Thoughts from the T-Shirt Lady

Spoke with my daughter the other day, and she is slated to start her chemo on the 18th of this month. At that time, she will have a port inserted, as it is very difficult to get a good vein in her arms.

The chemo will be administered over 24 hours, so she will be in the hospital for that. At least she will have someone monitoring her at all times.

The medications that she will be given are Taxol - which I had and another one - which I wrote down, but now cannot find the piece of paper…. will look some more and update the info.

Sandi

Spoke with my daughter over the weekend. She has now gone back to work half-days. Said she was so bored sitting around the apartment, and the fact that she only works 5 minutes from her home means that if she gets too tired, she can just come home.

She will be taking the bus today to Minneapolis. She has a follow-up appt with the surgeon tomorrow, and he will most likely map out her chemo schedule. I’ll have more about that when I hear from her tomorrow.

She still has a little bit of infection in one or two of her stitches and is still on anti-biotics. I’m sure that the surgeon will look at that as well.

More later.

Sandi

Well, I’m finally home from my trip to be with my daughter during her surgery and recovery. And I have to tell you I’m glad to be home. But getting here was an event.

I last posted on the morning of Monday the 28th of May, fully expecting for everything to go according to plan.

The first thing we did when I got to my daughter’s apartment was to take her to the clinic. Some of the areas where her stitches were was very red, and she wanted to make sure that there was no infection. Drove her to the clinic, where she waited about 45 minutes and then was called in. Yes, she has a staph infection - so was put on antibiotics, as well as strong meds for her hacking cough.

We went and had lunch, and then drove to Walmart to pick up some things. By that time, neither of us was feeling very good - she was tired, and I felt as if I had a sore throat coming on.

Monday evening - I felt like I was coming down with the flu. Got some lemon juice, and drank it with hot water (my mother’s remedy). Went to be early.

Tuesday morning I didn’t feel much better, but took some sore throat meds and went to see my daughter. We were going to go to the grocery store - but since neither of us was feeling like going out - she got on-line and had her groceries delivered. She uses this service all the time, talk about convenient!

Wednesday morning I didn’t feel any better. I was supposed to get on the road at about 9am to get back to Minneapolis. At this point, I knew that I was not going to be able to drive as bad as I was feeling. So, I turned in the rental car - had to pay a large fee for dropping it off in Fargo instead of driving it back.

I opted to take the bus - actually that was the only option available. The bus left Fargo at 3pm and got into Minneapolis at 7:30pm.

From there - a shuttle to the airport. It was either that, or take a cab to a hotel near the airport which would have cost a lot more than the shuttle.

Caught the hotel shuttle at the airport for the ride back to the hotel. Got to the hotel about 8:30-8:45. By this time, I’m very hungry and had to call for delivery to the hotel. Even so, I couldn’t eat very much - still feeling peaked.

Went to sleep at 10pm, and got up at 2am, to catch the 3am hotel shuttle to the airport. Have you ever seen an airport at 3:15am? There were people - mostly guys - sleeping on the floors. I thought about that the nite before, but opted to semi-sleep at a hotel.

My bag was checked in, but at that time of the morning, even security was closed. Hey, my flight wasn’t until 5:30am - why was I there so early? Well, the next shuttle was to have been at 4am - and there was no telling how packed it would be at that time….

Coffee? Had to walk for a long while from my gate just to find someplace open - McDonalds - to get coffee and breakfast.

The flight left on time, with a stop in Philly. That plane left on time as well. And my DH picked me up at the home airport at 11am. By noon we were home, had a quick lunch and then took a 2 hour nap. Big mistake, as it took me forever to get to sleep that nite.

Called my daughter when I got home, and she’s doing ok. Her dad was due to fly in on Friday - so he would be with her during the day for a week.

She’s due to see the surgeon, as I mentioned before, to get her chemo schedule set up. More on that as I hear from her.

Anyway - thanks to all who send their prayers and well wishes. They really helped.

