Yesterday, I had an appointment with my oncologist for a checkup to see if we could continue with the Herceptin treatments. The MUGA scan that I had done on the previous Friday showed further decrease in heart function. I'm down to 51%. The cutoff point is 50%, but I'm technically already there. The Herceptin infusion was canceled, possibly for good.
I am to have another MUGA scan done in about three weeks to see if my heart is regaining any function. I'm really, really hoping so, as I'm constantly tired. If I feel that I have enough energy to do something, by the time I've finished getting ready to do it, I'm too tired to even begin the task. The projects are piling up fast, let me tell you!
The oncologist was telling me that they really don't know how much Herceptin is enough, and that perhaps my body had indeed gotten enough to stop the HER-2 cancer (if there was any left after the mastectomies and chemo). I think he was trying to gently tell me that there probably weren't going to be any more Herceptin treatments.
Okay.
So, I've been thinking a lot since yesterday morning. I'm just going to have to move on. Maybe I can try to strengthen my heart in some way. Exercise has always been a sore issue for me, but I will try to get some in. I have cut down significantly on sugars and saturated fats. I get too crazy for fast food sometimes though, and so I allow myself a once-a-month treat.
We'll just have to see what happens, eh?
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Rita stayed home sick this past Monday. She mentioned the fact that we had not been alone in our house, without Aidan, in over five years. I knew something felt weird, but I just couldn't put my finger on it...
We went out on a dinner date last month, leaving Aidan with our annual Beaverton day care sitters. They offer a parent's night out a couple of times a year, and Rita and I try to take advantage of at least one of those nights. We ate at
Jake's Grill downtown and then got coffee in Multnomah Village. We talked and talked, something we haven't been doing for a while, mainly because it's difficult when Aidan's with us. It felt really good to talk with Rita again, like we used to. If I were not so tired, I would have loved to make that night last a lot longer, just so we could talk. Being the party animals that we are, we stayed out until around 9:00pm, picking Aidan up at 9:30pm. We were all sawing logs by 10:00pm.
