Cancer Burns

Dear Friends,

A lovely dinner with Auntie Mary, Mom and Regina.

Everyday I feel a bit stronger and more myself.  I am steadily making my way through radiation treatment.  I have just 10 more radiation sessions to go - I finish on November 13th.  I have treatment every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday - with a break at the weekend.  I am also in a well-fit class for cancer patients at the Santa Barbara Athletic Club two days a week and going to physical therapy two days a week.  So I am staying busy!

The radiation therapy staff have been great and the treatments effective - as is evidenced by a solidly red square of skin - it runs from my right collarbone into my armpit and then down below my right breast and then into the center of my chest.  It is a little itchy, swollen and sore, but I am hanging in there.  It is not nearly as challenging as chemo!  My tips for getting through radiation include:  using Miaderm lotion (specifically designed for radiation patients) a few times a day, Elta melting moisturizer and then when you get really red and itchy, 1% hydro-cortisone (the petroleum based version seems to be more soothing than a creme base).  I will spare you the photos of my red skin!

Chris looking dashing in pink!

Our friend Stefani and her son Luke joined us on the walk!

Chris was here in early October and we enjoyed participating in the Cancer Center of Santa Barbara's 5k walk.  Thank you to everyone who supported us in the walk! We ended up raising $4000 for the Cancer Center (I was one of the top 5 fundraisers - thanks to all of you!). As promised, since I made my fundraising target Chris put on the pink wig!

Darian was also walking in honor of our friend Spencer!

My friend Darian - another cancer survivor!

I also enjoyed a great visit with my mom and Great Aunt Mary in mid-October.  It was so nice to have their company (and help)! 

It is hard to believe that I will be back in London in one month.  The excessively hot weather we are having in Santa Barbara is actually making me feel pretty OK about returning to London for the winter!  Hmmm, will I say that after a few days of cold rainy weather you ask?? Well, I do think I will still be saying that I am happy to be home (but may be less enthusiastic about the temperature)!

The interview and therapeutic yoga video I did with the amazing Cheri Clampett is now up on the Yoga Anytime website.  There is also a 15 minute interview that she did with me and Francine, a fellow breast cancer survivor.  I think that you can view a short bit of the videos without joining Yoga Anytime. Actually, they have a wonderful selection of videos and I am looking forward to using these yoga videos when I return to London.

Finally, I was terribly saddened to learn that my dear friend and mentor Lena Astin passed away earlier this week.  She was a fellow cancer patient, who was battling pancreatic cancer.  Lena was a very special person to me.  I had the good fortune of having Lena as my Ph.D. advisor at UCLA and she was one of the first people I contacted when I found out that I had breast cancer.  She was a true trailblazer, a nationally recognized scholar in higher education, a change maker, and visionary.  She led with great intellect, unbelievable warmth and good humor.  She saw so many possibilities for change and acted upon them.  She was a phenomenal woman and I will be eternally grateful for the time I had with her. 

My last visit with Lena and Sandy in Malibu.

Radiation Countdown & Chris with Pink Hair! (Click Here)

My fabulous friend Regina, my chemo date and also a breast cancer survivor!

As most of you know, Chris and I, along with some wonderful friends, are going to do a 5k walk to raise money for the Cancer Center of Santa Barbara on Sunday, October 11th! This is exciting for a few reasons:  (1) Chris and I will be in the same city (I am telling you, remember to appreciate what seem like little things in life,  such as seeing your husband every day!),  (2) We are both fit enough to walk 5k,  (3) We get to help support a Center that does amazing work for the community, and  (4) If I meet my goal of raising $2500, Chris has agreed to wear a pink wig for the walk!  I promise to post pictures of Chris sporting the neon pink wig on my blog!  To help make sure that Chris wears the pink wig (and that we support the Cancer Center!) please click here:  I want to see Chris with pink hair!

I have had my first 4 radiation sessions - so 4 down and 30 to go.   I am including a photo of the type of machine they use so that you have an idea of where I am spending a bit of my time every day! I go to treatments everyday Monday - Friday.  However, the treatments are very fast, taking only about 10 minutes - and part of that time is used to properly position me on the table.  You can't feel a thing, you just hear the machine make some clicking noises.  It is a bit eerie to lay on the table, hear a few noises, have the machine move around a bit and then be told that you are done.  The therapists who do all of the work delivering the treatments have all been wonderful.  I am crossing fingers that this part of my treatment goes as well as the previous bits. 

