CARBOPLATIN + GEMCITABINE CHEMO - CYCLE 3 DAY 8 - 28 JULY 2022

 Another day to prove that when you feel ok you feel ok and when you feel terrible you feel terrible. And there's always something else round the corner. 

In chemo suite, bloods done and OK'd - lots of white blood cells! Cannulated, pre-meds taken and an ECG done to get ahead of the game, but still waiting to see a doc to give the go-ahead for the mini-chemo. 

This is because I had a funny turn this morning - very music hall now but less so at the time. I was supposed to have my Filgrastim WBC booster injections on Days 4,5,6. However, in the wake of the tsunami of amoxicillin, Day 1 chemo, domperidone, dexamethasone and the Filgrastim, Day 5 was exhaustion and Day 6 not much better plus stoma squits. I took  my eye off the ball and forgot the Filgrastim. Yesterday Clinical Nurse Specialist said to take it Day 7 instead so I did - probably why lots of WBCs today. I'd been feeling oddly light-headed for the last few days and a bit weedy this morning but took myself to the allotment in the car for a spine stiffener. Sadly, after watering the greenhouse, targetting the hose at some key crops and picking some beans, my sense of balance went off duty, there was some staggering and I felt at high risk of ending up in the pea sticks where I would be found later with ants up my nose. My now-deceased allotment neighbour did once tell  me that the previous-but-one allotment holder on my plot was found dead in his happy place, thus causing it to pass to the previous allotment holder, so it does happen! If it was a blood pressure dip it wasn't righting itself, so saw fit to crawl to grassy shade, lie down and call for rescue.

Driving myself would have been criminal if even possible. Christopher swept in on his bike, scooped me up, drove me home in a waxy state and installed me on the sofa with my feet up and head down where I slowly equilibrated to feeling only light headed again. Ugh - horrible experience, suspected the Filgrastim (1 in 10 people get 'dizziness'), full of dread at having to take next batch after the mini chemo and then after the next main chemo and the next mini chemo etc etc etc - when will there be an end to it?!

 Made it to Macmillan Centre only slightly late for bloods and in time to get an Itsu and miso soup treat for lunch and report for afternoon session. Once doc tracked down, he agreed that Filgrastim can do that and it might have been multifactorial, with heat and exertion contributing. By then I had already start feeling a lot better and being able to attribute that to the filgrastim wearing off has been very strengthening. The prospect of the next batch of it can be faced nearer the time - and I'll be ready for it! 

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