We come back home from our last visit to the oncologist disappointed with his reaction but at the same time elated that our ordeal is done. Finally finished!! … so now what?! I sat and pondered my situation. During the treatment, I felt somehow special. I was a “protected species” as someone undergoing extremely difficult times. People were sympathetic all around me and made me feel special. I remember...
There are other side effects of chemotherapy, which are perhaps not as frequent as the ones mentioned in my previous blogs. Peripheral neuropathy, a result of the damage to the peripheral nerves, often causes weakness, numbness, and pain, usually in the hands and feet. Walking may not be problematic but difficult when the feet feel completely numb. Handling food or a simple activity like handwriting can be tricky if we...
The swing of week 1 – totally wasted, week 2 – slow recovery and week 3 – functioning more or less, went on for six months! What the doctor’s pamphlets didn’t say was that my recovery after the treatment would never reach my previous levels of energy. I would recover physically but never to the extent of how I felt prior to the previous treatment. The side effects would...
During a recent yoga therapy class at the oncology clinic, I listened to a breast cancer patient talk about her chemo treatment experience. She said she was surprised at how little the treatments affected her. She said she felt fine, even right after treatment and that no one would have known about the chemo had it not been for her lack of hair. “I hope you realize how lucky...
Chemotherapy, also called chemo, may come in different stages for different cancers. For those like lymphoma and leukemia, chemo comes right after the diagnosis, as there is no surgery involved. For cancers that involve tumors – carcinomas and sarcomas – chemo typically comes after the surgery, as a preventive measure. However, in cases where a tumor may be too big to operate, chemo may be recommended before surgery to...
The time I call “post-surgery” is the time for healing after the surgery. Depending on the individual and the seriousness of the operation, it takes four to six weeks to recover. Recovery, in this case, means the time before going to the next step of the recommended treatment. Increasing levels of anxiety, fear of the unknown and physical pain mark this four to six-week period. We are surrounded by...
The first few days after surgery passed in a fog – I was heavily sedated but comfortable at home. I was surrounded by love and friendship and took my time to heal the wound and recover from complete anesthesia. I didn’t realize how big of an impact complete anesthesia can have on a person. I was healing very quickly, so about three weeks after surgery, I felt well enough...
After an agonizing time of waiting, we are asked finally to do a biopsy (in case of tumors). This is the only test that gives 100% certainty, but it is also the most expensive one. As we leave the doctor’s office after, the dreaded words: “It is Cancer!” still ring in our ears. But many people hear something different – they hear “Death is coming now!” Now comes the...
In this blog, we will consider the first stage of the cancer journey – diagnosis. We live somewhat balanced lives, with long and short-term plans and think that we know where we are going! However, a phone call from our doctor can destroy this balance with the news that “there may be a problem and we have to do more tests.” So, we now enter a new world where...
I am dedicating the next few blogs to the cancer journey from the perspective of a patient. There is extensive literature on traditional cancer treatments and on what is available. But so far, I have not found anything that would describe typically what a patient is going through during the cancer journey. When I say “cancer journey” I mean the time when we first learn that there might be...