I have also been going to physical therapy 2-3 times a week to try and get full mobility back in my right arm.  I have made great progress and am doing exercises every day to strengthen and stretch my muscles.  I learned from my physical therapist that when you have surgery it is good to massage the incision site to help prevent scars from staying lumpy.  I am also going to the Cancer Center's Well Fit classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays and doing a lot of (very light!) weights to build more muscle.  The class is small, with about 10 people, all of whom are in treatment or recently finished treatment.  It is a super nice group.  I seem to be getting some form of exercise just about every day...

You are never to old for your first cappuccino!

I was able to fit in a visit after surgery and before radiation started to see family up in Washington State.  I even took my 94 year-old grandma to a cute coffee shop where she tried her first cappuccino!  She said, "now I understand why Jake (my younger brother) likes expensive coffee!"  After I finish my radiation, I will be going to visit my other grandmother who is 96 years-old - and a breast cancer survivor!

My "little" brother Jake with Grandma and me.

My last bit of news, is that on November 27th I will be flying back to the UK (as long as all goes according to plan)!  I am so thankful for all of the good care I have had here in Santa Barbara - from family, friends and medical staff.  However, I am looking forward to returning to my adopted home, reuniting with friends there, and seeing my husband's smiling (albeit sometimes groggy) face every morning - and I am especially excited for the breakfast in bed that I am sure he is planning for me! :)

So Long Drain Baby - Hello Tattoos! (Click Here)

Goodbye drain baby!

I don't know what you have heard about having a tube stuck in your armpit, but it just isn't as much fun as they make it out to be in the brochures! As I mentioned in my last post, I thought that my drain baby would be out within a week, but that was not to be.  I had it for 3.5 weeks!  So I think that I carried that darn drain baby to full term.  Do I miss it now that it is gone you might ask? Well, I do have fond memories of using a cute little zebra striped hat (that Kerryn and Jason sent me) to hold the drain baby on top of my head (I put it under the hat) while I showered (because you can't let the drain baby dangle on a tube that is attached to your body by only a few stitches).  So if you can imagine a tube coming out of my armpit, and then heading up into a nylon zebra hat (which by the way looks like it has small ears if you don't tuck the edges in), well you can't really help but laugh.  Or at least I couldn't help but laugh!  Drain baby did its job, at this point I haven't had any issues with excessive fluid build-up.

However, I do appear to have acquired a seroma in my armpit - the lymph node surgical site.  I didn't expect this, but cancer treatment likes to keep you on your toes.  A seroma is essentially a lump of built-up fluid and even though it is full of fluid, it feels more like a rock! The effect is that I feel like I have something sort of stuck in my armpit (like clothing - but it is just the seroma). The good news is that it does appear to be getting better!

Thank you Chris, Sally and Charlotte for fitting me into your California vacation!

I am now in physical therapy with the goal of regaining full mobility of my shoulder and this seems to be working a treat.  Tomorrow will be my fourth physical therapy appointment and the difference in my mobility from just 6 days ago is huge!  It is very exciting to get movement back - and to do things like: 1) put my shirt on head first instead of legs first (I stepped into my clothing - even shirts - when I had my tube in and 2) enjoy a full stretch with my hands over my head when I wake up in the morning (oh, the things we take for granted until we lose them!).  My arm mobility is especially important because I need to keep my arm over my head for an extended period of time during my upcoming radiation treatment.

My hair is growing back!

I go in for my radiotherapy prep appointment tomorrow.  They will give me a few small tattoos so that they know where to line up the radiation beams during my treatment and will put me in the machine to determine what settings they will use for me. Who would have thought that this is how I would get my first tattoo!

I have signed up for the Cancer Center of Santa Barbara Walk on October 11th! In addition to Chris joining me - Mindy, Stefani, and Yonie will be doing the walk as well! The Cancer Center provides wonderfully comprehensive treatment and I hope that my friends might make a modest donation - even $5 or $10 will help ensure that the Cancer Center can continue to provide the care that has helped me get to where I am in my treatment, to others who might need it in the future.

Anniversary flowers from Chris!

If all goes according to plan, I will be back in London in just about two months! Just in time for Winter! I think it will be the best Winter I have ever had in London.

Again all my thanks to friends and family and the medical staff who have helped me make it through my treatment thus far.  Now I just have to get through my 6.5 weeks of radiation...Then comes the party!

xo
Jodi

Drain Baby Drain (Click here)

Lunch with mom in SB (and dad who is behind the camera)!

