The Red Devil

Chemotherapy is a big word to swallow, verbally and emotionally speaking. Meladee was scheduled to begin Chemotherapy on December 21st. With the help of her Sister-In-Law and Naomi, she aesthetically prepared for the first step in her regiment of treatment. She was going into this with a rebel yell! As you can see in the pictures that follow, she is Hot and Rebellious as ever! I mean who could really pull off a do like this and look as great??

ROCK STAR MOMMY!

Getting ready for the Runway!

Saving for a fancy hair piece!

Naomi wanted her pony cut off so badly (talk about support)!

Meladee and Seth!

Can you hear her Rebel Yell?!

As her luck would have it, she received a call the day before "Chemo" was to begin. Meladee was told her blood work was positive for Hepatitis B! Her first thought, "REALLY? I have Breast Cancer and now your telling me I have Hep B!" She still went in for her scheduled appointment to discuss the impact on her treatment plan. The Oncologist made the decision to redraw her blood, but for the time being, her Chemo was put on hold. Good news, her results came back positive. Meladee was immune to Hepatitis B, and she could move forward with her treatment. Her first appointment was now going to be on December 30th.

Meladee recounts the events of that day, and the days that follow her first dose of treatment.

My first chemo treatment:
I am told that everyone reacts differently, so my story might be very individual, but nonetheless, here's an account of what it's like through my eyes.

The first thing they did was draw blood from my port, which is a round plastic device placed surgically underneath my skin below my collar bone that allows direct access to my artery. This negates the need for repeated IV placement. Of course the numbing cream I had applied earlier decided not to work; either that or the nurse poked me extra hard. I could feel the needle somewhat uncomfortably in there and thought, "well next time I am going to use way more cream!" In any case the needle was attached to my port.
After meeting with the Oncologist briefly, I found a seat in the treatment room which is a big open room with a bunch of recliners and TVs and people hooked up to IVs through their ports. I am so glad that Roland was with me. Everyone else in the room besides the nurses was probably at least twice my age.
The first thing they gave me was a combination of anti-nausea drugs along with a steroid. The worst part is the taste. You wouldn't think that stuff going in your veins could cause such a foul taste in the back of your throat. Especially the saline - gross!! It's kinda plastic-y and chemically. I almost felt as though I could smell it. So nasty. It's cold going in.

Now it's time for the big stuff.

The first round of my chemo is two drugs called Adryamiacin and Cytoxin. Adryamiacin is nicknamed the Red Devil because it is red and it is so nasty. The nurses have to push it in manually because if it gets out it causes severe tissue damage. It's weird to feel it going through my veins. At the end I got a neulasta shot in my stomach to help boost my white blood cells.
So far so good. I feel weak and lightheaded but not too bad. 'I can handle this!" I'm thinking. After I'm all done, we go to get some lunch since it's now the afternoon. My immune system is down and I can't be around crowds so I wait in the car while Roland grabs me a hamburger from five guys, a "fresh" hamburger joint. Probably a mistake I won't be making again.

I felt okay for a few hours and then I started feeling like I needed to lie down and nausea started kicking in. I was able to help get the kids to bed and we went down to watch a movie.

WHAM! BAM! It hit me.

I'm pretty sure I know what being poisoned feels like. I could feel it cold and unnatural pulsing through my veins. It made my heart beat faster and my lungs work harder. The back of my throat was burning and my stomach was an ocean trying to heave its bounds. Everywhere from my waist down felt achy to my bones and my muscles weak. I went back and forth from hot flashes to chills. Roland had to carry me up the stairs to bed. I couldn't stand up or I felt violently like puking or passing out. I had to crawl to the bathroom.
I didn't throw up the first night but I did all night the second night. It was harder to eat or drink anything. It has changed the way food tastes. Sleep was on and off and I have to say that I cried the first night because it was so horribly hard. I stayed in bed for two and a half days straight. I'm still weak and nauseous but now it's more like morning sickness. I can get out of bed, but not for too long. Today (Jan 3) I have been able to eat! Yeah!

This chemo is sure kicking the crap out of me but hopefully that means it is kicking the $@&! Out of my cancer!
I am so lucky to have such a wonderful husband who has been taking great care of me and our sweet kids and they have been so great!

On a side note. Naomi also threw up one night so I am also hoping that maybe next time won't be quite so bad since maybe I also caught a bug with my immune system being down. But I don't know. They say it has an accumulative effect and could get worse as the treatments progress. But I only have to the Red Devil three more times.

Meladee's treatment schedule is every two weeks at this point, and will eventually go to every three weeks. She is gaining strength by the day, and has been enjoying the time with her husband and family. While Chemotherapy makes her days harder to chew, the love and support from family and friends makes it easier to swallow!

Get Well Mel!!

We Love you!!