Pet Scan

OK, yesterday I was the human pin cushion. To complete the PET scan they have to inject radioactive dye into a vein. Sounds easy but my veins are shot. They tried 5 times before any success. A few times they missed the veins but most of the time they hit the vein and then it collapsed. My right hand and arm is black and blue. They even tried on the inside of my wrist...ouch! The Dr. couldn't even get it. Eventually they had a chemotherapy technician come and put it in. She got it on the first try. They put the port in place so they could avoid constantly sticking me however, the port can't be used for this kind of dye. After the PET scan I met with the Nurse Practitioner to go over the side effects I can expect from the chemo and the medications they will prescribe to help combat them. Probably the biggest concern will be the fatigue. I am still anemic and the chemo may make this worse which will trigger greater fatigue. Of course they warned me about the nausea but I will have no less then 5 prescriptions to combat this. I will lose my hair the first week of February but it should begin to come back this summer. Food and drink may have a metallic taste but there is not much they can do about that. I may experience mouth sores and GI upset but not everyone does. The good news in all this is that the first 4 treatments will be the worst. Once I move into the second phase of treatment the side effects should subside.

Friday is the day of my first treatment. Please keep me in your prayers!