If you don't want sobering news, stop reading now!

Here are the basic points from the appointment with the chemotherapy guy.

1. They want to do a genetic test to determine if I have a couple of defective genes that make cancer recurrences nearly 80%. We are checking on insurance coverage of the test. Possibility of me having the genes is 5% or less.
2. I will have a chemo treatment once every three weeks for 18 weeks. This translates into about 5 months, give or take. Then they will wait three weeks and then my radiation treatments will be Monday through Friday for 6 1/2 weeks. Altogether, approximately 7 months of treatment. They will give me anti-nausea medications as well.
3. They are calling Dr. C, my surgeon, to arrange a time for him to "install" something called a "portacath" so they won't have to hook up an IV for each treatment. They can just hook the tubes up to the portacath. They're hoping to schedule for this week and start chemo next week.
4. The day I receive the chemo drugs is considered day 1. I'll feel fine on days 1 and probably 2. I'll feel like I have the flu on days 3-6. I'll feel very tired on days 7-14. I'll start feeling better on days 15-21. Steve and I need to decide whether it would be better for me to feel yuckiest during the week or on weekends, so we can choose a treatment day.
5. They have no predictions on exactly how this is going to affect me. We will just have to do it and see. They did say to plan on losing my hair, feeling tired, having food and drink taste like cardboard, having a metallic taste in my mouth all the time, having muscle pain and joint tenderness, and possibly loss of appetite and mouth sores.
6. I will need to be very careful about monitoring myself. Any fever/chills mean I immediately go to the emergency room or the doctor's office. Nausea means I call and we try different anti-nausea medications. If I am unable to drink 64 oz. of fluids every day, I have to go to the office to get intravenous fluids. If my skin starts to crack and bleed, I need to go to the office. I need to try to avoid sick people. Lots of luck, with six children and a schoolteacher husband :)
   

The good news is that my insurance will cover nearly 100% of costs associated with treatment, and that having chemotherapy and radiation increases my chances of remission and living cancer-free to 70%.

Thank you all for your prayers and help and phone calls and emails and letters and cards and visits. I love you! We're going to beat this thing!

p.s. extreme locks-for-love hair slashing and general haircutting craziness coming up. expect photos. my only chance to look like Joseph's true mother (with the help of a platinum blonde wig!) and to be a redhead.