It has been two and a half weeks since my surgery.  My recovery is going well.  Chris was here for the first three days after my surgery and then my parents came for about a week and a half.  My friend Adrianna also made it down to help me out last night.  I have been most thankful for all of the support and good spirits! 

I still need to be quite careful when using my right arm (no reaching overhead or carrying heavy items etc.).  The numbness that I had quite a lot of on the back of my upper right arm and into my armpit is mostly gone now.  The downside of this is that I can feel a bit more soreness across the surgery site, but it is not too bad.  I do still have a drain (the tube is inserted into my lower armpit) with a nice long cord that has what looks like a squeezable plastic grenade at the end (which you can see a photo of in my last blog post).  I was told that most people have it in for 1-2 weeks, but some people get it out after as little as five days.  So I figured I would have it out within a week - tops - but now two and one half weeks later I have found out that it isn't uncommon to have it for three weeks! Who knew that one woman could produce so much liquid (and some sort of perplexing gunk that is evidently normal, and managed to clog my drain at one point!).  So here I am with what my mom and I have now affectionately named, my "drain baby".  You see, it is often pinned under my clothes giving the appearance of a small baby bump.  We even drew a happy face on it, but the ink has now worn off...

I am slowly emerging from the chemo fog (hooray!).  I am feeling clearer headed and more myself.  Funny how going through chemo I prepared myself for the worst, and then when it wasn't as bad as anticipated, I felt relieved.  But now looking back, I can say wow, that was pretty intense!  It was sort of like having a low grade cold or flu, and now it is so exciting to start getting my energy back!  I am feeling very thankful for this. 

I start physical therapy next week and also have a consultation with my radiologist.  Hopefully, I will start my radiation in about two weeks.  It lasts 6.5 weeks, so I need to get this show on the road so that I make it back to London in time for Thanksgiving!  Radiation will be everyday - Monday through Friday, but the sessions are short (about 15 minutes).  Everyone says that after chemo and surgery radiation is pretty easy stuff, but I don't want to take that for granted!  You know, it is like when you go for a super long hike and you are just about to return to the trail head and you relax a bit too much and then your tired legs trip over something!  So, I still need to do some more research to figure out how to best prepare myself for this next phase of treatment.  Let me know if you have any advice...

Waverly, Amelyse and Quincy presenting my poster which they made with Harper and Phoebe!

Friends and family continue to be wonderfully supportive - as is illustrated by the beautiful get well poster Cami and Mindy's girls made for me! It is now proudly displayed in our entryway! 

I  want to extend an open invitation to anyone who would like to do the Cancer Center of Santa Barbara Walk/Run fundraiser with me on October 11th.  Chris will even be here that weekend to walk the 5K with me!  More info is here: http://www.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1124081.

My other exciting news is that my hair is starting to grow back! In a few more weeks I should be rocking the GI Jane buzz cut look...I will do my best to provide a photo!

Sending all of my thanks for everyone's continuing love and support during my treatment!

xx
Jodi

My wonderful husband in California. 

My mentor, Ph.D. advisor, friend and cancer patient compatriot - the divine Dr. Lena Astin!

Please send Lena healing wishes...

Post-Surgery Results Are In! (Click here)

It has been a busy three weeks!  Chris and I ran around to a number of medical appointments when he first arrived, including a consultation with the renowned breast surgeon Dr. Armando Giuliano at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles. We did this in order to get a second opinion on if in fact a lumpectomy was a reasonable option for me.  He confirmed that yes, absolutely it was, but that he would recommend doing a level 1 and 2 lymph node dissection for me since it was determined that I had initially had cancer in my lymph node! We thought that I only needed a sentinel node biopsy, so we were a bit taken aback.  But after consulting with our Santa Barbara surgeon, we decided to go ahead and have my right axilla lymph nodes removed even though the chances of my getting lymphedema would be greater than if I just has a sentinel node biopsy.  But this seemed the best bet to prevent cancer recurring in my lymph nodes. So we decided upon our plan - a lumpectomy with a level 1 and 2 lymph node dissection.

My surgery took place on Wednesday in Santa Barbara and all went well - or according to my surgeon after the surgery - even better than she expected.  All of the doctors and nurses at the surgery center were great.  The procedure took about two hours and I was in recovery.  Chris was by my side as soon as I woke up - and before we knew it we were on our way home. 

Post-surgery recovery. Perhaps the last time that you will see Chris with more hair than me!

OK, sort of gross, but this is my drain - my newest fashion accessory!

