Unnerved for a bit

We were all delighted to have Nicola Bashall snr, fondly known as Big Nicola, to stay for a week and Anna for a few days. Nicola stepped in and was helpful in so many ways; chief cook and bottle washer for (little) Nic's birthday party on Saturday evening, pastry chef creating an extravaganza of a birthday cake, ambulance driver, resident micro-biologist and translator of medical articles and general raiser of spirits. Anna fits in happily as a regular member of our family and her resemblance to Nic makes it easy to forget to give her special treatment.

I had a nasty serious lung pain at 1am on Thursday morning, which seemed ominous. We decided to have a CT scan to ascertain the effect of the chemo so far, as it seemed unintelligent to proceed with the chemo if it was not working.

The CT scan was done yesterday amidst anxiety, and we approached Doc Mafafo with trepidation this morning. Thank God, the scan revealed that the chemo is preventing further spread of the cancer, although not actually reducing the size of the many lesions (cancerous growths). This is medically considered to be working, so I have decided to go ahead with the devil I know and have 3 more rounds of chemo before reassessing the situation.

The pain was caused by pleuresy, which was appropriately treated with anti inflammatories as appropriately prescribed by Tony, our GP, at 1am. I was very grateful for his sage advise to stay at home in our own bed, rather than rush off to hospital and be put through unnecessary tests and emergency procedures. It was a relief to know for certain that it was not cancer at the top of the lung. The imagination becomes fertile and irrational in the wee hours!

So, on we go, I had the first chemo dose this morning and have tried to do as much as possible with the day before the nastiness sets in. It helps to know what to expect, so it'll be a slow and quiet week. For one so accustomed to perpetual activity, this is a somewhat strange opportunity for introspection, which I intend to embrace, however, the familiar brain fog might distract from the core purpose.

Thanks for all the prayers, calls and messages. After prayers, sms' are best. We know we're not facing this alone.