The Final Countdown…

I can’t believe that next Wednesday is the last of my chemo for now – 12 of 12 will be done.  It’s been unpleasant but surprisingly bearable.  My chemo nurses can’t believe how well I have tolerated it.  Don’t get me wrong, the symptoms are nasty and I can’t wait to get back to normal, but in the grand scheme of things, I’ve been lucky that I have been able to continue working and campaigning for the 30% Club full-time.  The last chemo coincided with the deadline for Gender Pay Gap reporting in the UK, so it was a busy week with tv and radio interviews – I even managed to do 4 on chemo day, two of which were during the chemo itself.  Teddy couldn’t believe that all of my friends were able to suddenly quiet down while I did my radio interview as I had the usual salon of amazing women.  I had wonderful homemade soup from Sam, delicious sourdough bread brought from London by Anne and fab brownies from Annie (and lots of other nice gifts and treats).  I am so fortunate to have such a wonderful support network – I am truly spoiled by my friends and family.

I visited my amazing surgeon Mr. Moran in Basingstoke this morning to discuss a redo surgery.  Happily he doesn’t think we need to do anything at this stage.  It’s likely that I will have to have the surgery again in the future, but there is no justification for it now.  I do have fluid again, but the chemo has reduced it.  My tumour markers were all back in normal range at the last scan, and I have no symptoms from the disease and no sign of tumours at this stage.  We will know more when I have my next scans in early May and see the oncologist, but based on the scans at the halfway point, the view is to scan every three months and keep an eye on things, but do nothing for now.  It seems that systemic chemo is not usually effective, but the doctors were ‘fascinated’ to see that it had had a positive impact for me.  I am happy to continue to be ‘fascinating’ as a case study for them!

So for now, I am anxiously awaiting the next Salon on Wednesday so I can anticipate getting my taste buds back, having a normal head of hair again, losing my steroid puffiness and bad taste in my mouth.  I’m also looking forward to getting rid of the sore feet so Madelaine and I can get back to our running as the weather improves, and I can’t wait to be able to drink cold drinks again and eat cold, healthy food again – smoothies, yoghurt, salads, fruit, etc.  I am really going to appreciate food and wine when I’m able to taste them again!