After conquering two infections in this fourth chemotherapy cycle, the two days leading into Thanksgiving weekend finally found me feeling much better. It has been a long recovery in this chemo cycle.

Unfortunately, I hit a bit of a glitch when it came to getting my blood tested at the end of the week for the next chemotherapy treatment on Tuesday. My central port line had a blockage and the chemotherapy nurse could not draw blood from it. The line had to be flushed two separate times with blood thinner to see if blood could be drawn. No such luck. It was disappointing, as I am on daily blood thinners so that these kinds of blockages don’t occur.

The chemo nurse had to resort to the “old fashioned” way of drawing blood from my arm. She was able to draw enough blood to test to see if my blood counts are high enough to have my second round of Taxotere this week. I will be able to go through the treatment as the counts were high enough to accept chemotherapy.

I’ve got my fingers crossed that the port line will work tomorrow so that I can have my second last chemo treatment. I am staying positive that it will work this time.

As part of the monthly pre-chemo blood tests, there is a standard oncology doctor’s appointment to review the last chemotherapy treatment and complications. As always, there are questions to ask and discuss as new symptoms came into play when new chemotherapy drugs are being used.

As the result of my two infections, the oncologist placed me on a higher dosage of blood booster in the hope that another infection can be averted with the next two chemo treatments. He is also placing me on an additional cycle of blood boosters after my last chemo treatment (should be November 2), as my blood counts continue to be very low without medication and need to be built up sufficiently before radiation starts in mid December.

Yet again, another doctor treating me was disappointed with my second 11-hour emergency visit last week. The oncologist confirmed that I had a case of Febrile Neutropenia while in Emergency, a chemotherapy complication that can become dangerous as it can quickly form a life threatening infection (such as sepsis) due to low white blood cell counts and an inability to fight infections.

The oncologist advised that the protocol for oncology patients waiting to be seen in Emergency should not exceed two hours. He was concerned that I was spiking a fever over 38° even with acetaminophen in the painkiller formulation I was using for chemotherapy pain.

I was advised that if I should run into an emergency situation again with a fever and a long wait, that I am to call the oncologist on call and have them paged. I am to ask them to meet me in Emergency so that I do not wait 11 hours in a room full of sick people who are spreading all kinds of germs my way.

After tomorrow’s chemo, I have one more specialized medical visit this month. An MRI appointment has been scheduled at the end of the month to check a suspicious liver nodule, which was discovered by the CT scan earlier this summer. Admittedly, I am a bit anxious about this hoping it’s not cancer, and because of the confined quarters of the MRI scanner. I also wonder how the metal pins in my back (they anchor my spine in place from scoliosis surgery when I was 13) will fare from the scan as the magnet of the MRI.


A Time to Give Thanks

How can one not be thankful these past few days for the glorious Manitoba weather? The temperatures of 23°- 26° have come with abundant sunshine as its rays cloak the land across the province.

Thanksgiving weekend naturally forces one to reflect on things they are thankful for. Some of these things are easily expressed; others that come from one’s heart to another’s heart are more difficult.

As I’ve said before, which bears repeating, I am most thankful for friends, family, and colleagues in my life. They are even more precious now as they travel with me on this cancer journey. I am also deeply thankful for the wonderful care every member of my cancer team gives me each time I have an appointment at the cancer centre.

Every person in my life is a treasure as they bolster my spirits and encourage me in this cancer battle.

I felt humbled and blessed to be surrounded by loved ones last night at my mother’s home as we shared in a dinner of thanksgiving. All of us around the table were the same guests as last year, without any departures from our family.

Living with cancer makes you so much more grateful for the gifts of people in your life as you don’t know if you will live to see the next Thanksgiving.

We were all grateful to have our Thanksgiving dinner in the beauty of sunshine in a three-season sunroom. Imagine—Manitoba Thanksgiving on October 10 with 24° and dining outdoors! This is a memory I will cherish for the rest of my life. It was a simple moment to enjoy the Thanksgiving bounty in the midst of loved ones young and old.

