Radiation is over!!

Chris is finished with all of her treatments!

In the last update I mentioned that we had to orchestrate a number of radiation consultation appointments, tests, and the 2nd stage reconstruction surgery.

With all of that behind us, the radiation began December 3. She had to have thirty treatments, one every day, Monday through Friday. Considering that it is a 45-minute drive each way, this became her "job" for six weeks, and she drove to most of them by herself for the first four and a half weeks. She became pretty fatigued after that, so I drove her every day for the remaining treatments.

In the process of going to all of these treatments over such a long period, Chris met a number of other patients who were also being treated. She discovered that 1 of 3 men over sixty get prostate cancer, so there were a number of men who were getting radiation. One of them, a very "French" Frenchman, even asked her if she was married!

She became very friendly with another patient named John and his wife Linda, who came every day about the same time Chris did. During the final treatments which I attended, I also got to know them and they were simply delightful; we even went to lunch one day and had a grand time.

Chris's last treatment was January 15, and I arranged to have all of the radiation therapists as well as John and Linda give her a rousing ovation as she got off the table for the last time. Seven of us cheering and applauding in that small room made quite a racket, and Chris loved it.

When it was all over, Chris had suffered 3rd degree burns on her breast and underarm, which looked pretty nasty and were very painful, but they are almost all healed now and she is doing great.

Although we hate the drought, I'm glad that we didn't have any serious weather to contend with having to drive down and then back up the mountain every day. There was only one day that was "iffy," and even that day didn't turn out to be too bad. The one storm we had hit us on a Friday night so the worst driving days were on the weekend when she didn't have to go down there. Lucky. Last Friday she rode Keno and took Kelley on a lead rope, riding through the forest and returning, working in her beloved barn, and doing what she loves to do. She had been dreaming of that ride for the last six months or so; it was a very good day.

She doesn't have all of her energy yet, but...

SHE'S BACK, BABY!!

I did some things that were somewhat related to Chris's illness. I went to Africa to see a total eclipse of the sun which just happened to be between the 2nd stage reconstruction surgery and the beginning of radiation, so I didn't miss much and she was in great shape to take care of things while I was gone. I went on a cruise in the Indian Ocean, but missed the eclipse because of clouds at the critical moment.

I have also made a radical change in my career, and will now concentrate on using our experience to help other cancer patients and their partners. I am writing a book entitled "Cancer For Two," and will be speaking on the subject as well as developing a website that focuses on supporting the partners of cancer patients. It is about 2/3 complete, and I hope to have books available in April.

I'm happy to say that this is the last update... it's over now except for the follow-up visits with the Oncologist. The first follow-up is February 27, and we will have one every three months for two years, then every six months for a couple of years. We can't consider her "cured" until 10 years from the diagnosis date, so April 22, 2012 will be a big day!

Ooops... there IS still one more thing that we have to do; Chris has to get her new breast tattooed so that the color around the nipple looks more natural.

They used offer that service at the plastic surgeon's office but the nurse who did it has left. The doctor told us about a woman that offers such a service, but she is VERY expensive ($800!!) and doesn't take insurance, so he suggested that we go to "The Black Wave," a tattoo parlor somewhere in Los Angeles! He said that they do a good job and only charge about $50.

I'm just not sure how they're going to get "Momma didn't love me" in such a small area...

This update was posted on Monday, February 10, 2003 at 11:36:00 AM (USA Central Time)
Last updated on Thursday, October 02, 2003 at 12:11:44 PM (USA Central Time)