Chemo Round One = Complete

Hello all,

Sorry I've been quiet of late.  I know many of you have been eager to get an update about what's going on so let's get to it.

The big news is that round one of the three rounds that I have to go through is effectively over.  I've got a follow-up with my oncologist tomorrow morning to run through what I can only imagine is like what happens between the first and second period of a hockey game.  "Way to check that guy, Cronshaw.  He's gonna be gunning for you the rest of the night so don't be stupid and get five in the box."   Okay, so maybe not exactly like hockey...   What I'll be able to say is that I feel surprisingly good and I'm ready to hit the ice...or the infusion suite, as it were.

Week one was tough, as you all can surmise.  It took 40% of my energy and basically grayed out most of the world.  Food started to taste different and even plain old tap water tasted bad for a time.  Week two was supposed to be simple with just a 10 minute infusion of bleomycin that can make you feel a bit like you have the flu.   Well, it gave me a massive dose of chills, a fever and basically ruined my Tuesday.  I bounced back after a couple of days and had a nice weekend with Abby; we even made it for a day trip to Annapolis, MD.  This week included another bleo dose and it wasn't even one third as unpleasant as week two's dose and I was back to work the next day.  Throughout, folks from my office and from Abby's have been bringing us dinners and surprising us with collectively organized gifts and well wishes.  We are both so grateful for your support and for the tasty grub.

People say that chemo ruins your favorite foods and based on my week one experience, I get that.  Fortunately, the last ten days have felt like a bonanza and I've been tearing through food like Joey Chestnut.  From spicy Indian gobi to big bowls of pasta, I've been an eating machine.  I am 100% convinced that Thai chilies have cancer-killing properties so I'm chowing down on those whenever possible.  Oh, and let's not forget dessert!  A special shout-out to my aunt Nikki who brought a Christmas cake over from England back in July.  I asked for it as a joke (the thing must have weighed 6 pounds), but she baked it and carted it over.   I am enjoying the treat even if it's nowhere near Xmas - thanks Nik, it's brilliant as is all of your baking.

Now, it's not all coming up roses.   My hair has started to fall out and we're way past Rogaine now.  This morning I woke up to about 300 hairs on my pillow.   I expected this, but I still stared at it in disbelief.   I'll get some pics up at some point, but for now I'm rocking the Keanu Reeves look from Speed.   I'm guessing I'll be Bruce Willis in about a week.  I'm also keenly aware that on Monday I go back to the hospital for my "on week" where I'll be there Mon-Fri from about 8am to 4pm getting a massive dose of noxious chemicals pumped into me.   It's unnerving to see the nurses put on a gown and gloves just to HANDLE these drugs and I'm getting them mainlined into my body.   I will almost certainly feel worse a week from today, but I'll be a week closer to the end of the war.   Still, as my main man (or he will be if we ever meet) Adam Richman might say, "In the battle of man versus cancer - in this round, man won!"

Okay, I've exceeded my word limit on this one, but I hope you've enjoyed this update.   Keep the emails and Facebook comments coming - even if it's just a few words.

Cheers,

Dom