Sandi

My daughter was released from the rehab center on Friday. I had been in touch with the car rental company, and they were willing to pick us up and take us to where we could rent a car. I decided that if we would leave the city by noon - we would try to drive at least 2/3 of the way, and then see how things were.

Well, we were able to leave at 11am with a rental car. So we were on our way!

Drove for about 1 1/2 hours, stopped for lunch, go back on the road and drove til about 2:30. I was feeling really sleepy by that time. Stopped at a rest stop - got out of the car and walked around, got a diet soda and felt better - so off we went again. Guess I got my second wind because I was fine for the rest of the drive. Got to my daughter’s house at about 4pm. Since she didn’t have any room for me to stay, nor an extra bed, I checked into a hotel.

Have spent the last 2 days getting her settled, making sure that she is feeling better and able to do things for herself. We’ll be going and doing grocery shopping for her today or tomorrow - and then I leave on Wed. Will drive to Minneapolis and check into a hotel near the airport, drive the rental car to the turn in and then take a shuttle back to the hotel. Not sure if I’ll get any sleep that nite, as I have to be at the airport at 4am. Yawn…

More later.

Sandi

My daughter had surgery on Friday for uterine cancer. It was almost 8pm before she was brought into her room for me to see her. After a really long day - I went back to the hotel.

Since then, I have gone to the hospital around 9am, and have left between 7-8 pm. I walk to the hospital and back. At least I’m getting my exercise in…
The weekend was really bad for her. She had and still has pain, and moving around and getting out of bed were almost too hard for her to do.

Then on Monday, it was almost as if she got her second wind. Up and walking down the hall - slow of course, but doing it. Tuesday, was even better. Again slow - but not as bad.

Yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon - she was moved to a rehab center. This is to help her get her strength back, and teach her how to move and get out of bed without hurting herself. I’m not sure how long she will be there - but it will probably be just a few days. The main problem will be for her to sit for well over 4 hours as we drive to her home. Not something I’m really looking forward to - since my energy level is not up to par yet. But the drs and nurses said we could not go by bus as she needs to be able to get up and out of the vehicle frequently. So a 4 hour trip will take considerably longer - that’s ok, since I will need frequent stops as well to keep me awake.
We saw the dr on Monday - and discussed the surgery and further treatment. Based on the cancer that was detected, the doctor removed her uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes. He also found that the cancer cells had spread to the muscles of the uterus. We have not gotten the pathology report yet, but based on what he found, he decided not to remove lymph nodes. She will be scheduled to have chemo treatments - 2 chemicals every 3 weeks for treatments. The main thing she is concerned with is losing her hair!

Knowing all the side effects that I had, I plan on asking what chemicals will be used so I can do some research. Since my daughter lives by herself, she will probably need some home health care for those really bad days.

My daughter is a very independent person, has a great job with a lot of responsiblity, and has lived by herself for a number of years. I know that she will sometimes be overwhelmed by all this - but I know of many women who have gone thru cancer treatment and have continued to work. And the fact that her job is about 5-15 minutes from her home (based on traffic), I have no doubt she will want to get back to work as soon as possible. And she will persevere! I have a lot of confidence in her. And after I go back home on the 31st - her dad will be coming in to help her for another week.

I plan on being in constant contact with her as her recovery period winds down, and as she gets ready for the chemo. Haven’t decided if I will come back for the first of her treatments - depends on how she is doing.

More later

Sandi

I am in Minneapolis!

Actually I got here 2 days ago. I’ve just been so tired that I haven’t had the energy to get on the computer and write anything.

When I talked with my daughter on Wednesday - she informed me that the bus to Fargo, doesn’t leave until 6pm and gets to Fargo about 10:30pm. I saw no reason for her to have to go through that and then turn around and drive for 4 hours to get back to me. So I told her to stay in a hotel Wed nite, and meet me at my hotel on Thursday.

My flights were good. The flight from Norfolk to Philly (stop over) was smooth. However, the flight from Philly to Minneapolis was delayed 2 hours. So I wondered the airport, read, ate, and just tried not to get too stressed. The flight (once we got on going) was mostly smooth, and I arrived at 2:30pm (1:30 pm Minnesota time). My daughter had already gotten our room at the hotel.

