Minska

Hello!  Back from my jollies and from feeling pants the week before, glad to say last week I was back on form again so holiday was fab.

What news about the 11mm thing?  Hopefully you've had it confirmed it was scar tissue by now??

You do have a lot going on, am glad that my diagnosis and treatment seems so simple in comparison.

Brugge eh?  Very nice, went a number of years ago with my chap on Eurostar, very pretty city and good food...you'll enjoy.  And how many holidays do you have?  It seems like only weeks since you were in Thailand, and i have to "make do" with Northumberland.  Being back up north was sooo lovely, clean air, lovely people and beautiful countryside was juts what i needed.  Walked most days and even went on a high ropes course that nearly killed me!

Blummin head still spotty, trying tea tree oil now which will hopefully get rid of the little bleeders.

Looking forward (!!) to the start of paclitaxel next Thurs, just made myself some nail oil (in the hope that the big P doesn't make the nails fall off) so fingers (with nails) crossed.

Got another pal (from near you, Ranskill), coming down and taking full advantage to try a highly recommended Indian near me...got quite a taste for spicy food of late.

Let me know how you are.

Sam X

Hey Sam

Glad you’re feeling good! I’m still waiting, waiting...no further on. Don’t think we’ll be going to Brugge....trying to sell the tickets now. I don’t feel confident enough to go. We were lucky this year...went to Krakow, Lanzarote and Bali after a very pants year last year..hope we can make the trip to Krakow we have booked between Christmas and New Year. Depends what happens with me.my daughter goes out to Northumberland a lot..they’re just in Chester Le Street. Sometimes even camping

The waiting for my petscan results and having my little op week after next is doing my head in, so not in a great place just now...aided by vodka to make it feel better  though! 

Have a lovely time with your pal-ask her if she knows White Gate Cattery in Ranskill...lovely woman runs it! 

Good luck with the new chemo Xx

Minska

Good luck for next week for biopsy, hope its a good result and not too painful. You do know that the general anaesthetic isn't you self medicating on vodka don't you??

Sorry you've had to cancel your Brugge trip, that's a bu5546!  I do hope your Christmas jolly happens as you need a break.

Things not terrible here, head has cleared up nicely (thank you teatree oil).  My pal, despite being a dog lover, did indeed know of the Ranskill cattery, sounds like its quite famous.  We had a good time whilst she was down and tried this fab Indian, am not a huge fan of your traditional (swimming in ghee) Indian but this one (quite trucker cafe like) is great so look forward to visiting again, especially as my tastebuds are appreciating spicy foods more now.

Though was super fine on EC am disappointed am not the same on paclitaxel so far, it's only day 3 but have really achey hips, legs and v tender feet which is all very annoying! Still managed to re-do bedding plants yesterday but want to feel comfortable in my own body and not have interrupted sleep (am an 8 hr a night gal). Its a known side effect and should pass - and it had better do or there will be trouble!

Was out last night (despite hobbling like an 90 yr old) saw a, very relevant, ex NHS registrar comedian, Adam Kaye - recommended if that's your sort of thing.

How's the espagnol going? Not sure it will come in that handy in Krakow? And how are the cats? Given its not as sub-tropical down south mine only leave the radiator to leave little presents in next doors garden these "harsh" (!!) winters days.

Hope you're having a lovely weekend

Sam X

Hi Sam

I am staying off any form of alcohol...and not allowed any for 48 hours after my op so I will follow instructions! Glad you had a nice time with your pal...we’ve discovered a lovely Indian here that we have deliver if we fancy something spicy and can’t be bothered cooking. 

Sorry this chemo is hitting you harder-you’re doing well to keep active and get out, even if you are hobbling! Hope it improves for you. 

The espagnol has had to stop, temporarily, I hope. Just can’t afford it at the moment with not working and having zero money. It seems an extravagance when the cost would feed us for the week, or buy all the cat supplies. Said cats are being pretty annoying at present...lots of squabbling and unfortunate accidents now they are cooped up inside, and I need eyes in the back of my head!

Couldn’t sell the Brugge tickets even though we had someone wanting to buy them. Turned out they were non transferable. At least it was the ferry so not as expensive as losing flights, but still disappointing. 

Planning to do a roast chicken dinner tonight as my last supper before the op tomorrow. We’ll have to leave the house at 5.30am and I’m going to be starving Marvin if I have to wait a long time to go to theatre! 

Have a good week! xx

Good luck for tomorrow, thoughts with you.  Let me know how you get on.

All bleeping bleep here, feet still vvv painful so curtailing activities and am going stir crazy, as well as no sleep and pain.

Not at all happy so will make this a, surprisingly, short missive!

