Last Thursday, the 4th, I had two appointments downtown. One with the kidney doctor and one with the plastic surgeon. I saw the kidney doctor first. Apparently she saw me while I was in the hospital but I barely remember her. There were so many doctors coming in and out, I lost track. One of the first things she asked me was how the wedding plans were coming. That was very nice of her to keep track. It also turns out that she is a breast cancer survivor and knows what I'm going through. She was pleased with the improvement in my kidney function. It's still not back to where it was but it's close. I was supposed to give blood in their lab downstairs on the way out but they weren't able to hit a vein. The doctor told me to let them try only once and if not successful, to wait until I gave blood for the next chemo treatment. I need to drink lots of water to hydrate myself in order to give blood successfully.
The second appointment was with the plastic surgeon. In his waiting room, he had a framed picture on a table of the cast from Marcus Welby, M.D. A little strange. I forgot to ask him why that was there. Next time. He told me that if he were able to do the breast reduction at the same time as the mastectomy, the operation would take 3-5 hours. I had no clue it would take that long. He gave me a 5-page document to read about all the possible complications. I'm to initial each page and then fax back to him. One particular one he told me about gave me the willies. I won't explain it here. He and my surgical oncologist, Dr. Z., will work out the the scheduling. At this point in time, I don't know when it will be. I do have one more chemo to get through so until that's completed, I don't think they'll schedule the surgery.
MFD's maid-of-honor, Sara, flew in from Chicago last Friday. She was a great help in getting everything ready for the shower on Saturday. BDHA was the cook and bartender. I pretty much sat there and enjoyed the people.
Sunday, BDHA, MFD and Mr. Whacko took Sara on a walking tour of Sewickley. I sat in the middle of downtown Sewickley in their town square, sipped an iced tea and people-watched while they walked. Mr. Whacko was excited to be able to bark at Mario Lemieux' dogs. It made his day. Sara and MFD went to lunch and BDHA and I took Mr. Whacko to the Sewickley boat launch where he jumped off the pier. He had a great time swimming and chasing the waves from the boat wakes.
Yesterday was MFD's first dress fitting. The dress is beautiful. And so is she, if I may say so myself. Things are coming together fast now. We stopped at Avonworth Community Park on our way home to check out the space for the picnic reception. Pictures of the pavilion are below:
We're going to need lots of citronella candles.
Today is spent resting. The humidity takes a lot out of me even when I'm feeling well. My last chemo is next Monday, the 15th. I'm looking forward to that. But I also have thoughts of what will happen to the cancer once I stop. I feel like the treatments have been keeping it in check. I worry that it will start up again once the treatment's done. I'm not sure if they'll have me do another MRI and CT/Bone Scan before surgery. That would give me peace of mind if they came back clear.
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