order through her IV. For my wife the drugs were, Flourouracil, Oxaliplatin, and Leucovorin. She also had a couple prescriptions to help with the nausea. The first thing the nurse would give her was some drugs to help with the nausea. That would make her groggy right away and she usually went to sleep. So for the next 5 hours I would try to keep myself entertained while I waited. Breakfast at the hospital cafeteria. Yes, that was exciting. I would bring my laptop and plug into the hospital wifi or watch TV or talk with my wife when she had those moments she woke up. She was pretty much out of it the whole time.

The chemotherapy would really knock her out. And she would be completely out of it for the rest of the day. I would take her home and she would go straight to sleep. The next day she was a little better but still groggy and just had the worn out feeling. She got sick on occasion.

After about a week she was fine and back to her regular self, and after a few days of feeling good, it was back to the hospital for another session. It was not so hard for me as I just got bored for one day every two weeks. For her it was much harder and it got worse as time went on. The last few months she would start getting nausea and sick before we even got to the hospital. Her body knew what was coming and maybe that was a way of adjusting.

During the chemo sessions there would also be tests for cancer activity. They thankfully couldn't find any but cancer cells are microscopic and they can hide. You are never really certain.

 She did lose some of her hair and her weight dropped down into the 90's but she is only 5' 1" so she is naturally a very small woman. Her normal weight is only 105-110lbs to start with. She also started showing some of the stress in her face and her color became quite pale. Chemotherapy treatments are real hard on a person.

I felt sorry for the women who had no one there to help them through this. Chemo is hard. Real hard on your body, and if someone is alone through this, it just makes it that much harder. My wife had me there the whole time and after wards she had our son and daughters to help take care of her at home. I am certain that all the support made a difference. I went to school for health and fitness technologies and I learned that we really don't know that much about the human body and how everything works. We have made great advances but there is still a lot that is theory and guesswork. The human mind is still a mystery. I truly believe that attitude and love and support from loved ones makes a major difference in how we adapt and survive medical conditions. Call it mind over matter or whatever you want.

She had a goal she thought about the whole time she went through the chemotherapy. Remember, her prognosis was not good. Only a 15% survival rate so she needed more than just medicine to beat this cancer. Her thought, or goal was to take our granddaughter to Disneyland. She had to wait till she was 5 years old and now that my wife has been cancer free for over a year, the family is going on this trip next month. It is typical that women will take an active role in the lives of their grandchildren and being involved with family and the joys that it brings are good things to think about when you need something to keep you going through the tough times. For over a year my wife and our family was on the emotional roller coaster. Another one of life's challenges that makes us stronger.

 A few months after the chemotherapy treatments and the last surgery and treatment in Spokane with a specialist, she started growing her hair back. She didn't lose a lot but enough that she noticed it. She gained back some of the weight and her color returned and she was back to her normal self again. Everything was as it was before the cancer with the exception of the neuropathy in her feet. It is a lot of pain but so far it appears to be manageable.