The "Feeding Frenzy" is over!

On Monday I was finally able to reduce my steroids to one tablet a day - and I am thrilled to announce that yesterday my appetite dropped significantly - whoo hoo - I am no longer obsessed with food!!!! It is a great feeling - and now I'm just looking forward to losing some of this weight!

I was put onto different antibiotics yesterday, as I still cannot seem to shake this chest infection - so hopefully it will clear up in the next couple of days. I am waiting for an appointment for a CT scan, just so they can check what is happening in my chest. I am still feeling really well, I have a couple of issues with my sight (judging if the ground is flat or not and things like that), and am a little shaky in my hands - I am feeling REALLY well (and happy) other than that! Oh, and did I mention I have a brown forehead!! Someone even asked if I had had my teeth whitened my face is so brown :-)!

Marc and Millie are both well - Millie is back at daycare a couple of days a week which is great for her. Marc said that she was so excited to be back there that she was trying to throw herself out of the car!

This weekend we are going to pick out some Cacti for our landscaping project (Marc will post some photos on the weekend) - and then we will spend Saturday afternoon at Norman and Sue's having a repeat of last Saturday (carn the Pies)!

Lou
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Chemo, Grand Final and a High Tea

I started my chemo again last Wednesday, and although I was a little tired towards the end of the week, I am still feeling really well. I had some severe leg pain on Saturday and Sunday morning from one of the drugs which was horrible, however a "quick release" morphine tablet soon sorted that out!

On Saturday we spent the day at Norman and Sue's with Armin and Penny watching the AFL Grand Final - it was a great day (although I was disappointed at the way the match ended), although it gives an excuse to do it all again at Norman and Sue's next weekend!

On Sunday, we were invited to the SPCA (Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) High Tea by Rob and Carole from Pets in The City (where Millie goes to doggie daycare) at the Stamford Plaza - and we had a fantastic afternoon. It was lovely to get dressed up, put on some high shoes, wear my black glittery hat, and enjoy delicious food and great company. We got to spend some time with Jules who owns Rocco - Millie's best friend who is just the most adorable French Bulldog you have ever seen - so that was wonderful too.

Lou
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Full steam ahead

Today Marc and I had a really good meeting with Dr McCrystal - everything is full steam ahead to start chemo again tomorrow which is really positive news. I will have it once every three weeks, and the side effects are expected to be quite minimal which is great news too. I have had one session of it before, however I think that the brain tumours were causing more of the side effects than the chemo itself - so it will be interesting to see how I go this week. I will have a CT scan in the next 3-4 weeks just to make sure that everything is behaving itself, and then I might be cleared to fly in about 6 weeks time.......Melbourne and/or Fiji - here we come! I have picked up a 'slight' chest infection, so we are on antibiotics just to make sure that doesn't hinder anything.

I donned my 'j-lo' wig today, and had a great lunch with Ryan, Ruth, Ness and Armin - followed by a sweet muffin. Today my steroids dropped from 3-2 and touch wood I have only had one 'wig-out' (that was for you Gina) at Marc - so that is progress too.

Lou

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The "Buzz Cut", Yum Cha and a $5 Cupcake

On Saturday, Marc and I had our appointment at the wig shop. Jenna was absolutely wonderful, and did a fantastic job "buzzing" my hair off. It was actually such a relief as my hair was feeling really "toxic" from the radiation, so it was great just to get rid of it. Marc was extremely patient whilst we finalised the wigs - while I was imagining what they will look like when my "balloon" face is gone!

On Sunday we were supposed to have lunch with Norman and Sue and the kids, however poor Hannah had come down with a head cold (which I have to stay away from), so Marc and I went to Yum Cha instead....and it was delicious!

On the way back to the car - we found a Cup Cake shop, that just sells Cup Cakes - so of course we had to pick one of those up for afternoon tea!

It was a great weekend!

Tomorrow I have my appointment with Dr McCrystal, so we will find out when my chemo will start again, followed by lunch with Ryan, Ruth, Ness (my friends from the office next door) and Armin. 

Love Lou

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All finished

Yesterday I had my last treatment of brain radiation. We took some "happy snaps" with the lovely staff, the amazing machine and my sci-fi mask - close your eyes for the third photo Nana!

Today my hair is officially falling out - in absolute handfuls. I tied it up in a bun quite precariously, and went and had a delicious brunch with Sue and Penny - can you tell that a lot of my life is still revolving around food??? Sue and I then went for a quick shop - and I have spent the afternoon at home which has been lovely.

