Chemo: Day After

I have survived another round of Chemo! This 2nd round of Irinotecan was not near as bad as the first one. I had Chemo on Thursday morning and for this round my sister Melissa accompanied me. I am not sure she had as much fun as I did dancing in my chair listen to my Chemo Party Mix of songs.

After going home and sleeping for 3 hours I woke up and took a long hot shower. (This process makes me feel extremely better and makes me feel somewhat normal after the chemo side effects.)

After the shower I was sitting at home finishing up season 2 of the office. (I know I am a little behind this is my first go around for watching the office.) I received a text from a buddy on my softball team saying that they needed one more for the game tonight so that we could field a full team. My head said that I should not go play and stay at home relaxing, however my fingertips texted back, Count me in!

I arrived at the ball field approx. 4 hours after finishing chemo. Throughout the game I was extremely tired and I played first base for the most part. (This position requires the least amount of effort.) I ended up going 2-3 with two singles. I then swapped for a pinch runner to run the rest of the bases for me.

Overall, it was a fun game but we ended up losing unable to complete a comeback in the bottom of the last inning.

I was really tired and went home took a shower and collapsed in my bed.

For you amusement I have included a few of my favorite definitions for cancer from the wonderful website Urban Dictionary.

Cancer is a disease lacking a sense of humor.

Cancer is what things like smoking, exposure to radiation, genetically enhanced food, and furbies cause.

Cancer is one disease to rule them all. Anything and everything causes cancer nowadays, which is somewhat depressing. There is no true cure for any form of cancer, but there just might be if the human race would stop warring with itself and concentrate on destroying diseases instead.

Cancer is the only superpower that humans can possess.

My favorite:

The cure for cancer is simple. Just crack open the pit of an apricot, plumb, or any kind of fruit like that, and eat the seeds. Do this everyday to prevent cancer. If you already have cancer, you should eat around 8 apricot seeds everyday to cure it. People have been doing this for years to cure cancer. The reason a lot of people don't hear about this, is because if you did, you wouldn't have to buy medicine, and therefore, the drug companies would go bankrupt.

Needle Pokes: 9

Pills: 35

People to visit me and cheer me up since last round: Leah and Saweet Jess, and Chris and Dre Carrier. They brought wonderful gifts and goodies and allowed me to have social interaction! Thanks you four. Your visits mean a lot!

Chemo Eve: Round 4

Welp it is time for the fun time that comes around every two weeks! CHEMO!!! YEAH!!!!

I especially cannot wait for another round because of fun the past two weeks have been. Lack of appetite, constipation, diarrea, nausea, vomiting. I hope I has figured out a few things so this next round will go much smoother.

Since I started chemo for the third time I have started to realize how many things in my life resemble that of a old person. In this definition an older person is someone at least 70 years old. (sorry if this includes you and you do not define yourself as old.)

First off I take a lot of mid-day naps. about 2 or 3 p.m. I hear Mr. Sandman knocking on my door and since I was taught to not be a rude person I always let him in.

The second thing that resembles a old person is that I have on of these.

Although I throughly enjoy having this. It makes parking on campus and Wal-Mart much more enjoyable.

Third, As you may have read in my last post I drink prune juice to keep my bowels in order.

The last part that resembles a old person is that I live alone. I saw this commercial while watching Price is Right and was almost convinced to buy one.

Thanks again to everyone who reads this blog and for all the well wishes.

Storytime

I will use pictures to help me tell this story.

It started on Monday night, I did not sleep well due to:



This is not completely weird because it is one of the biggest side effects of the newest chemos that I have started taking. So are part of the protocol at that the first sign of diarrhea you take two of these.



Then one every two hours until you have not had a bowel movement for 12 hours. So after following this protocol. I felt like this for 6 days.



Because the Immodium AD had worked so well. I was backed up! (I tried to think of some joke here, but nothing came)

After 6 days of INTENSE side pain due to this build up. I bought some of this.

I took two small glasses full accompanied with a Ham and Cheese Hotpocket in hopes of some movement to help relieve my side pain.

After a night of sleep I have spent this memorial day reflecting and creating this.

Six days of eating coming out all at once makes you feel like a flying carpet!

Now things are better and hopefully I will have bowel movements like a normal person.

They made a movie about me and my roommate Brandon!

