Cancer Musings (New Drug/Taxol)

Today was the long awaited start of the new chemo drug, Taxol. The last course of drugs (Adriamycin and Cytoxan) were infused every other week, four treatments, over the course of two months. This new m  drug, Taxol, will be infused every week over three months. The side effects of the last course of drugs were brutal, so it is with a bit of apprehension that I started this new course. 

The day started a bit rocky as twice it looked like I would not be able to start the drug. When I met with the oncology team, my feet were examined, and it was recognized that I was still dealing with side effects from the last drug, which included skin peeling off the bottom of my feet (I have spared you all the picture of that, you're welcome). The concern was that this new drug carries the possibility of neuropathy and could damage my feet further. In the end, it was decided to continue with the new drug with some heavy precautions of daily maintenance I need to do for my feet and things to look out for and call about if they get worse. 

With that, we were off to start the infusion. It turns out, this drug has a high reaction rate, and I was heavily cautioned to be on the alert for any sign of reaction. I did react to the drug almost immediately after it entered my system. It was very similar to the reaction I had the very first day I received the first drug, only not quite as severe this time. It was caught very early. I did turn bright red, and my blood pressure shot up, and I was lightheaded, but the nurse quickly got that under control. The drug was stopped right away, my blood pressures were monitored for about an hour, and the oncology team was consulted to decide if the infusion would continue or not. In the end, it was decided that the drug was being infused too fast It was going to happen over one hour. Instead, they decided to infuse it over two hours and see how I tolerated it. 

I did tolerate the slower infusion, but it made for a pretty uncomfortable two hours. One of the possible side effects of this drug is neuropathy. To counteract that side effect, I was asked to keep ice packs on my hands and feet for the entire infusion. This meant two hours of icing instead of one hour. I was also instructed to keep ice in my mouth for the entire time to counteract the side effect of mouth sores. It made for a very chilly two hours. Nothing says "Happy Valentine's Day" like two hours with your sweetheart, shivering. Greg was really great, though. He bought me special ice packs for my hands and feet, brought them with us and carried them around in a cooler. He even helped me get them on and offered his assistance with getting the ice chips in my mouth, as I was wearing mitten ice packs, and they are a bit tricky to maneuver with a spoon. 

I will end with this statement. In all of this God is good and God is faithful. We are grateful for all the care He has provided to us in the middle of suffering. And we are grateful for the many friends, family, church friends, medical staff, and even strangers He has brought in our lives to support us along the way. 

The mask requirement is back at clinics due to an increase in COVID. We wore our Valentine masks.

Greg even got me pink ice packs for my feet and hands.