There was no news till now

I waited till I saw my Oncologist and Radiation Doctor this week to post because I thought you would like an update on where things stand. My Oncologist is very happy with the way things are going and tells me I'm doing a good job which honestly I needed to hear. He said I should stop taking the Tarceva for a week or so until all the side effects are gone and when I start taking it again the dosage will be dropped from 150 mg to 100 to keep the side effects from being so severe. He said that except for a high histamine reading on my blood test because my allergies are in full force, my blood test was great. There's no cancer activity. My next appointment will be in September and we'll make an appointment for the next PET scan at that time.

My Radiation doctor was amazed that I'm not on any medication except the Tarceva. He asked me twice thinking I didn't understand him. He's happy about that and he's also happy with the plans my Oncologist has made for a PET Scan in September. He isn't a big fan of Tarceva I gather because every hiccup or sneeze I have he attributes to that medication. He's glad I'll be taking a lower dosage. He said something about the spot on my liver and had my full attention. "I have a spot of my Liver?", I asked. So he looked at the last PET scan results again and found instead that I have a gallstone in my gallbladder which is near the neck. That's a long way from a spot on the liver and I started breathing again. He's also happy with my results. He doesn't need to see me till the first week in November. He's not planning on another Brain MRI till next April thank goodness. Ever have one of those? Noisy and confining.

So my doctors didn't have to take me off the golf course this summer. I'm actually finding I get too exhausted from the heat and golf at 6 a.m. or not at all.

This week I had an attitude adjustment by traveling to Flagstaff with 3 golfing friends to participate in an invitational at Pinewood. We played the course when we arrived in town and then went to our hotel which was very nice. Once we had our suitcases in our rooms we got together to...what else...play Mah Jongg. It was so much fun because we all won a game and laughed through the entire evening. Then we were ready for Baskin Robbins and one of their great ice cream treats. I slept like a log.

The following morning we went to the course for the continental breakfast, met the other ladies in our foursome and played a course with trees. Trees all over the course and water, there was hardly a bunker to get in. I could have played better, but I saved it all for the last two holes. Once we came off the course we had a delicious lunch and the raffle prizes were awarded. Then we left for home leaving behind 85 degrees for 115 in Phoenix.

It was a wonderful trip and we laughed and enjoyed every minute. I would love to do it again next year. I see how important it is for me to have a change of scene now and then because I was feeling like I was in a rut and isolated. What a great attitude adjustment I had.