Almost halfway through

Hopefully, tomorrow will mark the halfway point in receiving my chemotherapy, and the last of the FEC treatments. I say hopefully - I received a phone call from the chemo nurses this afternoon to say that there is an issue with my potassium levels, and I need to go for some further blood tests. Likely that this is nothing to worry about - it can be caused by diet, or because the cancer cells are dying and transferring their potassium in my blood, although it can also be an indicator of kidney function problems. We shall see. My chemo appointment is due for 12pm, so if I can get the bloods done nice and early they'll be able to make a decision on the day.


Since my last update, I've been keeping myself busy, although arguably a little too busy. I've worked out that if I overdo it on one day, I need two full days of rest before I feel better again. I completed all the things on my first to do list, and have carried on trying to stay productive. I'm still making my own bread (which goes very nicely with the homemade jam), although I've given up kneading by hand, and transferred that job to the food mixer, which makes it much less tiring. I've also, 4 years after getting married, printed out some of our wedding photos and put them up in the house, along with some of our other pictures. Making progress on the house, and it's starting to look much more like home. My next task is to start sewing the curtains for the living room. Most of that is hand sewing, which is time consuming, but can be done at my own pace, which is good.

My parents came over to visit this week and helped out with the house updates, and, provided that I have my treatment tomorrow, I'll be going to Essex for a few days to recuperate.

My hair is now falling out in earnest - I doubt that it will last much longer than a week. In fact, given the amount I've lost already I'm amazed I have any hair left to speak of at all. Still, the wig is waiting and ready to go, so it's not too much of a bother for me, although the continuous shedding is annoying.

I should also get my second MRI results tomorrow, and with any luck that should give a better indication of my general prognosis. It seems that the tumour is shrinking, but it can be difficult to judge, so I'm looking forward to seeing the results.