Tomorrow morning Marc will buzz my hair off, and then we will go to the wig shop to get one fitted properly. Sunday we are having lunch with Norman, Sue, Hannah and Callum which will be great.

I'm still feeling generally well, and thankfully my "roid rage" has calmed down significantly today which has been great relief.

Lou

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1 "zap" to go and starting to struggle!

I cannot believe that I have nearly finished the Whole Brain Radiation treatment. Armin took me to the hospital today, and had a great time discussing the treatment with all of the lovely staff (they are an amazing team) - apparently she couldn't believe how "sci-fi" the whole process was, what with the laser beams that they use for alignment etc. The mask was tighter than ever, however this is normal due to the steroid swelling in my face (Marc is convinced that my Mum had an affair with Bert Newton)!

The last few days have gone well. I had a good appointment with Dr Jose on Monday, and everything is going according to plan. I was able to reduce my steroids from 16mg to 12mg from yesterday, which I will maintain for a further 7 days before slightly reducing again (it will take nearly a month to wean me off of them totally). Yesterday and today have been quite difficult adjusting to the reduction, and my "roid rage" has been quite unbearable for poor Marc! It is really difficult as they totally change your personality - and you lose all of your 'common sense'! Apart from that I just feel like I have severe sunburn on the top of my head, and am a little vague and tired - all in all - cannot complain at all (although Marc surely can!!!) ! No hair loss yet either which has been nice.

Tomorrow I will have my last "zap", and then the treatment will continue to radiate my brain for a further 6-8 weeks. It is around about that time that I will have my next MRI to check in the progress. Still no driving, however I can be left alone for "short periods" which is great.

I have an appointment with Dr McCrystal (Oncologist) next Tuesday, and then we will we get back onto the chemo for the lung mets - need to get onto those little suckers too!

Lou
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Brunch, Wig Shopping and only 5 "Zaps" to go

This morning Mumsie and I met with Sue for a lovely brunch at The Hardware Cafe which was delicious - great company and scrumptious food - not to mention the coffee!!



After that, we went to the Wig Shop - to try and find me the perfect wig before my hair falls out early/mid next week. Wig shops are horrendous places......I am sure that most of the wigs are designed to be worn by people aged 50+ that look something like Deidre from Coronation Street.......not really meant for someone like me with quite thin/flat hair. Anyway, luckily the girls were lovely and we had a laugh or too.

Not sure if this is "the" wig yet - I will have to drag poor Marc there early next week to get his opinion on the new do!

After that it was my 5th session of radiation - half way through!!! Still going really well - no side effects - and still not feeling a thing!

Then Penny popped over  for some cheese and Pinot - we had a great time chatting. And then Mumsie made her delicious pasta for dinner - and we are now enjoying our last night together before she flys home tomorrow. I will be very sad to see her go, as we have had such a great time over the last 10 days - and really couldn't have done everything without her help - especially putting up with my manic moods from the steroids and multitudes of "to-do" lists and tasks to constantly check off - thanks for your patience Mumsie!

Marc is currently on his way home, so it will be lovely to see him tonight - and to spend a lovely relaxing weekend together - I have missed him a lot.

Lou

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3 "zaps" down and a little dog in a bag!

Well, it has been another two really good days, and the sessions of the radiation have continued to be really easy! Having said that - the mask was a little tight today, and the girls assured me that it was normal with the fluid retention/swelling from the steroids (although I think that they were just being nice :))! You really don't feel a thing, and I still do not have any of the side effects which is wonderful!

We managed to find a bag for Millie (thanks PITC) , so have been smuggling her into the hospital with us everyday - everyone loves her!

My weekly appointment with Dr Jose went well yesterday. Good news was that they are zapping me 10 times, instead of the standard 5 (so giving it a good go) - bad news was I cannot lower the steroids for at least another week. That means little or no sleep - and still racing at a million miles an hour (not to mention the food....mmmmm)! Not long to go though, so have decided to enjoy nice brunches and lunches guilt free for this week!

I am feeling so truly positive about the treatment so far. Already the numbness in my fingers has reduced, my headaches have subsided, my balance feels perfect and I am feeling really well - and happy!

Thank you all so much for your continued messages and support - it helps more than you can imagine.

Lou
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The "girls" Dinner Party

Last night we had a "girls" Dinner Party - Mumsie, Armin, Penny, Sue, Sarah, Millie and I.

