This past week was another adventure in Cancerland, with labs, a nurse visit, and my trusty 21-day Keytruda infusion all in one day. Mid-Afternoon at Mayo, I strutted in for lab work, and Nurse Raymond—who knows me a little too well at this point—sneaked up to whisper, “Are you ready, Ms. Johnson?” Oh, I was ready, alright. We had a few good laughs while he worked his magic, accessing my port and collecting that red juice for testing. He left me accessed like a true professional, ready for the afternoon’s Keytruda party.
With a little time to kill before my next appointment, I took a stroll around the Mayo campus with my loyal Pikmin crew in tow. After I’d worked up a little sweat (okay, a lot), I found a cozy lobby chair and drifted off listening to one of my favorite podcasts. That 3 a.m. alarm is brutal—so I guess consider me “broken down.” But I woke up right on time for my nurse visit, so all’s well that ends with a nap!
At the nurse visit, we dove into my labs. Surprise, surprise: abnormal. My hemoglobin was low, again. My potassium? Also low, again. Both borderline, but because potassium’s been stubbornly low for three checks, my nurse said, “We’re gonna boost you up today!” and I nearly screamed. Potassium during my infusion means a whole extra hour in the chair! We also chatted about Capecitabine (my new oral chemo buddy), but no new news. I did bring up my suspicions about the “shitty titty” (yes, that’s what I call it), telling her I felt lumps and knots that freak me out. She cracked up—apparently she’d never heard that term before. Good to know I’m not just the patient, I’m the comedic relief, too!
On to the infusion room I went, where I tuned in to Love it or List it and waited for Keytruda to arrive. My nurse brought the bad news: “Keytruda’s not compatible with potassium, so we can’t give them together.” Seriously? So instead of one long session, it was 30 minutes for Keytruda, then an hour for potassium. I left Mayo at 5 p.m. and hit every bit of I-95 traffic. You know the drill—cue the traffic anxiety!
I’ve also started Capecitabine this week—four days in! So far… nothing major. Thank the Lord. Well, I haven’t seen the dreaded Hand-Foot Syndrome (yet). My nurse warned me about it, so I’m stocked up on creams, gloves, socks—you name it. I’m also watching for neuropathy changes because, let’s be real, I’m already dealing with enough of that. Lately, my feet feel like I’m constantly wearing socks that slid down into my shoe—annoying, to say the least.
I’ve noticed my appetite’s taken a nosedive since starting the meds. I’m eating around 7 a.m. to get my dose in by 7:30, then repeating about 12 hours later. But with the lower appetite, it’s hard to hit the calories I need to keep up. I’m trying to eat healthy—veggies, fruits, lean protein—but it’s tough. Look, I’d love to be at a healthy weight, but not because of chemo weight loss. I want to get there the right way—no cancer meds, thank you very much.
So, that’s my week. I’m armed with everything I need, from meds to good humor to my Pikmin pals keeping me company. Let’s see what the next round brings!
