My Breast Cancer Journey

Chemo number three was on Thursday, November 5th. I was concerned about my portacath as earlier in the week it showed signs of infection. I immediately called my primary doctor here on Maui,  Tuesday morning, they worked me in that morning. It was cultured, and after contacting my Medical Oncologist an antibiotic was prescribed. They were able to use the port for the treatment as the infection was on scar that was healing…….minor set back. When I woke up from my Chemo siesta, my husband was there. He flew in from Oregon to be with me for this treatment because Jax was unable to accompany me for this treatment. We flew back to Maui that evening after the treatment was over.

I did work on Friday, I had a lite schedule. I got tired halfway through the day, but not so bad that I could not function at work. Not sure what is worse, the days leading up to your next treatment, or waiting for the side effects to kick in after your infusion. Yesterday (Saturday) morning I woke up nauseous and with a really, really bad stomach ache. The entire day was bad. I do have medication for the nausea and diarrhea, it does help however you do not want to stray to far away from a bathroom.

Everyone knows about the common side effects of Chemo, hair loss, fatigue, Neutropenia (low white blood count), however no one really mentions the diarrhea and how bad it is! Well here it goes………..you don’t have to read this. The main task of the colon is water resorption. Chemo drugs can inhibit this process causing extreme diarrhea. It is pretty bad when your bowel movements are exiting your body as fast as your urine! The tissue around the rectum gets irritated to the point where it is raw  (painful). That is when baby wipes and A&D ointment come in!!! The trick is to stay hydrated. You have to continue to eat and drink to avoid being dehydrated. Allowing yourself to get dehydrated will land you in the hospital! The nausea will last about four to five days post chemo. Unfortunately the loose bowels last longer, it does get better after three to four days, but not normal…………. Okay enough about poop!

Runny nose, spontaneous nose bleeds,  skin sensitivity and a heightened sensitivity to smells! It’s almost like what you experience in your first trimester of pregnancy where certain smells/scents just want to make you puke!!! I had a patient that I was doing a mammogram on, she was wearing a perfume that about made me puke! For the first week post chemo I can not walk into a grocery store because of the different scents.

With my chemo being every three weeks, the fourth chemo lands on Thanksgiving! I will have my chemo on the Friday after Thanksgiving…..chemo-friday for me not “black-friday”. I just need to stay positive and get through this journey (detour) in my life! Thank you for the cards, messages and text a truly appreciate them.

Aloha from Maui, Josefina (Pina)

 The day started at Queens Medical Center at 5:30 am . Registration was super easy, as I had received a phone call earlier this week and they pre-registered me over the phone. The pre-op is done at the The Heart  Institute on the third floor, then a transporter took me and my family to the Interventional Radiology Suite, in Medical Imaging. My husband and daughter got to stay with me till they were ready to begin. The I.R suite was bigger then the one at my old stomping grounds ARMC, Arrowhead Reginal Medical a Center .  The staff which included the Nurse, Technologist and the Interventional Radiologist Dr. Yamada were all very attentive they made me feel comfortable, I especially liked that music was playing.

The picture above is prior to the the procedure!

After the Portacath was placed, I was taken back to The Heart Institute for  a short stay in post-op. Then I was on my way to Dr. Chong’s office for my first of six treatments. We arrived at Dr. Chong’s office at 9:45 am, shortly thereafter we were taken back, got to speak privately with Doctor, then back the Infusion room. Lynne is the Nurse Oncologist, she was very thorough in explaining what each bag was, and what it’s purpose was. I was ready to get started!

About two hours into this all day procedure I was ready for a nap! I was out!!!!😴😴😴😴 I think it was after four when I awoken from my beauty sleep! I remember every now and then I would feel the I.V. Drugs going in, but I honestly did not feel uncomfortable. When I woke up Nurse Lynne helped me to the restroom (bladder was ready to explode). I was down to my last bag , we were done just before five.

We went back to the hotel, then walked to CPK, California Pizza Kitchen for dinner, I was famished! Right now I feel fine, however I might not be feeling great in three days. It is almost ten p.m. here in Hawaii, I am wide awake due to my long siesta (Spanish for Nap!)

I did ask Nurse Lynne about an estimated hair loss timeframe, her response was 10-14 days after infusion starts!!!!! “………………I have two weeks left with my curly hair that I inherited from my dad side of the family! Yes, the Familia Quezada curly hair WILL Fall Off! #nomorebadhairdays #savingonhairproducts #nomorefrizzyhair #somuchforembracingthecurl #igotthis #IMUA #breascancer

Tomorrow morning we head back to QMC, I have have an appointment with the Genetics counselor, then we need to return to the Oncology department. The Oncology Nurse is going to give me an injection to help with my blood count. We will then just hang out till our flight back to Maui.

WARMEST ALOHA🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Much aloha to all the well wishes on social media😘