An Exciting Ending

Leave it to me to make my last chemo an exciting race to see if it would even happen! On Thursday after work, the left side of my heart felt very heavy and uncomfortable. I kept telling myself I was just under a lot of stress. Keith took me to Fred's Barbecue for dinner, and my left arm began to feel heavy and mildly painful. I argued with myself for a few minutes, trying to convince myself that I was fine. I finally told Keith what was going on, and he said those words I really didn't want to hear: "Let's go to the hospital now."

So off we went. I must say, when you walk into the ER and say the words "chest pain," you get very preferential treatment! (Let me insert a side note that I love Baylor-Irving hospital. I have met the most wonderful, caring staff members there.) They ended up drawing blood, doing an x-ray, an EKG and a CT scan to ensure I was not having a heart attack and that I didn't have a blood clot in my chest - apparently something that can happen when you have cancer. All the tests were clear - I was fine. But the doctor came in and said he was admitting me for the night to watch my blood enzyme levels and for general observation. NOT what I wanted to hear; I wanted to go home.

Instead, Keith and I got to my room around 1:00 am and Keith slept in the chair/bed beside me. We got to sleep around 2:00; they woke us up at 4:00 to do all my vital signs. They were back in the room at 7:00 am. Fun stuff. That morning the doctor said I could be released if I passed a stress test. So I took my first stress test and thankfully passed it with flying colors. The doctor was looking at my heart on the sonogram machine saying, "Beautiful pictures!" (He was originally from Columbia and had a great accent!) No blockage, no problems, my heart is in good shape.

We were all looking at the pictures of my heart when Keith then told the doctor and technician, "She gave that to me 30 years ago." What a precious guy. He melted my heart. Then, it was back to my room to wait to be discharged. It was around 11:00 am and I was scheduled for my last chemo treatment at 12:30. I was DETERMINED to make that treatment happen, even though the doctor had told me earlier that morning that we might have to put it off until next week. I ended up getting discharged at 12:40 and we walked next door to the medical building and started my last chemo. We made it!

Let me back up a moment and explain that it was pretty much decided that my "episode" was caused by stress. Imagine that. I have a very stressful job, (well, really, who doesn't?) and I have continued working a normal schedule with the exception of Friday afternoon chemo treatments. I work for a hedge fund, and the financial crisis has certainly made the stress at work increase. Even though my side effects have been pretty mild during the second half of chemo, I still deal daily with fatigue and other minor ailments. As I have approached the exciting end of chemo, I've been thinking a lot about surgery and all of the current unknowns that go along with that. So, I think I was a lot more stressed than I realized.

Now, back to my last chemo treatment. It didn't exactly go as I had envisioned it. I hadn't had a shower, no makeup, wearing old jeans and a fleece jacket from the night before. But it was wonderful. My mom brought sandwiches for us and the staff, and Paige and Chance arrived about halfway through the treatment. They brought me a darling Cookie Bouquet - the cookies had pink ribbon breast cancer awareness symbols on the front. Then my mom brought out a huge German chocolate cake to add to the celebration. After cake, my mom and dad gave me a huge box from my favorite store - Ann Taylor - and it contained a complete new outfit. Now THAT'S a party!

We watched the last drops of Taxol drip out of the IV, and cheered! My two wonderful nurses, Belinda and Janelle, posed for a picture with me and gave me a certificate called the "Purple Heart" for completing my treatment. It was such an amazing feeling to know I had made it through 4 1/2 months of this thing that I had dreaded - and even more amazing to realize that it WORKED so well for me.

I had my sonogram and MRI last week and learned that the tumor has shrunk from 3.5 centimeters to 5 millimeters. The doctor said the tumor is now so small he wouldn't have known it was there if he didn't know where to look. I am so thankful that I have experienced such great results from my treatment.

This coming Thursday I meet with the surgeon, and begin learning all about surgery and the options. I still have some decisions to make. Please rejoice with me and my family for the succssful conclusion of chemotherapy. I am proud to say I am a survivor but I can't make that statement without giving God all the credit and glory for carrying me through. Now, please continue to keep me in your prayers during these next few weeks as my body regains strength and we make plans for surgery. God is good, all the time!