Looking Forward

This morning, I called to cancel all my future appointments with oncology at Walter Reed. It was a weird feeling. I have been happy with my care and my doctors and nurses at Walter Reed. But after talking with my new doctor, Tom’s oncologist, on Monday, I feel good going forward into the next phase of my treatment.

My new doctor is really knowledgeable about new drugs and therapies, and he gave me hope for my future living with triple negative metastatic cancer and hope for my future care. I felt really good after talking with him, but I was filled with a little anxiety, as well. While I am confident in my new doctor’s care and capabilities, I just wonder if I am making the right decisions. I feel like I am, but it has to do with my LIFE, so it makes me a little nervous. It’s just that I am leaving care that has been good and that I am now comfortable with. So, I am looking forward to my first infusion at my new office tomorrow to move forward into this next phase.

I will meet with my new doctor in two weeks. He has ordered a PET scan and a brain MRI to be done in the next couple of weeks. He says that should my cancer spread to my brain, it can be treatable if caught early. I am so happy he wants to be proactive about this. From reading about metastatic breast cancer, the most likely places for my cancer to start spreading are the liver, the brain and the bones. He says that I may be able to have chemo every other week, which would be wonderful, and I may be able to only have the bone strengthener once every three months, if even necessary, depending on my scan results and depending on whether or not there is cancer in my sternum.

I already learned a lot just through our conversation on Monday. And you all know I love getting information because I can do something with it! And, for now, all the new information has made me hopeful, hopeful about my future and my future care.

I have continued to be symptom free, mostly! I had one day where I think I pushed it too hard this week, and I threw up several times. And I have started swimming and treading in the pool on top of walking, and I have developed neuropathy in my toes when I work out. My hair is growing like crazy. Super thick! It’s pretty unruly. I have to hairspray it down on my head to keep it from curling! I have lost my eyebrows again, so I am thankful I still have a headful of hair. I am fighting some negative self-esteem issues as I battle my weight and my hair, but no pain, no gain! Both will get there! I am just not a very patient patient!!!

I will update after my first chemo treatment at the new facility in Annapolis tomorrow. A much easier drive! Yay!!!