Thanks for Wilderness Treks

Ever since he was 10 years old, our son Josh has always been open to hiking wilderness trails with me. As my wilderness companion of over 15 years, we have a special bond we’ve formed with nature. We have explored many beautiful forests and wilderness areas in Manitoba. We have enjoyed many summers hiking in Riding Mountain National Park during family camps. Closer to home, we’ve trailed off on paths at Oak Hammock Marsh since he was in elementary school.

We’ve donned our hiking boots and tromped on tree-rooted trails, stomped through muddy paths, walked along wild grasses with outstretched arms, pounded gumbo trails, jumped over puddles, sauntered in creek beds, and kept our eyes peeled for prairie dog tunnels to avoid twisted ankles.

We’ve trekked to Bead Lake where we saw a kingfisher dive into the lake to catch a fish. We’ve marveled at the majesty of a full-grown moose grazing alongside a lake. We’ve heard the whack of a beaver’s tail warning the colony that danger lurked nearby.

We have skipped rocks in the silence of a lake laden forest where the only sound was the rock hopping on top of the lake. We have passed by complimentary canoes and paddles, and wondered about the adventurers other trekkers would have made as they paddled on the inter-connecting marshes to explore the park’s aquatic life.

We’ve witnessed the sunrise over a breakfast of home-made cinnamon buns and juice while sitting on the peak of Manitoba’s escarpment enjoying the breathtakingly beautiful Gorge Creek Trail.

Gorge Creek Trail is one where you have to be careful not to slide off the path as it’s quite high and can be peppered with wet shale. It’s one where the floral and fauna present wonders to see. It’s also one where you can catch a nasty case of poison ivy from plants taller than you are in Manitoba’s only “tropical” forest along the base of the creek bed.

We’ve climbed on our mountain bikes to explore the trail that led to Grey Owl’s cabin, and joined with thousands of others who have make the same trek leaving behind their signature’s in the cabin’s guest book. We’ve walked a trail in the pitch of the night, which was only illuminated by the brightness of the moon overhead.

These were all magical mother and son moments that I reflect on. I am thankful for having had the opportunity to share these times with my son and passed on an appreciation of nature to him.


Thanksgiving Trek

For many weeks, I have had a yearning to spend time outside in the wonderful warmth of the unseasonable temperatures and the beauty of the sunshine that comes with it. This weekend, I felt strong enough to leave the city and spend some time in the solitude of rural Manitoba.

With Josh’s encouragement and enthusiasm to leave the city for a few hours to explore nature, we sojourned to Oak Hammock Marsh on Saturday morning. With the extended summer weather we’ve been having, our hope was to catch the last of the straggler geese that have not yet migrated to warmer climes.

There was no breeze at all at the marsh, which is a rarity. We walked along the pathways and watched geese, white swans, ducks, and sandpipers bask in the warmth of the autumn sun. With the whoosh of their wings, some took off from the water while others dove into marshes along the walking paths.

We sauntered to our favorite observation site on a hilltop of the marsh, which gave us a 360° view of the wetlands. Birds were all around us singing their marshland songs. The sunshine was so strong; it could easily have been mistaken for a late summer’s day, instead of Thanksgiving weekend.

As we sat upon the hilltop, we caught up on each other’s lives while watching the behavior of the waterfowl. The power of their wings and the distances these birds travel to come to and leave Manitoba every year are a wonder. We were fortunate to catch a maverick goose in flight doing a full barrel fight rotation in mid air several times amongst its peers.

Sadly, we had to leave the birds and the sunshine as patients undergoing chemotherapy are not to be exposed in direct sunshine for a length of time without protection. It didn’t occur to me that I should have packed sun block in our knapsack in October!

We traveled further down the provincial highway to spend some time collecting driftwood along Lake Winnipeg. The pier was packed with people fishing, walking along the boardwalk, and watching sail boats and sail boarders bounce between sun spiked waves on the lake.

There was much to give thanks for this weekend for the people in my life and the places I’ve been. Each person and each place gives me warm memories to hold onto as I continue to travel in this cancer journey with Strength, Courage, and Determination.