There hasn't been too much pain, more discomfort than anything.  I do have a handy little drain in my armpit at the moment and will have it for about another 4 days (what a brilliant fashion statement - no?).   However, everything seems to be healing up well.  I do have some numbness in the back of my armpit and upper arm, but this is fairly common and the hope is that it will fade and disappear in the coming days.  Hopefully, my drain will be removed in about 4 days.

I also have to say that my husband has been wonderful.  I am so thankful for his love and support (and his being able to help me with all of the interesting things one needs help with during cancer treatment!). 

Chris cooking, cleaning and taking care of me.

SAVING THE BEST NEWS FOR LAST...The Pathology Report!

Just this evening we received a phone call from my surgeon saying that the pathologist's report was in and they found NO cancer in my tissue!  Hooray!  We couldn't be happier right now!  This was the news we were hoping for.  Our 6th anniversary is on August 29th - and we celebrated last week by spending one night at the beautiful Ojai Valley Inn and Spa. But now we are ready for more celebrating - so we are on our way to Paradise Cafe for dinner.  Chris and I will celebrate being cancer-free, our 6th anniversary, and feeling grateful that we might just have beat this cancer thing!

View from our room in Ojai.

Early Anniversary Celebration in Ojai!

We still have radiation to get through, but for now we are heading out to enjoy this beautiful evening in Santa Barbara!  Thank you all for your kind and healing wishes. I felt, and continue to feel, overwhelmed by the love and support everyone has shown me.

With love and graditude,

Jodi 

Big Chemo Wrap-up & Upcoming Surgery (Click here)

Now that my 6 main chemo sessions are over (hooray!), I thought it would be a good idea to capture some thoughts and reflections on the whole process. This is partly because, as mentioned in an earlier blog entry, my chemo regimen – for Her2/Estrogen/Progesterone positive breast cancer – is one that up to 50% of women in treatment are unable to complete.  I feel so lucky that I was not only able to complete my 6 chemo treatments but that, after my 4^th chemo, my MRI showed that my two main tumors and the stuff in my lymph nodes looks to have disappeared (we won’t know for sure if this is true until we get back the pathology reports from my surgery, but we are crossing fingers that no cancer remains)!

Still bald...

How I survived chemo:

-       Exercised nearly every day (from a ½ hour walk to two hours of yoga (on a few occasions!), I am getting exercise nearly every day – which research shows helps treatment.  Even if I was feeling a bit off, I always felt better after a short walk.

-       Took one, 4 mg pill of Zofran every morning with breakfast and then one with dinner.  My friend David said it was a good idea to take this anti-nausea medication from the beginning (a pre-emptive strike!), before you start to feel sick. I think that this was great advice! I had some nausea and tummy issues, but it was all manageable.

-       Took Chinese herbs to help strengthen immune system, boost appetite and reduce side effects, such as nausea.  

-       Used TheraTears eye drops 6-8 times a day during the week of chemo to reduce eye irritation and complications.  Used eye drops 2-3 times a day rest of time (some people end up with clogged tear ducts due to the chemo working its way out of your body). Thank you Dr. Taguchi for this advice!

Nails post-chemo.

-       Put hands and feet in ice water during the Taxotere infusion to reduce impact on nails (I didn’t loose any nails, or have them turn brown – see photo). I also sucked on ice chips during the Taxotere infusion to reduce appearance of mouth sores. I only had one small mouth sore during my first chemo treatment.  Thank you again to Dr. Taguchi for this advice!

-       Used a baking soda mouth wash 1-3 times a day, again to avoid mouth sores.

-       Therapeutic yoga classes for relaxation – very helpful in settling my mind and keeping my body from getting too stiff! Thank you Cheri Clampett for developing and teaching such nurturing yoga classes at the SB Cancer Center!

-       Went to healing touch sessions at the SB Cancer Center and had a few reiki sessions.  These sessions are energy sessions, to open up chakras/getting your chi flowing. I know, my friends in London are thinking – you crazy Californians! But I have to say that I felt better after every session.

-        Read the book Radical Remission to think about all of the lifestyle tools available to me to get rid of my cancer (this is where the inspiration for my green juice came from)! 

-       Tightened up my diet – VERY low sugar (no cakes, fruit juices, cookies, cereals with high sugar etc.).  I think this has also helped prevent dental decay which can be a problem when you go through chemo.  Read labels, you would be surprised how much sugar is added to many foods!

Lunch!

-       No caffeine (the idea of coffee or green tea would turn my tummy!); I drank organic ginger tea, or three ginger tea almost every morning and for an afternoon treat, sometimes had iced chai masala tea (decaffeinated)
- Stay hydrated! Lots of water (and sometimes water with a bit of pure cranberry juice to take about the metallic taste caused by chemo).

