Final Chemo Treatment Done! YAY!

I had my last of 4 chemo treatments last week. It went well, no problems. The allergic reaction that I suffered since the 3rd treatment seems to be really subsided -- I haven't had to take a Benedryl for a week. I spent this weekend relaxing, although the "down days" seemed a little less severe than previous treatment weekends. Maybe because I just had to do more and so couldn't shut down as much. Ah, the trials of being a single parent and going through chemo. Life doesn't stop just because you have cancer!

So, now I still have to make sure I'm "OK" - I go in for a 10 day check-up for blood work. Then a final sign-off from the medical oncology (chemo) doctor. Then I need to talk to the radiation doctor to start radiation. I gather they want to start that about 3 weeks after my last chemo, so basically that will be the same schedule as before.

From what I was told before, radiation is a long, frequent course of short treatments. So, I will have to go in 5 days a week for 7 weeks! I am hoping that I can arrange it so that I drop the kids off to school at 7:30am, then go in for a treatment. Then I have the rest of the day to work, etc. The after-effects that have been reported to me vary from some tiredness to burns. The radiation will be only over my breast area, but I think it will be both breasts because the original cancer site was close to my chest wall and hard to 'get at' for the single-breast treatment.

I'll know more after I meet again with the radiation oncologist. I am hoping to put off the start date of the radiation a week so I can get out of town for even just a little time with the girls. It is the week of their spring break and before this next course of treatment starts it would be nice to have a little "normal" time. We need it!

So, thanks for sticking with me through the first course. I guess I've actually have 2 sets of treatments now: the surgeries and recoveries, and now the chemo. Radiation and then the hormone therapy to go, I think. One treatment at a time, is all I can really think about.