As of yesterday, what I can now say about Chemotherapy is: “been there, done that.” Chemo is officially over.

I have waited 20 weeks for the day that my chemotherapy treatments would be finished. That day was yesterday, Monday, November 8. It was another milestone for me on this cancer journey to wellness.

The treatments should have ended two weeks ago, but I had two one-week treatment postponements along the way due to low blood counts.

I am so glad that this major phase, the second pillar of four in my cancer treatment plan, is done. The relief in being finished with chemo has lifted a heavy burden from my family and me. It was far more difficult than I had ever expected with all of the medical issues that arose with treatments.

Its now healing time to let the last of the Taxotere flush out of my body over the next six weeks to prepare me for my third phase of treatment. Phase three will be 16 rounds of daily radiation, which will likely start at the top of Christmas week.

Hopefully, this final chemo treatment and recovery will have fewer complications than last month.


Preparatory Steps to Get Me Through the Final Chemo Round

My doctor, oncology nurse, and chemo treatment nurses all rallied together to prepare me to be physically, mentally, and emotionally strong and healthy for the last round of chemo. Their mutual goal was to try to offset the potential for serious complications as experienced with the other two cycles of Taxotere.

As hard as it has been, the doctor’s recommendation for house-imposed isolation three weeks ago seems to be working to keep me well. Since the isolation, I have not acquired any other infections. I have not had visitors, have not been out in public (except for medical appointments with medical masks and surgical gloves to avoid germ contact), nor have I been in contact with people who could potentially transmit viruses and bacteria, placing me at risk to get sick and unable to fight off the illness due to low blood counts.

As a precaution, we are maintaining the isolation for three more weeks until this last treatment cycle is over.

After starting a new drug early last week after chemo was postponed due to the lingering Thrush infection, the condition finally cleared on the weekend. I had peace of mind going into the treatment without a throat infection. As an added benefit, my body had an extra week to further increase its white cell blood counts to make me stronger and better able to handle the treatment.

I will be on an extended cycle of blood cell boosters after this chemo for 10 days instead of the seven days that has been previously prescribed since the first cycle of chemo. The increase in the dosage from the second cycle has been repeated for this last series of injections.

Generally, most chemo patients don’t need the blood booster injections after the final round of treatment. However, my history of low blood counts and multiple infections (some with fever) despite blood boosters warranted an extra post treatment series of blood booster injections.

With this cycle of blood booster shots, I will start them a day earlier on Day three, which is five days before blood counts expect to dip on Day eight. I will have two extra days added to this month’s injection cycle, which will take me through the period when blood counts are the lowest (up to 15 days after the treatment). This is an insurance step to make sure that my body is stronger to heal better after the final chemo, so that I am in a healthier state to start radiation treatments.


The Final Chemo Day

With all of these pre-treatment precautions, my anxiety levels about the last infusion were lessened by the time I got to the chemo appointment. My medical team and I are hoping that all of the precautionary measures taken will have placed me in a better position to get through the final Taxotere infusion.

As has been the course of this up and down journey, the final round of chemo did not come smoothly. The past two times that I needed to have blood drawn to get my blood levels before chemo, saw my central port fail to work. The chemo nurses diligently tried to get the line working with blood thinner flushes, but to no avail. My blood had to be drawn the traditional way through my arm.

The last chemo treatment I had posed a difficulty to get the port working, but somehow with a lot of manipulation it did co-operate. That was the last time it worked. Consequently, because of the malfunction of the port in the last two blood tests, yesterday’s last chemo treatment was done intravenously through my left arm.

I am scheduled as a priority patient to get the port out as soon as possible, as its no longer needed and can continue to pose a risk for blood clots. Because of the history of a blood clot with the port and other blockages, I will remain on daily blood thinner injections until the end of January, six months after it was installed to ensure that there are no more clotting problems.

Yesterday’s Taxotere infusion threw in some new subtle symptoms with treatment.

The preparatory steroids I took a day and a half ahead of time made me so wired that I did not sleep at all the night before. I finally crashed with exhaustion chills about 40 hours later after 9:00 p.m. last night.

Another possible small side effect with steroids is the potential for an allergic reaction with facial flushing. Off and on during the day, I looked like I was blushing with embarrassment until the level of the steroids finally passed through my system.

Today is Day two of the treatment cycle. So far I am feeling well, but tired from the steroid crash. Typically, I will start to feel the effects of chemo on Day three as this drug has a delayed slow-release action over a number of days. The worst of the symptoms typically will run about 10-14 days starting in the next day or two. By the third week of the cycle, I generally will feel better; have increased energy, and a returning appetite.

I am much calmer today, now that the chemo treatments are completed. I continue to travel further along this road of cancer recovery with Strength, Courage, and Determination.