Sam X

Hi Sam

It was yesterday! All done and dusted now. Very efficient at the hospital...was there at 7am and taken for my op at 10.30. The anaesthetist gave me fentany first and said I’d feel like I’d had a couple of glasses of wine. Nothing. He said I must be hard core, which I was quite proud of! Then he must have put the next lot in the IV and I was gone. Woke up at 11.20 in recovery feeling fine, surrounded by other patients who looked comatose. The woman next to me was throwing off her blankets and writhing around, showing all her bits as she of course had no pants on! They gave her morphine to calm her and gave me a warm towel to put on my tummy-stoic northerner to the fore again! 

I felt a little woozy but otherwise fine. Wheeled back for obs, blood pressure and temp etc while still in my compression stockings etc and then just had to wait till they finally gave me tea and toast and I was released at 2pm after a bladder ultrasound which was fine. My oncologist managed to get the biopsy she needed so just have to wait 2 weeks for my results. She has told me my pet scan is clear except for this hot spot they are biopsying so that was excellent news...it’s not anywhere else. 

All in all it was fine, and if I need more surgery I’ll know the process-I’d not had a general anaesthetic before. Feeling good, taking paracetamol now and then for some discomfort and that’s it. 

Sorry to hear about your poor feet...I never suffered from anything like that but I was on a low dose of chemo when I had treatment. Got a day out in Huddersfield next week to have lunch with some lovely ladies I’ve met on another cancer forum. Looking forward to a change of scene from these 4 walls and lunch in a Turkish restaurant. 

Hope things do improve for you and this is not permanent. xx

Minska

Glad it all went well, surrounded by nutters eh? Great!  Morphine vs a towel, no competition for hardened northerners.  So well done, must be a relief.

Good also that results are that it doesn’t have seemed to have spread, fingers crossed for 2 wks. time though.

It adds to what everyone has been telling me in general re surgery ( as my focus is still on chemo currently but need to have a beady eye on the future – Feb, or maybe before depending on how Tues discussion with onc goes) so good to know your consistent with all others with views/afterthoughts re surgery.  I mean really considering what it is it should be worse than chemo which just makes me think that chemo is just too full on for most and needs taming somehow, talk about a sledgehammer to crack a walnut eh?

Feet feeling somewhat better today, so much so (though felt pants afterwards) went to the gym this morning, can’t say I enjoyed it but good to get out and know my feet/body can cope..amazing how frail I felt, blummin paclitaxel, had tonnes of energy relative to now re the previous drug! So hopefully will disappear altogether over the weekend.

Huddersfield mmm…centre of the universe according to some friends who have very odd ideas about such matters.  Think the closest current pals live is Brighouse (quality place with some ‘characters’).  Enjoy your Turkish (well, when in Hudds!) nosh, not sure my taste buds would find that acceptable currently, they’ve gone really odd, so much so that stuff I liked last week (so annoyingly put on weekly food delivery) I no longer like…and as a tight northerner I hate waste so haven’t been altogether enjoying food this week.  And Fridays are most annoying as that used to yummy pizza and at least 2 pints of vodka & diet coke…and can’t face any of them since started treatment.  Have fun meetnig up with forum pals.

I’m turning into a real moaner aren’t I?  Not good at all…

It’s my office Christmas party, if my feet were better would show my face but will stay in jimjams instead, much better option me thinks.  So got a pal from village outside York visiting next week ( for the chemo that was/is due Thurs), they love watching me being pumped full of muck that northern lot, think they do it to take photos of me in a relatively fragile/docile state…I’ll get my own back!  Think I may take her out for a Thai meal, strong tastes seem to be what I need.

Have a good weekend and may the good recovery continue.  It’s a trip to the loft for me this weekend to retrieve Christmas decorations…and hopefully (a very slow & pathetic) bike ride.

Sam X

Hi Sam

No idea where you find the energy to go to the gym! Well done you. I was lucky in one sense in that my chemo was Cisplatin and low dose-radiotherapy is the main treatment for my cancer with the chemo being kind of secondary. I didn’t have any effect to my sense of taste either, just pretty consistent nausea which put me off some stuff. 

It will be my first visit to Huddersfield next week, but expect to see only the station and the restaurant. Quite looking forward to a couple of train trips there and back and seeing the ladies I only know so far in the virtual world. At least I’ve seen pictures so should recognise them! 

I have been very lazy since my little op...some naps and time in bed in the day with a hot water bottle and cat to keep cosy without needing to put the heating on all the time...must be the tight Scot in me! Busy weekend clearing out the spare room for younger daughter and boyfriend coming for the weekend next week. Currently cannot actually get round the bed and there are piles of holiday clothes everywhere, washed but not ironed. Who knows what might be lurking in there...I just throw stuff in and shut the door! Not going to bother getting the Christmas tree down from the loft...on the basis we are supposed to be going to Krakow on 27th Dec, and the fact that the in laws are doing Christmas dinner. I’m a bit bah humbug about Christmas because I miss spending it with my daughters. 

Hope your poor feet improve...probably jimjams are the best option on this chilly night. Pity that can’t be accompanied by pizza and vodka! Have a good weekend. xx