Round 4/"Magic Mouthwash"/Eyebrow Update

I completed round 4 of infusions this week. There's not much to add as it all went as it usually does. I'll have the usual after effects as I've described before. I'm really hoping I can get past the nadir next week without going to the hospital. Now that four rounds are done, I've got just two remaining. It makes me so happy to think that, next round when I finish my three days of infusions, I'll be able to say to myself, "Just one more round!"

I had a CT scan and saw my medical oncologist last week. The scan revealed no additional cancer, which is a great result. It also showed that the tumor I do have is about the same size. The doctor told us early on that it wasn't common for tumors like mine to shrink very much, so it wasn't unexpected. He recommended we continue with the chemotherapy treatments. Once I've completed all six, then we'll assess next steps for other possible treatment, including surgery and radiation.

During the last round of chemo my mouth got pretty sore. This is a common side effect of chemotherapy. The chemo drugs target fast dividing cells and, as it turns out, that applies to the cells in our mouths. During the first two rounds, my mouth got a little sore but it wasn't significant. With round 3, the soreness was definitely more pronounced, and made it a little hard to chew and swallow for a couple of days. When I reached out to my care team to ask for help, I discovered something informally known as "Magic Mouthwash." (I don't think the pharmacists call it that.) 

Magic Mouthwash is a mixture of lidocaine, Maalox, and Benadryl. The ingredients are meant to numb the mouth and give protection before eating and/or to give pain relief after eating. My mouth soreness resolved on its own before I could get this concoction, but I now have a bottle at the ready. If the soreness gets to the point that it did last round, I'll definitely be swishing and spitting with this stuff for a day or two. I sure hope it lives up to its (informal) name, "Magic Mouthwash."

Finally, what you've all been waiting for: Yes, I still have eyebrows! They have thinned, but they are definitely still there. My hirsute ancestors' genes are robust, apparently. (It's strange. The hair on my head, except for the eyebrows, is gone. I haven't shaved my face in many weeks. The bit of hair on my hands is gone, but not my arms. Same for my feet/ankles, but not my legs.) I just may get through this with my eyebrows intact!

The Nadir Strikes Back

On day 10 of this round of chemo, which is when I would expect to be in the nadir with very low blood counts, especially white cells -- I developed a fever. This isn't necessarily a problem unless it gets too high for too long.

It got too high for too long.

After that initial fever increased and dogged me all night long, my care team told me I needed to go to the hospital. I also had an infection on my right ear, near the top where the cartilage curls over. I went to the hospital and was admitted. 

I started on IV antibiotics, the doctors took care of the infection on my ear, and my fever finally started to come down and my ear began to heal.

I spent two and a half days and two nights in the hospital. My white blood cells finally rebounded. However, my hemoglobin and platelets were still low, so I had a blood transfusion and platelet transfusion.

A huge shout out to all of you who regularly give blood!!

So now it's time to both recover from this and begin to gather my strength for round 4 which starts in a little over a week.