6 months of chemo to start in July

Yesterday we went to see Charles Wilson, the oncologist, to discuss my chemo treatment.

He offered a choice of two programmes: one involving a 3 week cycle comprising tablets and injections and the other was for a 2 week cycle which involved the fitting of a permanent line in my chest connected to a vein through which a drug is pumped for 2 days every 2 weeks.

He said that the side-effects vary but most people had about 5 consecutive days of feeling yuck every 3 weeks compared with 2 days of yuck every 2 weeks. So we decided to go for the 2 week programme which we thought would less disruptive and easier to plan my golf!!

The start has to be delayed for 2 weeks to allow my wound to heal up. The good news is that it has stopped leaking and so the wound just needs to seal up (granulate). Then in early July I will have the "central line" (a small plastic pipe) inserted into a vein near my collarbone which will stay in for the 6 month treatment.

I will then be rigged up with a small electric pump (on a belt/holster) which will have the drugs in it which is connected to the line. I can then go home and the pump drip feeds the drug over the next 48 hours. I then go back to the hospital to have the pump removed. This is then repeated every 2 weeks. The doctor said that I will be trained to remove the pump myself so eventually I will only have to visit the hospital once every 2 weeks. So with some clever diary planning I should be able to put together a reasonable social life, keep fit and golf!

The side effects when listed look scary - but most people have very few or none of them.

The most common side-effects are: lower resistance to infection (from within - not from others), tingling in the hands, tiredness, hair becoming thinner (hair loss is very rare), sore mouth, taste changes (red wine could taste like mud), diarrhoea , itchy skin.

For those who want to the know the treatment in more detail I will be having the OxMdG treatment as detailed on the web-site page on the link below:

http://www.cancerbackup.org.uk/Treatments/Chemotherapy/Combinationregimen/Oxaliplatin5FU

Yesterday we went to a wedding service at St Mary's Church at 3 pm - then drove to Cambridge for the appointment with the doctor - then drove back to Mepal for the reception - we just missed out on the soup - but had mains and dessert. It was a lovely wedding in a tent (no I did not loiter). There was plenty of food, dancing and wine. And yes I had a few glasses! We left about midnight - we had a great time.