Chapter 8
Chemo Number 5...Again? I've Lost Count
Is This Chemo 5 Again, or Number 6?
Back in the chair - this time the comfiest yet. Premeds in, chemo started. I was handed the nurse’s emergency beeper.
Two minutes in, I pressed it.
I couldn’t breathe. My head throbbed like it might explode. I turned beetroot red. They stopped the chemo, gave me counteracting meds - and then the back pain started. I was screaming.
After 30 minutes rest, they tried again - at a slower rate.
It worked. I completed the treatment. From now on, I’d receive it at this slower pace - about three hours each time instead of one.
If the side effects stayed manageable, we’d continue. If not, chemo might be stopped early. I didn’t want that. I wanted to ring the bell at the end because I’d finished - not because I had to stop.
Chemo 7 Reaction
Now halfway through the Paclitaxel plan. Bloods were good, spirits high. I was prepared with snacks and determination.
Premeds done. First dose: 67ml over 30 minutes. Nurse button in hand.
15 minutes in, the tingling returned - my face again. I knew the signs and pressed the button. Four nurses rushed in. The reaction was caught early.
They stopped the treatment, gave me medication, and let me rest.
This time, they decided to abandon treatment entirely. I’d only had 30.6ml out of 500ml. Not worth the risk. I agreed.
One Last Option
Another oncologist meeting. One last chemo drug remained - the one used when patients react to both Docetaxel and Paclitaxel.
Whether I was still eligible? We’d find out next week.
I felt crushed.
Each setback made it harder to bounce back, harder to stay hopeful. My family was devastated and felt helpless.
For now, I had a spasming stomach, backache, and exhaustion beyond words. Chemo felt like a fight I’d never known before.
Chemo Number 8? I've Lost Count!
A New Plan, A New Drug
After last week's reaction, Paclitaxel was off the table. My oncologist introduced the final chemo option available to me: Abraxane - also known as Nab-Paclitaxel.
This was the platinum edition of chemo, apparently. The part of Paclitaxel I was reacting to was the coating bit inside - and Abraxane has a different, kinder coating. My oncologist said I shouldn’t have a reaction to this one... we crossed everything and hoped she hadn’t jinxed it.
No pre-medications needed. The treatment would be administered intravenously into my port and would take just thirty minutes.
I was shown the new drug before it started — a thicker, milkier substance in a smaller pouch. All went as planned, apart from a little hiccup with the last bit of the drug in the tube (apparently a typical Abraxane quirk). I felt woozy, tired, and a bit sick straight after, but fingers crossed — this was the one.