D-Day

Had a good meeting with my surgeon today. Surgery is scheduled for Oct. 12th at St. Elizabeth's. Dr. Pitsch said that he'll attempt to avoid a colostomy if at all possible. I didn't get a strong feeling about it, but he may be the type who under-promises and over-delivers. If he's successful I'll have a temporary ileostomy for a couple of months.

He said that depending on my recovery, I can expect to stay in the hospital for 4-10 days. At least I'll have a private room, so I don't have to put up with someone snoring.

I guess I'm disappointed for a couple of reasons. I had originally thought surgery was going to be on either the 5th or 6th, so it's another week of waiting. I'm also disappointed that there are so many things up in the air concerning the surgery. I've felt so good (physically and emotionally) the last few days that today was a bit of cold hard reality slapping me in the face. What can you do?

love,

Cj

Tuckered out at church

Emily is used to napping during the morning, so she decided that church was a great place for it.

Maddie loves the outdoors

Maddie and I went for a walk yesterday evening. She really enjoys the outdoors. Hopefully she won't get cabin fever during the winter.

love,

Cj

Maddie having fun at the Children's Museum

We braved the crowds (Cornhusker fans on their way to the game) to spend some time at the Children's Museum. Maddie had a blast as usual...

love

CJ

On the mend

I'm feeling much better lately. I still have a lot of fatigue that is slowly going away, but almost all the other side effects have dissipated. Now I just need to get ready for surgery. I meet with the surgeon on the 26th, and I'm a bit impatient. Oh well.

love

Cj

Up next, surgery.

I had my last pre-surgical meeting with my oncologist this morning. He (and I agreed) that both the chemo and radiation treatment was less deletorious than most would have expected. Most of that he attributed to my youth and health (ironically), and a bit to luck. Compared to side effects that others have experienced, I would rate my treatment as a 5 out of 10. Now, 5 out of 10 still sucks. Nothing in my life has compared to this so far. But, compared to others less fortunate than I, I think I got off relatively easy. He said that if my remaining symptoms were going to dissipate (more on that in a minute) they would do so over the next 6 weeks. I still have a lot of fatigue, but not as bad as last week. My appetite is still horrible, but I'm not losing any weight.

Some folks going through chemo battle side effects for quite a long time. Fatigue seems to be the most persistent of all side effects, sometimes lasting years. I can't see that happening to me. One, I've noticed a marked improvement in just a week. Two, I can't afford the level of fatigue that I felt in prior weeks. My two girls need an active dad, not somebody permanently ensconced in a recliner. I don't know how the final rounds of chemo will affect me, but I expect to have a full recovery from their side effects.

Dr Greene was pretty optimistic that I wouldn't need a colostomy. Dr. Barrios (my radiation oncologist) was likewise optimistic. The entire idea of pre-surgical treatment is to decrease the chance of a colostomy. I'm not quite as optimistic, though I am hopeful. My surgeon had made it sound like a fait-accompli, and he's the one who will be calling the shots. I guess I won't know until I wake up after surgery. I guess that I'm engaging in a bit of vanity, but I'd like to avoid a colostomy if at all possible without increasing my chances of further cancer. But, I've resigned myself to having one. Just not feeling lucky about it.

love

Cj

The common cold sucks

Everyone in our house (except for Emily) has a cold. Maddie was first, then Jen, now me. Amazing how irritating a cold can be. Oh well.

love

Cj