Almost like home

From the conversations and hellos in the hospital Cathi is almost a regular in the BMT ward. Monday at the clinic the blood pressure fell lower than the clinic staff was comfortable with so it was off to the hospital. This time in her own personal carriage. Not the best way to go, but none the less a deluxe ride. It comes with the frequent guest program.

This time it was to the other end of the BMT ward to room 4112. While they did not dance like the last time she arrived, the nurses all commented how nice it was to see her. The blood pressure came back up to the normal range for Cathi, which is lower than most people.

Platelets, blood, & potassium (oh my) are all almost a daily routine. There have been a few days where the food came up just as easy as it went down. After a few days the food is starting to stay down better, and the nausea might be starting to let up. This is all normal, unwelcomed, but normal as part of effects of chemo.

Janice and Walt have been keeping company with Cathi. Walt brings the paper in the morning and Janice spends most of the day with her, with occasional visits from Mom & Dad, and a few select guests. Yesterday's highlight was a close cut from Robin, and Cathi is sporting that GI Jane look that she wears so well. It was tough to see the hair go again, but all part of the regimen.

Tomorrow the highlight is the much not awaited to take another look and biopsy's from her lungs. Never a good experience for them to stick and prod down inside the lungs trying to figure out what is down there. But the fight is all out and tomorrow Cathi goes in to get her lungs looked and poked at. For all the times they have done that before the results have been minimal, but they keep at it until they find something. Remember that Cathi has the pneumonia causing fungus in her lungs that is a permanent resident. Only by using the right drugs can they keep the pneumonia brothers at bay. While there has been some fluid build up and slight pneumonia in the lungs, she is doing remarkably better than in the past.

Spirits for Cathi are not always high, but each time the door opens, a new nurse or aide pops in and a smile comes on her face and they catch up on what has been happening in the past year or six months. After they leave Cathi fills in the rest of the story from the events they were talking about when she was in almost a year ago.