Today, I met Radiation Oncologist Dr. Davis and his nurse Tonya. They are part of the team that gave me this afternoon's crash course in the radiation therapy I will soon have and everything that comes with it. I am not scared or particularly worried about it; I've heard there is often some discomfort and also fatigue, but that seems like it can be handled easily. They also told me I would only be on a 4.5 week plan of 21 daily treatments, which sounded way more promising than 6 weeks' worth of drives to Lexington. One interesting fact I learned about the treatments is that I will have to hold my breath for 30 seconds at a time while they are firing at me because that pushes the heart away from the chest wall and out of the treatment area. I got a whole handout on how to practice this prior to the CT scan. Big, fat, EEK on the necessity of this!
Tonya gave me this binder (I've been given many). It goes into more depth about radiation and cancer in general, and talks a good deal about survivorship, a word I hadn't really heard much until today. I'm not happy that I will now be worried about cancer for the rest of my life, but it's a thing and I suppose it's minor in the grand scheme; I DID get "out of this" for now with relatively easy surgery and treatment options.
The next step is a morning appointment with my medical oncologist (the one who will oversee my hormone-blocking medication) and a CT scan, both on this Tuesday afternoon. I will have blood drawn and the CT scan won't involve an injection with contrast dye OR me drinking the gross liquid, thank goodness. The scan is just to help the doctors zero in on the exact spot they plan to treat. They will then draw a map on me with a special marker (NOT tattoos, as some of my friends have received during this treatment) and then cover those marks with special stickers that won't come off until I am done with all my treatments.
The next exciting thing about Tuesday will be knowing the actual schedule for all the treatments. There will be a light at the end of the tunnel then, and I will be able to take steps to go back to teaching (in my new school and new district - finally).
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