Here is the trailer:


Here is a picture of my roommate Brandon (He is Seth Rogens twin)



I feel I should sue them for stealing my life story. It is obviously about me and Brandon.

Cancerous Answers to Cancerous Questions

Did you know that you were going to be told you had cancer this time? Like did you have any kind of feeling like it was back or did your body feel different? Or was it totally a surprise to you? - Liz

On night during this past January I was awaken by a very bad pain on the lower side of my left chest. It had been roughly five months since my last chemotherapy treatment in Aug. 2010. I was not too concerned with the pain at first because I was just started to be active again. I started running, playing sports, and being more active (compared to being a cancer patient where you get winded walking up a flight of stairs.)

I just assumed the pain was the fake half of my left diaphragm that was just being stretched out due to the increased physical activity. After about a month of dealing with the near constant pain I decided to go to talk to my Utah cancer doctor to get some pain meds to hold me over until I had my scans in March.

Since the pain had lasted so long I thought something might be up, but just blew it off hoping that my rationale of it being my diaphragm was correct.
What graduate program? –Danna

I will be starting the Mass Communications master program and Brigham Young University starting Aug. 29th 2011.

Where are you doing treatments now? –Kelsey

I am receiving chemo treatments at the Utah Valley Medical Hospital in Provo on the corner of Bulldog and 500 West. It is in the main lobby where the big revolving door is. It is called Utah Cancer Specialists. You are all invited to attend during any of my chemo treatments.

I will also be receiving radiation treatments down in San Diego in late June.
Kelsey also asked this great question: What's the one treat that still sounds good after a bout of chemo?

Although I do not eat a whole lot immediately following chemo, some treats that I do enjoy are white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, funfetti cake, Mothers Circus Animal Cookies, Blue Gatorade, and Beef Jerky (The jerky gets me the protein during my lack of eating full meals.) However, I am open to trying any homemade baked good (especially if it is from scratch.) I probably spent more time on this question than I should have.

The Last Question for this go-around:

How do you really feel about this? Is it scary? Is it just normal? Are you upset about it? More upset that its round 3 and you have already had to do it twice? Do you really just take everything as it comes and just like go with it? I suppose I am a girl and am interested in more emotions about this. Not that you haven't shared any just that my brain works like this

This is a very loaded question. How do I really feel about this? Well, I must admit that I was not excited about winning the cancer raffle for the third time; however I am not bitter, scared, or upset. I have done a lot of meditating during my second and third time of fighting this ugly cancer disease and I have come to the conclusion that I have been reluctant to share due to the lack of happy thoughts that it contains, but here it is.

Sorry for the change in font the computer is being funny(I did not change it for dramatic effect)

I HAVE REACHED THE CONCLUSION THAT I AM A LIFER. I HAVE ACCEPTED THAT I WILL PROBABLY NEVER BE CURED OF CANCER AND THAT I WILL BE FIGHTING THIS FIGHT FOR A VERY LONG TIME. I KNOW THIS MAY BE HARD FOR SOME OF YOU TO READ, BUT I HAVE COME TO TERMS WITH IT. I HAVE REACHED THE POINT WHERE I WILL CONTINUE TO FIGHT THE FIGHT TO THE VERY END AND ENJOY LIFE ALONG THE WAY.

I AM EXCITED TO LIVE A FULL LONG LIFE IT WILL JUST BE VERY DIFFERENT THAT THE NORMAL. I WILL HAVE TO BALANCE SCHOOL, WORK, FRIENDS, AND FAMILY ALONG WITH DOCTORS, TREATMENTS, DRUGS, AND SICK WEEKENDS.

NOW PLEASE DON’T BE SADDENED BY THIS ANSWER I AM JUST TRYING TO BE OPEN, HONEST, AND LET MY UNCENSORED THOUGHTS BE HEARD. MY HESITANCY TO WRITE THIS HAS BEEN FOR MY FAMILY, BECAUSE I DO NOT KNOW HOW FAR THEY HAVE COME TO GRIPS WITH WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS FOR ME.

