At Sam’s appointment with Dr. Volpp on July 18 he was told that radiation is finished and that he (Dr. Volpp) would not order a PET or CTscan until 8-12 weeks after radiation was completed in order for all the radiation to be out of his body, but that Dr. Just could order one earlier if he wanted. Sam is scheduled for another appointment in 3 months.
He didn’t seem to have any problems with the heavier chemo until the weekend when he started to feel very fatigued and “just didn’t feel right” in his sternum and still some problems swallowing. When he went in on Monday the 21st for his blood work he talked to the nurse about how this treatment had really bothered him. His consultation was postponed until Thursday and at that time the PN talked to the doctor who decided that chemo would be stopped for now and he ordered a PET scan which will be done on Tuesday the 29th. Dawn, the PN, talked to him for quite awhile and boosted his morale some when she told him that on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the best, that he was a 9+ in handling the chemo treatments.
Sam’s sister and her husband were here from the 17th until the 22nd. We ate out every day and Sam seemed to do okay eating. While they were here, Sam got his sister to shave his head. He looks pretty good!
My visit to the doctor was also on Thursday 1:45 (Sam’s was 2:30), but the doctor was running an hour late. Sam explained about his appointment and the receptionist kept us in line when we had to leave for his appointment at 2:10. So we took care of two doctor visits in one afternoon! My good news is that I no longer need my walking boot, but I still use the walker for security. We got signed up for physical therapy which is right across the hall. I went in on Friday for a consultation and scheduling which will be 3 times a week for 2 weeks and then another 2 weeks with twice a week. Each day it is easier and easier to walk and to stand with full weight on both feet and I can even walk without holding on to anything for short distances. I got a shock when I looked at my x-rays. I knew I had a plate and pins on the outside ankle and pins on the inside, but I had no idea it would look like it does! The plate is about 3-4 inches long with 7 pins (screws) and two pins on the inside (the pins look long). The doctor assured me that I wouldn’t set off alarms at the airport. We’ll see.
Thank you for being the good neighbors and friends that you are. We are truly blessed to have all of you in our lives.