On Wednesday, I began my new treatment series, 12 weeks of the drug Taxol. Saw the doctor, and red blood count is still down. We talked a few minutes about receiving a blood transfusion but elected against that. Still getting red blood count booster shots so hopeful it will kick in soon and boost my counts.

With Taxol, you can have a reaction while receiving it. I also had to be sure to have a driver because they give me Benadryl, along with other drugs as my pre-meds. I handled the Taxol pretty well. When they began the Taxol, within a couple of minutes, I had a cool, almost misting sensation in my mouth. It was a very weird feeling. The Benadryl made me sleepy. About 10 that night, my whole body began tingling, which lasted about 12 hours. At 3:30 in the morning, the steriods kicked in and I was awake. I couldn’t get back to sleep so I just got up. I wrapped Christmas presents, checked emails, paid bills, played on the computer, etc. I just had a lot of energy. I had a little queasiness but not like the other treatment (so far).

The reaction I have now is my joints in my fingers and feet are red, swollen and sore. I don’t know what a person who has arthritis feels like, but I may have some idea. It hurts to walk and move my fingers. I took Motrin this morning to see if that helps. The doctor told me that pain in the bones and joints was a common side effect. I don’t know if it will get worse or how long it will last. Time will tell. More dragged out today (steriod must be wearing off).
Plan to return to work on Tuesday and then Wednesday another treatment. I can now say I am half way done with my treatments. Only 11 treatments to go.

I’ll try to post again before the holiday but if not, I hope that everyone has a Merry Christmas. I want to thank everyone again for all your support and encouragement. You all have helped me through this journey.

Love, Lori