I AM AT PEACE WITH IT AND WILL NEVER STOP LIVING LIFE TO THE FULLEST EVEN IF IT IS JUST WATCHING DEAR JOHN WITH AN APARTMENT FULL OF GIRLS, WORKING GRAVEYARD SHIFTS, OR LAYING IN BED ALL WEEKEND REBOUNDING FROM A ROUGH CHEMOTHERAPY TREATMENT. I KNOW THERE IS A TOMORROW AND THAT IT WILL BE BETTER AND THAT I AM SURROUNDED BY PEOPLE WHO LOVE ME.

MY FUTURE IS BRIGHT, I START GRADUATE SCHOOL IN THE FALL AND HOPE TO CONTINUE ON TO OBTAIN A PHD. AND BE A COLLEGE PROFESSOR SO THAT I CAN PASS ON SOMETHING WORTHWHILE TO THOSE WHO COME AFTER ME. PLEASE DO NOT FEEL SAD OR SORRY FOR ME, BECAUSE I DO NOT HAVE THESE FEELINGS FOR MYSELF.

CANCER CANNOT STOP THAT! CANCER ALTHOUGH HAS BEEN THE MOST ANNOYING THING TO EVERY HAPPEN IN MY LIFE IT HAS ALSO BEEN THE GREATEST THING, BECAUSE AT THE YOUNG AGE OF 16 I WAS ABLE TO GAIN A PERSPECTIVE THAT TAKES MOST PEOPLE YEARS EVEN DECADES TO GAIN. LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO LIVE IN FEAR, BITTERNESS, OR RESENTMENT. IT IS A WASTE OF TIME; EVERYONE HAS PROBLEMS THEY ARE DEALING WITH.

MY TWO MOTTOS THAT I HAVE DEVELOPED SINCE MY INITIAL DIAGNOSIS WHEN I WAS 16 YEARS OLD ARE:

1. SOMEONE ALWAYS HAS IT WORSE THAN YOU.

2. WHAT IS THE POINT OF EXTENDING LIFE IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO LIVE IT.

I AM EXCITED ABOUT MY CANCEROUS FUTURE (HOWEVER I WAS HOPING THE WHOLE RAPTURE THING WOULD HAVE WORKED OUT.)

THANKS FOR SUBMITTING YOUR QUESTIONS AND FEEL FREE TO CONTINUE TO SUBMIT THEM AND CONTINUE TO ASK ANY QUESTION YOU WANT. I AM VERY OPEN AND WILLING TO ANSWER ANYTHING. (HOPEFULLY THIS POST HAS SHOWN THAT.)

Thanks again for all the love and support. I love you all! Hopefully this is not to much information.

New Chemo Drugs

This past Thursday I had another Chemo party, however, it had different cocktails than the previous ones. I now receive one intravenous chemo drug, and one oral drug.

Drug #1: Irinotecan

Trade name: Camptosar, Camptothecan-11, CPT-11

Category: Chemotherapy Drug

Classification: Irinotecan belongs to the general group pf drugs known as topoismerase inhibitors.

Action: Irinotecan disrupts the growth of cancer cells by preventing the development of elements necessary for cell division. The drug cannot distinguish between cancer and normal cells, so some normal cells are affected, causing side effects.

How drug is given: Irinotecan is given intravenously over 90 minutes

Precautions: Tell you nurse if you start sweating, become nauseated, have abdominal cramping, or diarrhea. You nurse will give you special medication to stop this reaction.

Side Effects:
More Common Side Effects:
Severe diarrhea occurring the dy of treatment or up to 1 week after treatment
Nausea
Vomiting
Decreased white blood cell count with increased risk of infection
Sweating, abdominal cramping, or diarrhea during infusion
Fatigue

Less Common Side Effects: Flushing during infusion

Rare Side Effects:
Decreased platelet count with increased risk of bleeding
Decreased red blood cell count leading to anemia


I know this is A LOT of information and I do not understand at least half of it. But, This information is verbatim from the piece of paper that they gave me and I am trying to share all the information during my treatment.

Drug #2: Temodar

This is a oral drug that supposedly targets just the cancer cells. I take two pills every evening before I go to bed for five days after every other chemo treatment. The oral treatment is kind of a catch 22. The side effects are not as harsh as the intravenous chemo drugs, but since you take them for five days the feeling lingers and it takes longer to feeling better and get back to a normal eating schedule.

I am working on the blog post of answering all the fan mail questions. I have been a little slow because the oral medication has kept me in bed not feeling that great. I will try to improve my blogging updates.

