Cancer Whack-A-Mole and Other Things
Apparently, "whack-a-mole" is my next stage in cancer treatment. In case you don't know what whack-a-mole is, it is a Japanese arcade game that was created in 1975, where the player uses a large, soft mallet to bop cartoony plastic moles on the head as they randomly pop up from holes in a table in front of you. The goal is to hit as many moles as possible before the timer runs out.
I got through the first year of cancer treatment, encouraged and watching the metastasized spots disappear on scans and seeing the remaining inoperable tumor in my lung shrink, but unfortunately that one tumor has decided to start growing again. Luckily all the other metasticies have remained at bay. I'm trying to keep a positive perspective on things. Let's face it - I'm still in much better shape than I was only a year ago.
So - what's a girl to do? We're going to start another round of radiation - this time targeting the tumor in my right lung. This is the first mole in my first game of "cancer whack-a-mole" popping its stupid little head up.
I already had a "planning session" full of scans and the creation of fixtures to keep my body aligned, to target the exact tumor location - and hopefully minimize any damage to the healthy tissue.
I start radiation tomorrow, Thursday, July 23. I go every day for 5 days - excluding the weekend - and finish on Wednesday, July 29. I'm not sure how this will go. They say that the fatigue I felt with the radiation to my brain last year won't be as bad, however there are other lung side effects to content with. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.
OTHER THINGS...
Along with my health issues, my mother in law, Sybil, passed away on Friday, July 17. She's had a downward decline over the last year - but significant decline over the last 6 weeks. She became unable to walk as a result of stenosis in her spine - and had become wheelchair bound. That added another layer to our care of her in our home.
Aside from needing more care, the real difficulty was that she would forget that her legs wouldn't work and she would try to walk - leading to several falls. The last fall resulted in a broken leg and significant pain and then aspiration, a stroke and finally she passed.
We are all missing her, but recognize that she's in a better place. She wasn't happy this past month, as she lost so much independence. I'm sure she's roller skating with Ken right now.
I will miss working with her. She's been my chief labeling officer - she loved being able to help out with my business and would spend hours labeling skeins of yarn for shows and orders heading to stores. Here's a few photos from about a year ago.
We've spent the past weekend spending time with our immediate family and talking with extended family and friends - remembering her long and adventurous life. She would have been 96 in October.
https://www.gundersonfh.com/obituaries/Sybil-E-Gavins?obId=49059002
MORE THINGS....
Last month I met up again with some knitting friends at the Fools Flotilla again. Just like last year, I giggled the entire time. It's so silly and fun. I love that we live in a place where people don't take themselves too seriously and they think it's okay to have some silly fun. Here's a few photos.
I guess that's it for now. I'm hoping things go well with my treatments.
Take care of yourselves and someone else too.
-Laura