Jan Curran Events

Back in the battle again..

Okay, so I begin once again...

If you've been reading this blog for years than you know I have done 4 years of chemotherapy but haven't done any for the last three years. I did two years of radiation, but this last year and a half have been home FREE with no cancer.

That all changed yesterday.  The results of the scan on Monday showed that this mass at the tip of the liver is not a cyst, is not a cluster of small tumors, is just one sitting there all alone.  One with a big C on it.

Chemotherapy is the way to go once again and I'll be honest with you, I am dreading it.. that nausea, the fatigue ,the mental confusion that is called " chemo brain."

When do I start? Right now that is up in the air. My doc said she believes in quality of life for the patient and now, after months of battling this lung condition and hauling around the oxygen I have finally gained some weight ,am doing "quite well" says the lung doc, am driving my car, able to go see friends and family, run errands, live a somewhat normal and contented life.  That would abruptly change with the onset of chemo.

I have no symptoms of anything, blood work is fine, no pains, no loss of appetite. She feels that as long as  I have no symptoms she doesn't want to put me in the position of being sick from the chemo yet. She would prefer to watch me closely, have me report any changes in my feelings ( food, pain, etc) for another month and then decide if we should start chemo then. We would start instantly if  I devlop any symptoms.

Now, you are probably asking the same question my four kids have asked -- is this delaying the start of chem putting me at any risk, will it allow the tumor to grow or spread?

Stupid me didn't ask that question yesterday which points out the need for one to never ever go to the doctor for results of a scan alone. It takes more than one brain to ask the zillion questions that come up. I have a call in to the doc with the kids' question.

I have a million things running through my mind.. lists for lists... things I need to arrange before starting chemo, things like hire a driver, arrange for auto pay on most of my bills. Well, a list so long you don't want to read it all!

How do I feel emotionally? More upset than I thought I would be. That, I am sure, is do to the total recall I have of just how sick chemo did make me before and will make me again.

I don't have a guest room in this apartment, will I have to hire a caregiver that comes for a few hours each day since I can't have friends come and stay with me -- that is just one of the many things that just pops in to my head.

I will NOT have to go get my head shaved again. Whew! The kind of chemo the doc plans to use does not cause you to lose your hair, eyelashes ,eyebrows and hair in places we shouldn't talk about on here.

I'll keep you posted.

I know you are also wondering about my lovely Karen. Her genetic testing showed she did not have the gene , the mutation , that causes breast or ovarian cancer ,so looks like that means she won't have to have more surgery. She meets with the radiation oncologist next week. Hate for her to go through radiation, hate all this for her, but she is so upbeat, so positive, still so full of fun, she will do fine.

It is sunny and warm here in Ventura so one thing for sure, I will not be worried about driving in snow or ice to get to the infusion center.  That's another advantage to being here and not back in the desert. In the desert I drove 45 minutes each way to get to infusion and home, it was such a hard haul.  Here I will be 10 minutes away from the oncology office and the hospital. Will make a huge difference in my days.

Thanks for your messages and prayers. Now, let's all go eat some chocolate cake!

~Jan

 

You here from facebook.com?

Hi and welcome and  I bet you are looking for some info on the Jan Curran Fan Club.

The club began about 5 years ago from an idea of my own that was then adopted by my friends in the Palm Springs area.

It was simple. I was in chemotherapy at the time and would take my own magazines to the cancer center for other patients to read, also put some in the lobby for waiting family and friends to enjoy. People began to anticipate that weekly delivery, so I asked a few friends to do the same.. from that grew this nationwide ( and also in Germany and England) fan club that was doing just what  I was doing.

You just save your weekly and monthly magazines and then deliver them to a cancer treatment center or hospital to help patients and their families pass the time.

The Palm Springs charter group used to meet for lunch once a month and everyone brought their magazines which then were loaded in to vans or station wagons and delivered to every hospital and treatment center in the greater Palm Springs area.  The lunches were great fun, and the final one before I moved from PS to Ventura was televised on the local cable station.

You don't have to have a van load of magazines to do this. Even if you only have three or four magazines those would be welcome by any patient sitting in some exam room with nothing to read, or another patient going through hours of chemo or another waiting to do radiation.

Now, if you do have 25 or 50 or more magazines each month, spread them around. Go to your local hospital and then to a nursing home or children's' treatment center of any sort. Parents need something to read, too.

The cancer center in Rancho Mirage, CA had a small library in the infusion room, so I began also taking some books there. Not boxes full, but a book or two now and then and my son Lee gave me some of his books out in paperback and I donated those, as well. The books were very welcome!

Okay, see how it works?  I no longer have membership cards or the booklet listing each chapter of the fan club. Oh, I've got them, but they are all in storage with my move to this senior living facility.. so just tell yourself you are a member and start doing this magazine bit. 

Now that my daughter Karen is also a cancer patient, my family will be thanking you even more.

The good news on Karen is that the genetic testing showed she did NOT have the genetic trait for ovarian cancer and breast cancer. She does have breast cancer and will be having more surgery in early FEB and most likely radiation treatment but is no longer also faced with the possibility of also having her ovaries removed.

If you just joined the Jan Curran Fan Club -- many, many thanks, and a special thanks to fan club member, and my cousin, Mike Barer in the Seattle area for deciding to put the fan club on facebook.com.  I'd never have been savvy enough to do that myself --- kudos to Mike.

Now, go tell your friends to start saving their magazines and join this club with no dues, no set meetings, just the goal of putting a smile on the face of a cancer patient or member of their family.

~Jan

The New Year, so far...

  No, that's not me, .... it's my daughter in law Wendy, Tod's wife. She was in Ventura today and we met for brunch and I took this then. Was wonderful to see her even if I got lost driving there.  Tod called me from the desert and asked, " you lost?".... Was sure glad to hear his voice.  I finally found my way there, but it was panic city there for me for about 25 minutes...

Okay, so you are waiting to hear about Karen. I was waiting for her to say something on the blog she has with her sister Linda, or on Twitter before I said anything. She has done both so now I will tell you that the news was not good, but could have been worse.  What Karen has is dcis carcinoma.. ductal cancer of the breast. Easily  ( ha!) treated.  She has had surgery and will have more and then most likely radiation which I am hoping she doesn't have to have. My heart was breaking for her, but she is upbeat and positive and so grateful she had a mammogram that picked this up in the earliest stages. Both Karen and Linda will go now for genetic testing to see if they carry the gene for this kind of inclination towards breast cancer. Their grandmother on the Goldberg side had breast cancer. We will know more after Wednesday when Karen meets with an oncology pathologist and then the surgeon again.

In the meantime, keep good thoughts.... and I'll get back to you.