elanarosegraves's Cancer Blog
July 2, 2009
Thank you so much for your very sweet comments! I am getting excited that it’s almost over!
Thursday July 9th should be my last radiation #35/35 and on July 17th I am scheduled to have the PEG removed! Yea!
I also discovered yesterday that I can eat and taste Watermelon still! I love the stuff. It doesn’t hurt my tongue and it slides down easy. I also ate about half a hot dog and bun last night. And I could taste it too! So I may be one of the lucky one’s who kept the use of part of my taste buds. My GI doctor is amazed by that. But sweet food still doesn’t taste good.
I’m putting about 2 cans of Ensure daily into my PEG. Followed with about 30 ml of water to flush it in all the way. My nurse said I needed to do at least 6! I just can’t fit that much in my stomach daily. Ewwww. But hey, at least I don’t have to taste it!
I’m at home right now checking out my computer while Mom has her weekly hair appointment. At 2:30 I will go for radiation #31 and then we are going to bingo~ LOL We just have to do something fun.
Thank you so much to each and everyone of you for helping me get through this journey. I can only hope that by recording my experience with this cancer will one day help ease the anxiety of someone new to our beautiful site.
You are all in my thoughts and prayers!
Many hugs and blessings,
Rose
P.S. Where is Jaques lately? I’m going to have to email that boy and see what it up.
Thanks for your support - 
Rose—
July 9th. is just around the corner! You are going to make it, then things will start to improve quickly. Keep getting as much nutrition as you can! It sounds like you are doing just that, and I’m so glad you are able to taste some things. Take good care and keep us posted on how the final few tx’s go! You continue to be in my thoughts and prayers.
Martha
Wow, only a few days left – hurray for you, you did it! Just a quick caution: make sure you can consume a decent amount of calories and liquids before you have the PEG out. You actually keep “cooking” for a couple weeks after the radiation is finished, so you aren’t likely to start feeling better right away and you want to make sure you can take in enough nutrition to stay strong and get better. Better to keep the PEG as long as you need it. But you have done an incredible job of continuing to take in food/liquid by mouth – really amazing. You go, girl!
Hi Rose,
Sorry i’ve been MIA. I’ve been meaning to write to you.
First my good news…. After fighting with the insurance company, i finally got my PETscan and it came back totally clean. So for now no sign of cancer anywhere. Yeah! I can wind back the clock on the low level anxiety and enjoy my summer! Next test in about 6 months is another big milestone.
I’m so glad you’re almost done. And you have been such a trooper through all of this. The sweet thing is normal. Sweet was totally gone as you know, tasted more bitter if anything. Started with McDonalds super sweet tea and couldn’t taste a thing. Slowly i detected a hint of sweet and then over the weeks it came back. My favorite was the peach slices in syrup. That seemed to help redevelop the sense of sweet.
All your taste buds will slowly come back over the next couple months.
I do want to give you a heads up on one thing. Once you’re done with treatment is when you are at your weakest. And there is the risk of you getting depressed over the fact that even a month after radiation you don’t see much improvement. It’s a weird time, cause you think you should be getting better but you don’t feel it. You are at your weakest and you will feel exhausted. Also the fact that you are no longer getting radiation means that you feel like nothing is being done to treat your cancer. You feel like a weaker version of your self and wonder how you will ever get your strength back.
Rose, just like before, just rest up and know that you made it through. Your strength will come back but it will be Sept or Oct before you really get a hint of feeling normal. You;’ll still be very tired. So just know that this is normal.
Also if you need some tips on dealing with the burns i can offer some advice. Xeroform pads, and Silvadene are the basics you will be using. But i found a neat way to deal with the burns and got them to heal pretty quickly.
Love and hugs,
Jacques
Hey Rose,
Good luck today, and find the energy to celebrate tomorrow. Your LAST RADIATION! You did it girl! It’s a hell of a milestone.
Keep taking the pain killers, take special care of those burns and now just rest up for the next couple of months. You’re gonna still feel even weaker for the next few weeks and not much stronger over the next couple of months. Don’t despair. Just sleep and get your beauty rest:)
Congratulations with love and hugs!
Jacques
I am so happy you are almost done…. WOW! Amazing how brave you have been through all of this!
On a lighter note – BINGO QUEEN - have you won lately? LOL!
Sonia