Monday, June 23, is the first full day of our new marriage. Damn, that was a short honeymoon. Unfortunately, we won’t be lounging poolside at a plush resort. Dr. Moody scheduled Autumn’s outpatient surgery to install her chemotherapy port today since her first chemo treatment is tomorrow (Tuesday, June 24).
RELATED: Autumn’s Cancer Journey – The Wedding
The pre-surgery guidelines advised Autumn not to eat or drink anything after midnight. She awoke to a phone call postponing our arrival time to 1:30 p.m. instead of an early morning slot. We valued the extra time knowing our world was about to change for the next several months. The only problem was that the nurse forgot to tell Autumn that she could eat something light that morning. Instead, she spent the next 17 hours without any food or water.
We arrived at the Panama City surgery center on time and checked in. I wanted to make sure that Autumn had everything she needed before I ventured downtown to work at a local coffee shop. Assuming the procedure began mid-afternoon, I would wait for the nurse’s call to update me so I could greet her in post-op.
Autumn called at 4:30 p.m. to say that she was still in a pre-op room waiting for an available surgical suite to open up. I guess we need to become accustomed to waiting in medical offices. This wasn’t a fun night since her short procedure didn’t start until 7:30 p.m.
Hanging out with a few other families in the waiting area, I couldn’t help but notice the two vending machines. You have to be living under a rock not to notice the “Make America Healthy Again” movement, which, in my view, is long overdue and the most non-partisan issue imaginable.
Those of us waiting could enjoy a plethora of Twinkies, Ding-Dongs, chips, cookies, and every other product containing red dye 3, or whatever cancer-inducing ingredients are lurking within those colorful wrappers. The other machine featured an impressive lineup of Coca-Cola (high fructose corn syrup instead of old-fashioned cane sugar), Diet Coke, etc., etc. You get the picture.
RELATED: Autumn’s Cancer Journey – Part 2
I’d like to know if Ascension Sacred Heart will reevaluate its vending contracts and request that the route drivers add some fruit or quasi-healthy offerings. At least some water in a plastic bottle so that my brain and liver won’t starve from its consistent influx of microplastics. Hmmm, I digress.
The surgery to install her chemo port went smoothly. The only catch was that since Autumn closely followed the instructions and didn’t take her blood pressure pill that morning, the floor nurses wouldn’t release her until she achieved an acceptable BP level. If we stayed much longer, I was going to invade the vending machines.
We finally left Panama City at 10:15 p.m., for a 10:48 p.m. arrival at our new home. Did I mention that Autumn had her first chemo treatment scheduled the following morning at 8:30 a.m.?
She was exhausted and very sore from the port installation. I silently questioned why the doctors didn’t allow her time to recover before administering chemotherapy. I could tell Autumn was hurting and trying to stay ahead of her pain. As usual, she handled it like the badass she is; head-on.
Before each chemotherapy treatment, the nurses take a blood sample to ensure everything is okay. Chemo patients receive their infusions in a room with 4-5 large, sofa-like chairs. Autumn receives four infusions each time, starting with an anti-nausea med, the HER-2 meds, and finally the chemo.
There wasn’t anything for me to do, so I ventured up the road and found a Starbucks to work in and ran some errands. Autumn started the infusions around 10 that morning and finished about 3:30 p.m. We came home, and for the most part, she felt okay. In typical Autumn fashion, she went to bed about 6:30 after we ate supper.
The countdown had begun. That C stuff was now in her veins. What happens next?
The one, the primary “thing” I’ve learned about cancer treatments is that no two patients are alike. Their side effects may be similar, but everyone handles the drugs differently. Waiting is all we can do. Thank goodness Autumn has a “kick-ass” attitude.