Brian was feeling a bit anxious Thursday morning as we got ready to head off to K-W Hospital for his first CyBorD chemo round. We had a 30 minute appointment with the pharmacist first who explained what the medication will do and the side effects to watch out for. It all seems very intimidating when they have to tell you all the worse case scenarios but in the next breath say - no worries those particular side effects are rare!
So the breakdown of medication on chemo day (which will be every Thursday) is:
Ondansetron: morning and evening on chemo day - this controls nausea and vomiting.
Acyclovir - twice a day every day for three months - this is an antiviral to help fight viruses as the chemo will deplete his white and red blood cells and he will not be able to fight viral infections.
Sultratrim: Three times a week for three months to help fight bacterial infections - especially against pneumonia.
Cyclophosphamide: 12 tablets!! on chemo day.
Bortezomib: Injection in belly on chemo day.
Dexamethasone: 5 tablets a day - pulse therapy - four days on, four days off.
(the last three are what constitutes CyBorD - the actual chemotherapy)
Pamidronate IV infusion - once a month to strengthen bones.
After that consultation, off we go to the chemo suite and Brian selects the "chemo chair". The nurses, as always, are so so nice and reassuring. They bring him a warm blanket to wrap around his arm for the IV and then get the IV set up with Saline. We were thinking all the medications was going to go through the IV but then the nurse said this IV is for your pamidronate (bone strengthening drug) and the Velcade (bortezomib) will be a needle injection in your thigh or belly - then she walks away! Brian and I look at each other and say 'in your belly?!?" - Brian says I think I will ask them to do it in my thigh. I quickly text Breanne who proceeds to "google it" and says "get it in the belly" it is apparently tolerated better as the injection is subcutaneous (under the skin) and there is more fat to absorb it. So when the nurse came back with the needle, she agreed it was better in the belly area and so that is where it went. Not bad, Brian said, just stung going in but injection was quick. Then we sit for 2 hours while they inject the pamidronate. I went to Tim Horton's and got us some coffee and Brian sat and listened to his music and as he had to drink a lot plus the Saline infusion, he was back and forth to the bathroom every 10 minutes! That's good though, helps flush everything through him.
So far so good, I was anticipating Brian not feeling the greatest after we got home, but as it Brian's normal - he felt fine. He went to bed that night and woke up in the morning feeling normal. Then said maybe I should go for a bike ride - and I said - are you kidding me, you are not going out on the your bike! I had to go for a hair appointment and he promised me he would not go on his bike but he went for a 3 K walk instead - in the heat! I am so thankful he tolerates things so well. Brian is so good about following orders such as drink a lot (8 glasses a day) to help flush through the medication and keep his body well hydrated, eat healthy (that's my department), and exercise by walking daily (we both do that anyway).
I certainly hope it continues this way for the next three months! The most important thing is to keep him infection-free so we are staying away from any sick contacts and not going anywhere there are crowds of people and handwashing will be important for Brian. So glad it is the summer-time so we can enjoy going for walks and getting outside (when it cools down a bit that is!). So that is it for now, I will report again after the second round of chemo next Thursday. Thanks to everyone for their prayers and positive thoughts - it all seems to be working!
No comments:
Post a Comment