Finally, have some real answers.....

(This is Allison, Jon and Monica's niece/godchild...so cute!)

So imagine the worst pain in you life. Half way up a huge climb on your bike, or the last five yards of the toughest test set - when your muscles are screaming and all you want to do is stop......

That's what I braced myself for this morning, in the bone marrow biopsy. The sad thing, it really wasn't that bad. They took a blood test, they got to use my port. The nurses had a very hard time getting it to produce blood, I guess they weren't using a long enough needle, because I am still pretty swollen. It hardly hurt, with them using the port, and don't have any more added bruises to my arm :)

After the blood test, I was taken to a exam room. Dr. Chen was very good about telling me what was going on during the biopsy, because I can't see what going on.....I was on my side, facing the wall. He cleaned up my back and poked me to numb up the area - that was the most painful. It was a poke (pinch) and then a burn. He did that a few times until the area was numb. I couldn't even feel him stick me for the biopsy. I did feel when he took out the marrow, it was a lot of pressure - not to the point I thought I would scream, more just holding my breath. It was over in a few minutes. He actually had to take two bone biopsies, because I guess I have strong bones - Go figure!! I am just sore, kinda feels like I feel down some stairs and bruised my spine (best I could describe).

I asked to see the needle - I want to know the ins and outs of what is going on, so why not, right? It was a medal rod, about 4 inches long, and hallow. It is about the width of the tip of a pencil. It sticks right into your bone, thus producing the sample....

Those results won't be available for a few weeks. Based on all my previous blood tests, none of my counts have dropped so there is no indication that the cancer is in my blood, but this is to double check. IF for some reason it turns up in the marrow, that would just move me to stage 4. It wouldn't change my treatment plan, just make it longer.

The results were in from my PET/CT scans I took on Monday. They found two small tumors in my chest. We all have cancer cells, some will multiply (producing cancer) others do nothing. When they look at the scan, the cancer cells illuminate. A normal cell will illuminate at a 2, mine were at 14. What that means are mine are very active. The positive is that mine are still above the abdomen - so I am at stage 2.

The plan is that I will start Chemo on Tuesday, my appointment is at 7:30am. I will have 3 - 4 months of chemo followed by daily rounds of radiation for a few weeks after chemo. I will be getting bi-monthly body scans to make sure the tumors are reacting to the chemo. Mom and I tired to get us in for Chemo Friday, but the earliest we could get is Tuesday. I am going to call anyway to see if someone cancels to call me - I will be there in a flash. Why wait.....