-       No alcohol (took a few unsatisfying sips but that was it!).  I knew that my pancreas and liver were under enough strain trying to cope with my chemo.
-    Tried to eat only organic food, and hormone and antibiotic-free meat.

-       No dairy products! I learned that dairy is an inflammatory so cut it out of my diet. I really think that this helped reduce my tummy issues.

-       Used the Cancer Fighting Cookbook for food ideas, tried to keep a very heavily plant-based diet (including beans, rice, eggs, oatmeal, lots of broccoli and vegetables, salads, nuts and seeds etc.).

-       Green juice 2-3 times a week (kale, cabbage, spinach, carrots, lemon, celery, fresh ginger, apple, parsley).

-       Fruit smoothie 2-3 times a week (banana, strawberries, blueberries etc.)

-       Every night before going to sleep, I would think about all that I was thankful for, do some deep breathing, and try to visualize my cancer disappearing.

-       Trying to laugh and smile as much as possible.

-       Appreciating every message of support and care that I received from friends and family!  Feeling loved and supported really does lift the spirits and help produce feelings of strength.

My surgery is confirmed for August 18^th here in Santa Barbara. I will be having a lumpectomy (they will be taking out roughly a ball of tissue that measures 3 cm in diameter) and they will be doing a level 1 and 2 lymph node dissection.  Send me all of the healing wishes and anti-lymphedema thoughts you can muster up! 

I go in for my first, Herceptin only infusion on Tuesday.   I am also happy to report that Chris is now with me in SB.  He is here for 3 weeks!  It is nice to have him by my side, visiting doctors and making decisions about my treatment.  Skype is great, but it will never beat the real thing! I am also thankful that Chris will be here for my surgery on the 18th.  

So life in my cancer-cation marches on!

I hope that you are all having wonderful summers, and that you are stopping to smell the flowers!

With love,

Jodi

Chemo 6: Take Two!

Hello Friends,

I head back to the infusion room for Chemo 6 tomorrow. My fabulous friend Carolyn will be accompanying me -  hooray Carolyn!

Last Friday I was able to have a lovely experience. I was invited by Cheri, the amazing teacher of the Cancer Center's restorative yoga classes to be a model in a yoga video with her.  Cheri teaches classes on Friday at the Cancer Center.  I have been to a number of these incredibly relaxing and centering classes and I have even been able to bring my mom and Chris to a few classes.  I can't say enough good things about restorative yoga - I always leave class feeling healthier, happier and calmer.  It is truly a healing experience.  Cheri, who is also a cancer survivor,  is much loved in our community.  In addition to teaching and training in Santa Barbara, she travels around the U.S. helping Cancer Centers set up yoga programs and training their instructors.  When she asked me if I would be a volunteer model for two 40 minute videos - I said I would love to!  I was tickled that she would ask me.  I thought, this is all great stuff - I get to do two classes with Cheri in a beautiful setting overlooking the beach and I will have these special videos that I can access when I return to London via the Yoga Anytime website (https://www.yogaanytime.com ).   Cheri also recorded a short Q&A with me and another breast cancer patient.  As you will see in the photos, I went sans wig!  The video will be up in around 6 weeks (I will let you know when it is up).  A benefit of having my chemo pushed back an extra week, was that I felt really good on the Friday when we taped the videos!

Yes, that is the ocean in the window and that is me looking very relaxed!

With the divine Cheri Clampett and Francine a breast cancer compatriot. 

My big-hearted mom...As many of you may know, my mom loves making greeting cards for people. Yes, she has a computer program and custom makes incredibly sweet and thoughtful cards! Those of us who have been lucky enough to get one of her cards know how special they are! And it looks like she also has a knack for poetry.  She wrote me quite the little poem in anticipation of chemo 6 - which I want to share with you because, well, I think it needs to be shared (I love how she uses graphics as well!!  It brought a happy little tear to my eye.  

CHEERING YOU ON!         

Twas the last day of Chemo

And all through the town

Everyone knows this cancer's going down

You've drank all that green juice 

Had no chocolate brown mousse   (or red velvet cupcakes!) 

You're fought a great battle, done every thing right

 Had a great team of doctors be there morning through night

Friends who love and support you

And family too

We all know you'll do great when it comes to ACT II  

Thank you mom and everyone for cheering me on!  Almost time for ACT II (surgery is tentatively scheduled for the week of August 17th). 

Love,

Jodi