My LAST Session!

Finally! My 37th tomo radiation treatments are history! The time did not fly by at all. The worst part of it was not the actual radiation, but the monotony of the average three hours of my day (with transportation) that was dedicated to the treatments. The side effects were not too bad. The radiologist told me today that they should be gone in about a week & the fatigue in about 2 weeks. I have really felt worn out the past couple of weeks. At least it did not begin when I started.

I think it helped to silently pray for the other patients in the waiting room each day while I waited for my turn. It is good to get your focus off yourself & your own problems. I saw a lot of patients in a lot worse shape than me and who were going through both chemo and radiation.

One thing I found that in the beginning, for the most part, as friends & family find out about your cancer & treatment you hear from them a lot. As time goes on & you are still in treatment, you hear less and less. You have to realize life goes on & does not revolve around you & your illness even as you face it daily. You just have to pray every day for an extra dose of God's grace.

I got a $50,000. bill from November's treatments today of which I am only responsible for $270. of it! Thank God I have health insurance!

I will need follow up in three months, which I think will be to see if my PSA is still at or near zero. How I pray it is the end of it! I can not allow my mind to run ahead of me, but must make the most of each day God has given me. I pray that as I enter 2010 in a few days, I will enter it cancer-free!

I plan to spend New Year's Eve with the bus driver and his family who took me to & from treatment almost every day who is now a new friend. I'll have to take a nap, of course!

The HIGH Cost of Treatment!

I am attaching a bill for ONE session of Tomo radiation (click on image for larger copy)! Thank God, I have health insurance! I just got a notice from Kaiser regarding next year's policy. Thank God I read the fine print! If I kept my current policy, it would cost 20% of the total bill for radiation (over $400. per session!!!). For just $20. more a month, I can continue to pay just $10. per session. If I did not already have cancer, I probably wouldn't be upgrading that $20. a month! My radiation will be finished on December 29, but that is no guarantee I will not need more in the future, unfortunately.

It was a difficult weekend. I do not know if it was the result of the radiation, but I felt very fatigued, with body aches, but no fever. I feel a lot better today, but not 100%. I am grateful I did not have to go in for treatment those two days! Today is treatment # 26. After today, “just” 10 left!

BBQ Invitation

I survived treatment number #20 today. At least I am finally past the half way mark! Earlier in the day, I got a letter from Kaiser saying that Queens Medical Centre had billed them for ONE CT scan they did on me right before the radiation commenced. They were billed $2,554.00 and my portion is just $10. 00. Thank God I have health insurance!

Yesterday, I brought my smiling & upbeat bus driver a loaf of homemade cinnamon bread that was still warm from the oven. Today, he said how much he & his family enjoyed it.

Today, he asked me where I am going every day, as he is usually the one to pick me up on the way home about 2.5 hours later. I told him I was going in for radiation for prostate cancer. He seemed shocked. He told me his father had died of advanced prostate cancer, but they probably did not find it sooner as he also had had Alzheimer's. I told him that it was important that he be tested for it as those with prostate cancer in their family are 50% more likely to get it themselves.

He was the one who picked me up again today on the way home. During my treatment, he had called his wife to tell her that he needed to be tested, but she said that he'd been tested less than a year ago. I told him that that was good & that he can sleep better tonight.

We still hadn't even exchanged names when he invited me to a BBQ at his house in the valley next to the one where I live so I can meet his wife. I told him my name & he told me his name was Warren. I found out we are the same age. He's been driving the bus over 20 years! I was surprised this man I do not know other than riding on his bus would invite me over. I told him I would bring a homemade lilikoi (passion fruit) meringue pie.