I willl get my food obsession out of the way first and tell you about the delicious food (apologies in advance for the detail)!. The antipasto was Mumsie's creation - cheeses, biscuits, dips, olives, sundried tomatoes, meats, quince paste, gherkins, pears, grapes and pate. This was followed by Armin's Luscious Lasagna, Sue's Garlic Ciabatta, and Sarah's Salad....mmm...it was SO tasty. AND then Armin whipped up her famous Boysenberry Dumplings (with Cream and Ice Cream)!!! I packaged up some of the leftover lasagna for Sue and Sarah - however swiftly put the remainder of the dumplings away for tonight - seriously....the steroids are KILLING me!

The night was really great, and Millie was on her best behaviour, spending most of the night sound asleep in her 3/4 pants in front of the heater . It was a really casual night, lots of bubbles, and lots of laughs trying to get the "self portrait" photos happening....how funny!

By the end of the night I was tired, however the exciting thing was that I managed to get my first solid 3 or 4 hours sleep which was amazing, as I have been having so much trouble sleeping over the last couple of weeks on the steroids. My body is tired, my brain just won't turn off (or down)!

Today has been a quiet day, tucked up in side - just about to pop around to Armin and Penny's for a cup of tea.

Lou

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Did we mention that Millie has come into season?

We were always planning on letting Millie have one "season" before getting her neutered, however didn't anticipate it occurring the week of my new treatment.

Her 3/4 army shorts certainly bring us a chuckle or two!

Ravishing Puddings and Radiation

We had a great night last night. Armin and Penny were fantastic and looked after Millie for us, and Marc, Mumsie and I went to a delicious restaurant for dinner - it was amazing....and the chocolate fondant pudding was to die for :)!

Today was a good day too - first treatment of Whole Brain Radiation. The girls at the hospital were amazing, and Mumsie did a fantastic job of the photo shoot! I still found it hard to keep a straight face when they were strapping my head in, with Gina's distraught comments still ringing in my ears 'oh my god - is it going to be a Metal Mask like Hannibal Lector?' - how funny.

The whole process took seriously less than 10 minutes - and I didn't feel a thing. Side effects will not kick in until mid next week which is great.

Tomorrow night we have organised a dinner party at home with Mumsie, Armin, Penny, Sue and Sarah (and Millie of course) so I am really looking forward to that.

All of the messages, and words of support and encouragement have been amazing, and mean the absolute world to Marc and I and the rest of our family and friends - we really are very lucky!

Steroids and Savouries

It is so hard to comprehend what has happened in the last week and a half - it still seems to be a bit of a dream for both Marc and I (and everyone else too I'm sure).

I had just started a new chemo drug for my lung mets a couple of weeks ago, and found that I was really struggling with the side effects, especially headaches and nausea. I had a scheduled MRI scan on Friday 20th August, so they could "rule out" any nasties up there.

Well, Friday came around - and within 20 minutes of the brain scan we had received the news that the cancer had spread, and we were dealing with 4 brain tumors, and significant swelling on my brain (no wonder my head felt like it was going to pop open)!!
Immediately we were started on high dose steroids (not for sale sorry Mr Harris), to get the swelling down, and we will start Whole Brain Radiation on Friday as the first plan of attack.

The last week has been a little overwhelming - which the steroids have not helped with. I feel "ramped up" all of the time, and just CANNOT stop eating (seriously I would steal a cheeseburger from a small childs hand if I passed them in the street)!! Hopefully when the dosage is reduced I will be able to drop the weight back down and not have such an addiction / obsession with food. Poor Marc and Mumsie - I've got a million task lists going at any one time - they are struggling to keep up!!!

Well, today we are having a quiet day - off to meet Sue for lunch and then we are having a lovely special dinner tonight with Marc, Mumsie and Me - should be delicious!!!!

It has been tricky at work as well, as I have been trying to pass over a lot of my responsibilities within a short time frame, which has been a little rushed - and not the way that I would have wanted to leave at the moment after being here for so long. We will just play it by ear and see how I'm feeling after the Brain Radiation. One up side to it all - I got out of the GST/Price Increase project (Sorry Norman, Leanne, Karen and Ben) - had to throw that one in there!!!

Marc's Mum (Mumsie) flew in on Tuesday to help us, as at this stage I can't drive or be left alone, and she has been wonderful. My Mum will be over in the not too distant future too which will be great too.

Lou
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