Nightengale's Journey with Adenocarcinoma, Colorectal Cancer

I had some serious abdominal pain for over a month and the doctor ordered scans. They knew right away that i was in big trouble. It took a few visits with the doctors for me to realize how serious the problem was. My primary tumor had spread to the liver where it had formed tumors throughout. Also, the lymph nodes around my aorta looked cancerous. Right from the start, we turned to God and prayed for help. I remember that the nights were when i was the most scared. And when I was showering, that was when I would cry the hardest. It took at least a month for our new situation to sink in. While the news coming from the doctors was bad, worse and horrific, our faith in God and His healing power sustained us and helped us choose hope.

My chemo treatment (folefox) was a 6-month course. I came in every other week. At first I felt sick and tired. But as it went on, I actually started to feel more accustomed to the drugs. I contined to do practically everything that I would normally do. The worst part for me was being in the chemo suite. I felt generally yucky when the drugs were pumping into me. But I learned to just lay down and do my best to sleep through it. The good news is chemo tolerable. The great news is that it is effective. That medicine just cleaned up my cancer so fast. In spite of the yucky moments, I am so completely grateful for chemotherapy. No matter how it makes you feel...remember that it is a GOOD THING!! Time to put on your big girl/boy pants and do what needs to be done!!! You can do it!!!!! Take courage!

Bloody noses, fatigue, nausea, and low white blood cell count were the side effects that i thought were not a big deal. Sensitivity to cold was kind of a pain. on days right after chemo, i learned to wear a stocking cap because i would get headaches if my head got a bit chilly. Now that the treatment is over, i still have some numbness and tingling in my fingers and toes. But i can still do everything including playing the violin and piano. I am told that this should heal, but it could take some time. One piece of advice i would give is that you should make sure to flush your digestive system as much as possible. i always drank a ton of water daily. And every night i would take some miralax and metamucil. I really wanted to move everything out of my system as fast as possible and I think these measures helped.

I was declared "in remission" at the conclusion of the chemo treatment. This was so exciting for us. Now that it's over, it's hard to believe that it ever happened. Life is so normal again. Things that comforted me through my journey are: 1-learning that one in three Americans gets cancer. You are in good company! 2-Sharing my experience with my family and community. Good people rallied around our family and supported us. People are so good and want to help. 3-Pray. Faith in God is the single biggest factor in my success. You don't need your doctor's or anyone else's permission to hope. He is there, He is listening, and you are in His capable hands.