Yesterday morning, we arrived in plenty of time at the hospital - she needed to be there before 10am. Her surgery was scheduled for noon. It was actually 12:30 by the time they wheeled her out of the prep area to go to surgery.

The doctor came to see me after 3pm, and told me that she was given a normal hysterectomy. The doctor left her ovaries in. We talked for awhile, and she will definitely be having chemo - probably after about 6 weeks. Treatment every 3 weeks for 6 treatments.

My daughter didn’t get to her room until about 7:30. I sat in her room for a little while, but since she was sleeping, I left to go back to the hotel. I’m sure she will be in a lot of pain, and sleeping alot, so at this point, I don’t know how alert she will be. But I’ll try to post something later this evening.

We will end up having to rent a car to drive back, once she is released from the hospital. The bus doesn’t leave until 6pm, and the train runs in the middle of the nite. Neither one is appealing. Driving 4 hours isn’t appealing either, but there are no other options.

Talk with you soon.

Sandi

I just spoke with my daughter from North Dakota - the one who has uterine cancer.

Today, she had a biopsy done to find out what type of hysterectomy will be done - a normal one, or a radical. I called her today - she had the procedure done this morning, and the call was placed to her hospital room - she will be staying overnite.

Since all her procedures are taking place in Minneapolis - and she lives 4 hours away, great care has had to be taken to get all the logistics done. She rode the bus down yesterday (she assures me that Minneapolis is south east from Fargo). She will take the bus home tomorrow, get some additional things done, and then drive down - again on Thursday to meet me at my hotel. Whew! Such planning…

I fly on Thursday, and am supposed to arrive in Minneapolis around noon their time. Since I have a connecting flight - lets hope that I am on time

I don’t like to fly, and I will be nervous about that - let alone concerned about what the surgeon will find when she goes into surgery. But of course, I had the same concerns when I had mine. So God willing, everything will be ok.

More later.

Sandi

I am finally getting back into the swing of things from my cancer surgery, and treatments. Still a little slow, and tired every once in awhile - but that’s to be expected.

Let me tell you a little about my family, and how it relates to cancer.

My DH and I have 6 children (4 girls and 2 boys) and 10 grandchildren (7 girls and 3 boys). We are a blended family as many of other families are. So when things happen to our children - regardless of which side of the family they are on, I worry.

One of our daughters is an army wife, and is having to deal with her husband being over in Iraq for the 2nd time. They have 3 children.

Our oldest son is married to a gal from England, and they live there with their 3 children. The oldest child from other marriage goes to visit as often as she can.

Another of our daughters is married and both she and her husband work for the prison system. They have 1 little girl.

Our youngest son is a bachelor and I guess he likes it like that!

One of our other daughters just had a gyn procedure to take out pre-cancerous cells. I am praying that by doing that procedure she will not develop cancer. She was also told that she has the HPV virus.

Our oldest daughter lives in North Dakota - guess she likes it - but it’s too cold for me. And she has been diagonosed with uterine cancer. She is single and only 36.

I have not posted for awhile, I’ve been trying to deal with what she will be going thru with her cancer. Coming so close on the heels on mine, it is scary. We’ve been in constant communication since she told me 2-3 weeks ago, and she’s been trying to get everything set up. She will be having surgery on the 18th of May, and I plan on flying up there on the 17th to be with her for 2 weeks. Her dad is supposed to get there at the end of the 2 weeks, to help too!

I know what she is going through with the unknown and the uncertanty. And you can just imagine how I am dealing with this latest news - never wanting any of my children to have to go through what I’ve been through, and wanting to be there for her for whatever she needs. Right now we don’t know if she will need radiation or chemo. All I can do is be there for her, and pray that it all comes out right. I will be taking my laptop with me, so I will post information as I get it. Please pray for my daughter and all children who are going through cancer!

Sandi