Chemo Round 3, Day 5.
This is getting tiresome. But, as Bob predicted, we’re getting better at chemo as we go.
New this round, as seen on TV: Neulasta Onpro. The Neulasta boosts white blood cells. It’s pretty cool; it’s administered in a container a bit smaller than a Tic Tac box with adhesive on one side. The nurse stuck it to the back of my arm at the end of chemo, but it didn’t actually inject until 27 hours later. After it’s adhered and turned on, the needle engages (like being snapped with a rubber band) and a skinny tube goes into my arm (just a tiny bit, like the proboscis of an insect). The box flashes a green light. I’m part robot. The next day, by the time it injected all of the medicine, there were more flashes and beeps and it was very exciting. When it finished, I peeled it off and threw it away.
Cost? $5,000 to $7,000, depending on supplier. For one dose.
We’ve got another five or six days before we know if I’ve dodged the problems that have landed me in the hospital in the past. Hopefully! The chemo side effects caught up to me faster this round. But I’m well-armed with drugs (Ambien, Ativan, Vicodin, medical marijuana) and started the treatment for oral thrush the second my mouth started complaining. Still no nausea. That is so amazing. I have endless heartburn; Tums have become one of my sustaining food groups. I’m twitchy. Big muscle twitches that hurt, little twitches that are just weird. I feel like I have Mexican jumping beans under my eyelids. My teeth ache, my hands ache; I basically drug and distract myself through it. Just doing time.