Wednesday

 Hello on a slightly cooler day.  Although I enjoy the break from the heat, I am sad to see summer go. I love the warm weather of summer. I love just going to the bus stop without needing a coat. Traveling by bus is just nicer in warm weather.

This week I had an appointment at Rocky Mountain Cancer Center for a lab check and a phlebotomy. Even though it’s been over 10 years since my relapse, I’m still dealing with the fall out due to my Cancer.

When I was sick, I needed a lot of blood transfusions. This created a large build up of Iron in my blood. To deal with the excess iron, my blood is drawn, one pint at a time, only to be thrown away. Now, I do this every three months but last year, I did it monthly. The picture included, is of this week’s phlebotomy.

I also have stage 4 Chronic Kidney Disease, again, thanks to cancer. This means that I have to be careful with medications and limit my water consumption (opposite of recommended daily intake). The threat of needing weekly dialysis looms over me. 

The thing is nobody mentions things besides chemo and radiation. People gloss over the fact that both chemo and radiation are killing your body. That’s how cancer is treated, attempt to poison and kill the cancer, all while hoping that the body will survive.

A cancer diagnosis is truly life changing. The effects are both mental and physical. Surviving cancer can make you stronger emotionally but may leave your body weakened and damaged.  So when you get the unfortunate news that a loved one has cancer, remember to keep checking on them after they finish chemo or radiation.