Here it is, hot off the presses. Dosage for the “bad” drug (Cetuximab) was cut in half because of the rash that was popping up all over my head, neck, and chest area. The documentation they gave me before the first infusion, and online is very clear. So I was seeing lots of zits on my face, scalp and neck. It was weird, but before I could see the rash, I felt it with my fingers on my bald spot on the 6th or 7th day after that first treatment. I communicate almost every other day with my Oncologist, and she got my messages with attached pictures. Cutting the dosage in half only got a 25% reduction in the time, so it was still six hours at the Cancer Center.
They also did not give me an infusion of Benedryl before the Cetuximab, so mostly I was awake throughout the process. They skipped that because it was a published precaution with the first Cetuximab infusion. A precaution for anaphylactic shock and possible cardiac issues. Sitting in that chair was hard. Even took a couple of stand up breaks just to keep my body flexible.
The ointment they gave me for the rash was like what it feels like to put an alcohol wipe on a little scratch. Well, imagine that feeling on the front of your scalp (my bald spot) down to your eyebrows and the arch above your nose, and then on your nose, cheeks, jawbone, behind ears, back of head and top of neck – all at once! Treating each area individually to spread out the “burning” would have been a very long process (hour or more). Takes about 5 minute to apply and 30 minutes for the stinging/burning to go away. Also learned that best applied 1-2 hours before going to bed, because laying on side brought back or irritated the sensation behind ears and top of neck. GOOD NEWS! There is an ointment that DOES NOT sting, and will pick that up this afternoon from the drug store.
Current published schedule has me on the two-week cycle through the end of October. Hopefully by then my Surgeon in Sacramento and my Oncologist in Vacaville will have communicated and we can get the three surgical procedures completed sometime in October or November and recovery in December. That would be: Sigmoidscopy, Resection of the colon (and maybe removal of the tail of my pancreas), and reversal of the Ileosomy.
These rounds of chemo are making me more tired, but my body still wakes me up between 5:30 and 6:30 every morning. Just my natural alarm clock. I do find myself on most days taking a nap before dinner and sometime after dinner. My sleep trigger in most cases is “Oh good, the news is starting.” ZZzzzzz.
I remain thankful everyday for the doctors, nurses and technicians God has put in my path. HE gets all the praise for the improvement in lab results and the concern that they show for me and my treatment.