I just want to thank everyone again for your support. It really brightens my spirits. (Sorry if some of my responses do not make sense, the drugs make me a little loopy.) I love getting the texts, emails, comments, and phone calls seeing how I am doing. Since I now live by myself it is even better to hear from everyone.

Needle Pokes: 8

Pills: 30

Diet since Thursday: Bread, Cream of Broccoli Soup, and Gatorade.

Hospefully my stomach will warm up to more solid food soon!

Chemo Eve Once Again

It is time to have a chemo party once again. It has been approximately a month since I received a wonderful chemo cocktail.

I will be receiving new types of chemo so it will be interesting to see how sick I get after these new ones. Will I feel as sick as the others? I will have to wait and see. The anticipation is like Christmas Eve as a child. I don't think I will be able to sleep much tonight. (This lack of sleep may also be because I work until 4 a.m. in the morning)

Once I get all the skinny on the new chemos I will let you all know with a blog post.

However I have been receiving many emails and messages about posting a picture of my WONDERFUL boxer blanket!

Here it is! All of my old boxer shorts (minus the old smelly stained ones)




Also continue to email me questions you have. My next post will have questions and answers that have been submitted from my readers!

Malignant Update

I finally met with my Utah doctor after all the mumbo jumbo that took place during my visit home.

The consensus is that I will switch chemo treatments to a different regime. (Once I get all the details I will post them like I did the last ones.)

I will resume treatment again next Thursday, May 19th. Don't worry I will continue my superstitions.

I also got good news from my graduate program that I will be attending in the fall. I got an email today that stated I received a full-tuition scholarship. I have not been this excited since I went to surf camp with Kevin Costner's daughter Lily. (Should have been more on my game then.)

That is the update for now. Sorry there is not more. I will continue to keep posting. Let me know if anyone has questions. I love to answer them.

Needle Pokes: 7

Pills: 20

Time took to watch season one of 30 Rock: Less than 48 hours.

Yeah! it is only Pneumonia!

So I went home to San Diego so that I could have a CT scan, get chemo, and meet with my main doctor.

Friday morning I went and had my CT and then went to the Oncology floor of the hospital. There I met with the wonderful Dr. Schiff and she informed me that there was a large new mass in my right lung that was approx. 4 inches. (This was not good new because it meant that I could not get Chemo and I had the best nurse assigned to me that day, we were going to have a party and do some chemo dancing.)

Anyways, I did not receive chemo because they do not give chemo when cancer patients have infection because they do not want to deplete the white blood cells that are fighting so valiantly against the bad stuff.

Instead of chemo I was signed up for minor surgery to have a CT guided biopsy so that they could determine if the new large mass was cancer or an infection.

So I partyed all weekend, ate at the Yellow Deli, had a surprise vist from Brandon Scott RIggs! So Monday came and I went in for surgery. You have to arrive two hours early so it is A LOT of waiting.

Now this is the same procedure that I had done on the left lung last time that determined that I had cancer for the second time.

After surgery I woke up and stuck to being the usual Dave Chalk when I am waking up from surgery, for some reason when I am waking up from surgery I am super sarcastic and quick witted and usually get into it with the nurse. (It is all in a loving way and the nurses dish it right back to me so it is a good time)

The nurse then went and got my parents (which she asked if I had a girl friend. My parents let out the reluctant sight of, No)

The X-Ray man then came a took an X-Ray of my lungs to make sure that it did not collapse or anything crazy from the surgery.

When I was finally discharged I was told to be on bedrest for 4 hours. So My father drove me home. We picked up my sister Emily and my Utah roommate Brandon Scott Riggs and we went to the Padre Game! (Perfect Environment for recovering from lung surgery!)


So Yesterday I received the wonderful news that the large mass is not cancer and that it is just an infection. Which is EXCELLENT! (Imagine me saying that like Bill and Ted followed by some air guitar.)

But they fear that it may be early stages of pneumonia! (Which is so must better than cancer and I have never had that one before. My parents told me growing up that you should be open to trying new things. So after spending a few days with pneumonia I will let you know if it is something you should look into getting.)

That is all from the Life of Dave Chalk the Cancer Patient.

Totals from round three's battle with Cancer

Needle Pokes: 6

Pills: 20

CT scans: 3

Surgeries: 1

new mini blizzards from Dairy Queen: 1