The Cancer Alphabet

The things I do to entertain myself.

Here it is, The Cancer Alphabet!

A is for Adriamycin.            The red chemo drug.  It causes nausea and hair loss.

B is for Bone Scan.              I haven't been squished by a faulty Siemens sensor yet! This scan is used
                                             to monitor the status of bone metastases.

C is for Ciprofloxacin.         The first antibiotic I have ever been prescribed.  Figures I needed it for a
                                             chemo induced fever.

D is for Dexamethasone.      Yay. A steroid.  Used as a part of the anti-nausea regimen but still
                                              annoying. Causes Insomnia and ridiculous carbohydrate cravings.

E is for Emend.                     Oh anti-nauseant drug........you are my hero.

F is for Family and Friends.  Bet you thought I was going to say Fluevog:-)  This road has been so
                                              much easier to travel with all the support of my Family and Friends!

G is for Gemzar.                   A chemotherapy drug for down the road.  I hope it's a very long road, my
                                              hair is finally growing in.

H is for Herceptin.                May you work for a really long time.

H is for Healthcare.              Our healthcare system is pretty amazing.  It really makes this experience
                                             less stressful when I don't have to deal with an insurance company or
                                             worry about co-pays and deductibles.  It is stressful enough just hearing
                                             about my American friends.

H is for Home Care.            Thank you for not making me change my own bandages.  Yuck.

H is a very popular letter.  All 3 were so important that I couldn't pick just 1.

I is for Ian.                           You are my rock.

J is for John.                        Fluevog of course.  Did you really think I would not mention shoes?

K is for Kleenex.                 Especially the ones with lotion.

L is for Lymphedema.         Really hope I don't get it.

M is for Mastectomy.          It actually was easier to handle than chemo.

N is for Nose hairs.             For such a small body part who knew they were so important!

O is for Optimism.              Not really any point of getting out of bed every day if you don't have
                                            optimism, and a little bit of hope......H is already kinda a full though.

P is for Pancakes.                Yum!

Q is for Quinoa.                   I just threw that in to make me sound healthy.  I really couldn't think up  
                                             anything good for Q.

R is for Rum.                       Needed for mojitos.  I wish it was summer.  Then my mint would be
                                            growing and I could make one.  I could have also selected radiation, but
                                            right now I'd rather have a mojito.

S is for Sebastian.                Hi little nephew, I can't wait to meet you!

T is for TDM-1.                  Newly approved by the FDA.  Also works against the Her-2 gene.
                                            Another down the road drug.  Will also probably cause hair loss:-(

U is for Umbrella.                I definitely need one today.  We are having a pineapple express only it is  
                                             coming from Japan instead of Hawaii........I guess that makes it a sushi
                                             express.

V is for Vinorelbine.           Also known as Navelbine but that wouldn't be helpful for my alphabet.
                                            This is yet another chemo drug.

W is for Walking.               Thank goodness my feet have recovered.  Walking is the only real exercise
                                            I can do these days other than shoulder stretches.  And the shoulder
                                            stretches are getting boring!

X is for Xoleda.                  Here we go again, another future chemo drug.  On the upside it doesn't
                                            always cause hair loss AND it comes in pill form.

Y is for Yoga.                     I am thinking of taking this up once I can move my are more.  It should be
                                            fun, the breathing techniques are practically the opposite of Pilates.  That
                                            should help keep me on my toes.

Z is for Zoladex.                  A drug to prevent estrogen production.  But the real highlight is the 15
                                            gauge needle used to inject the time release pellet under the skin.