Three treatments down, five to go

I want to give a special shout out to Monica Parrish (a colleague at Leadership Studies) who delivered a delicious meal of beef stroganoff on Tuesday evening. That is one of my favorite meals that I have not had it in a long time. I enjoyed a BIG plate of it when I returned home from KC. Monica had a scare when she delivered the meal - Kramer (the best dog in the world) ran out the door when Monica opened it. She called us on the phone and was very nervous about Kramer running away. I knew he would come home - Kramer just likes to check out the neighbors, but he always comes back in about five minutes. Anyway, when Monica returned to check on him, he was sitting on the front steps waiting to get in the house. So, maybe he is not always the best dog in the world when he gives others such a scare

My third AC treatment on Tuesday went well. It seems odd to say that I had an enjoyable chemo treatment, but I did. It was because of the company - Candi Hironaka made the trip with Nancy and me. As you can see from the photo at the left, Candi enjoyed the afternoon by sitting in one of the recliners in the treatment room. I tried to get the nurse to give the treatment to Candi, but the nurse didn't seem to appreciate my humor. Candi is a great friend, neighbor, and colleague at Leadership Studies and I like to call her the nicest person in the world! Candi, thanks for being such a wonderful and supportive friend. She made my day today by giving Nancy and me big monster cookies for the Fourth of July.

Jody and Rebecca, my nieces who live in the Kansas City area, also joined us at the Cancer Center. I can't tell you how much their support has meant to me during this journey. They are talented young women and I am so proud to be their favorite aunt!! Of course, I think that 'favorite aunt' thing could be challenged by their other aunts. Jody is the daughter of my sister Debbie and Rebecca is the daughter of my brother Bill.

On a more solemn note, it is with sadness that I learned of the death of Rosemary Mattas Dlabal of Wilson. She fought a long battle with stomach cancer and died on Monday at the age of 41. I taught with Rosemary at Wilson Jr/Sr High between 1988 - 1992. Rosemary was a great math teacher and member of the community. Rosemary was also an outstanding high school and college basketball player. She lived her life in a simple and honest manner and will be missed tremendously by her husband, four children, her family and the Wilson community.

I am positive about my cancer journey, I fully expect to be cancer free in a few short months. But, I do know that some people lose their battles with cancer. I also know that many overcome cancer and live full and productive lives. In fact, I now find comfort and strength from those who have gone through this journey. Two people come to mind - Rosalee Whitmer and Jo Murphy. They have shared some of their breast cancer experiences with me, especially their chemo journeys. There is something special to know that they survived the chemo treatments that were similar to mine, and that they understand the fatigue and nausea that accompanies the treatments.

My initial treatment plan called for four treatments of Adriamycin and Cytoxan (AC) and four treatments of Taxol. According to all the reading I have done, the AC treatments have more severe side effects than the Taxol treatments. I hope that is right because I only have one more treatment of AC! After the chemo treatments end on September 13, I will have surgery and then follow that with radiation. And then I hope this journey is over! Of course, we all know how plans can change.

Right now, Wednesday afternoon, I feel good. The nausea medicine is working at this point in time. During the last treatment, my nausea was under control until days 4-6. I shared that with my doctor and she gave me anti-nausea medicine to take on days 4-6 this time. I hope it works because we are celebrating Mom's birthday on Saturday with a party between 3-5 at the Wilson Senior Center. I want to be 'with it' so that I can visit with guests and, of course, do my share of the work. You know, I could always use the 'I have cancer, I can't do it' excuse to get out of clean-up duties!!

Happy Fourth of July to all,
Mary Kay