Cancer Cliche

This whole week has been pretty much cancer cliche to the tenth power. It is a chemo week so Faina has been miserable almost continuously. There was the sense of feeling like a walking Superfund site, 48 hours of nausea no medicine could overcome followed by hours of diminished nausea thanks to an IV dosage and another five-syllable pharmaceutical, an uncomfortable tingling at the fingertips, and a foul taste in the mouth brought on by the platinum in the oxalyplatin.

Another part of the cliche is the constant hope for a new option or even better, a medical breakthrough. We came a few steps forward on both of those counts. There was some progress with the pathology department at Johns Hopkins. We saw Dr. Koutrelakos, briefly, and he said that the folks at Hopkins are running tests with a different tissue sample than they were using before to find out if Faina is HER-2 positive. This could be potentially a big deal. HER-2 positive would mean Faina could start being dosed with Herceptin, a drug that has been used to treat breast cancer and has only months ago been approved for use with gastric cancer. In breast cancer patients Herceptin was able to shrink tumors, get rid of cancer cells that have spread beyond the original tumor, and help prevent recurrence of cancer. There is a 30% chance that Faina will be HER-2 positive so getting these test results has us patiently, cautiously anxious. Add to the cliche anticipating tests, being tested, and waiting for test results.

This leads me to the most interesting appointment of the week - Dr. Jesus Esquivel, oncological surgeon at St. Agnes. His first comment to Faina, and she hears this a lot, was on how healthy she looks. While this could be an exercise in building a patient's confidence and self-esteem, it is accurate. She has maintained her weight and much of her vigor. This was also in the last hours of a chemo cycle that would resume the next day. Of material interest regarding this physician is that he is uniquely skilled in a cutting edge surgical procedure, HIPAC. In addition, we found him to be exceedingly down to earth, charming, personable, sensitive, and, as it turns out, a neighbor. He pulled out a piece of stationary and sketched out the abdominal cavity, explained how the digestive system functions and dysfunctions, and the science behind HIPAC. His immediate advice, take walks and "Get fat." (With this advice in mind, Mom sent a kugel.) The potential for going ahead with this procedure will depend on Faina's next CT scan which will take place in the first week of January.

One more interesting appointment, - Since Faina's hair is thinning out, we went to the wig salon at the Claudia Mayer Cancer Resource Center. Our appointment was scheduled for Tuesday evening. The CMCRC is warm and welcoming and offers a great variety of services "for those living with cancer, their families and friends." This trip was made into more an event with the participation of Margo and Tanya. Faina and her entourage were offered coffee and tea. A high school student from Long Reach was there working on a video project and asked for Faina's permission to tape her visit, which was unhesitatingly granted. Faina tried out straight, wavy, and curly looks, assuming the countenance of a variety of actresses. One wig brought Meg Ryan to mind, another Ashley Judd. It was remarkable how different she looked with the various wigs. It is no wonder they are part of the detective/spy disguise repertoire. Selection made and final fitting, next week. The receipt, with a nod at the insurance company (our other partner in this journey), is for a "cranial prosthesis."

And so it goes.