Chemo and Ranch

We went in bright and early for our scheduled chemotherapy treatment at 8:15 am this morning. The place was empty. There was only 2 or 3 other patients there. I don't know if it's because it was earlier than normal, or if it was due to it being a Wednesday instead of a Monday. Her temperature was normal and her blood work came back fine - well, better than last time - and she was OK'd for chemo.

They started the hydration - saline solution - with something for nausea, Aloxi plus Emend. This is the first time I caught the Emend part of the mixture, but upon looking into, it seems pretty normal to give with Aloxi. And when I asked about it, they said they had always given it to Karen. The reason I asked however, was due to the nausea she was having. It seemed to be so well contained last time, it was strange that she was so nauseous this time. She was quite disappointed, and said she thought they had worked this out last time. When I mentioned it, they said the only thing they could give her would be Ativan (lorazepam). This confirms my guess from the last treatment; it was certainly what they gave her last time. The nurse asked her if she wanted it, and Karen was eager to get anything that would help with the nausea. She went from alert to sleepy, and nodded off for a bit.

When she woke up, the nausea had not only passed, but she had an appetite. And she wanted food. They allow you to bring food in with you while you're getting chemo, and there's a Carl's Jr in the same strip mall as Arizona Oncology. So we looked up their menu online and I went over and picked her up some fries and fried zucchini. Her hands were already cold sensitive to the point where her fingers burned when she moved her IV drip stand, so the warm food felt good on her fingers. Karen and I agree, Carl Jr's house dressing is pretty gross - at least their buttermilk ranch is acceptable.

The hydration they're doing adds roughly an hour or so to her treatment, but this was the first time she was actually able to sleep during chemo, so it didn't really seem much longer. It also didn't seem to hit her as hard as last time, and she's been up most of the day since. She laid down about half an hour ago to read and fell asleep, but that can be hard to do even when you're not on chemo. All in all, I'd she's off to a good start this round. Let's hope things continue well on through Christmas.