Attack of the Cancer-Corn

I really have no way to describe how I feel today, other than that it feels like there is a tiny Unicorn inside my body, jumping around poking holes from the inside (hence the wonderful illustration I spent 30 minutes making this AM.) It doesn't hurt much... it's just really annoying. It's in really random spots, and it's pretty continuous. Like a Unicorn with ADD going "What's that? What's that? What's that?" while poking shit inside me with his horn... Stupid Cancer-Corn. Get outta there! HAHA

So, since I am here, I guess now is a good time to lay down some info on different terms I may use throughout the course of this blog, different people I may refer to, and some general info about Hodgkin's Lymphoma:

Terms:

Chemo - This is just a short-hand for Chemotherapy, which is the treatment for Cancer. Chemotherapy is different across the board depending on what type of cancer you have, how much you weigh, whether you are male or female, how old you are, and probably a few other factors I am not aware of. There are many different drugs they use, and the quantity varies a lot as well. The main thing to understand is that Chemo is basically a regimen of poisons that they inject in your body to kill the cancer cells. It is very good at attacking rapidly multiplying cells, like cancer cells, but it is not selective. This means that it will also attack any other cell in your body that reproduces at an elevated rate. One of the most common side effects of Chemo is having a sore or irritated mouth. This is because the cells in your mouth and throat rebuild at a very high rate (not surprising considering how much you actually use your mouth everyday.) The type of Chemo I am on is called ABVD, which is the next term. I don't know how much I am on off the top of my head, but I know mine is small enough that it only takes an hour and a half to give it to me, vs the three hours that I thought it was going to take.

ABVD - ABVD is a type of Chemo regimen, and it happens to be the flavor of Chemo that I am on. It stands for Adriamycin, Bleomycin, Vinblastine, and Dacarbazine. I won't get into the specifics of each one, but I will say that this regimen has been tested and proven over the course of 20+ years, and has so far helped to push the cure rate for Hodgkin's Disease into the 95% range. The neat thing is that they are all very different. One of them is blood red, one is sensitive to light (so they wrap it in foil and call it a burrito), and the other two can't be administered at the same time for whatever reason. Pretty crazy stuff. For more info on these go ahead and click the snazzy chemical pictures below:

• Andriamycin:
  
  



• Bleomycin:
  
  



• Vinblastine:
  
  



• Dacarbazine:
  
  

Port - This is the short-hand for the access port they put inside my chest. It's called a Power Port, and it looks sort of like a pump on an old pair of Air Jordan's. Here's a picture:



This thing is honestly the best way to go if you are going to get Chemo. It sits right under the skin on your chest, near your armpit, and a pic line wraps around your peck, and goes into one of the biggest veins in your chest about 5 inches. At first it's a bit sore, but now that i've had it for about a week, I really don't notice it all that much. The beauty of it is that instead of having to poke you in the arm and give you and IV every two weeks, they just put a needle right into the port and direct inject the chemicals into you that way. And because it's right at skin level, it really doesn't hurt at all. It's like getting pinched. A few months after chemo, as long as my cancer is all dead and gone, they will remove the port and I will be left with nothing more than a memory of once being a bionic man... :-_(

Biopsy - A Biopsy is the operation they do to determine what type (if any) of cancer you have. They either remove a sample of skin if it's exterior, or they remove part (or all) of a tumor, or in my case, they remove a lymph node. Whatever it is they take, they then go and study those cells under a microscope in order to determine what it is. For me, they took a lymph node from under my right armpit. It was pretty inflamed at the time, and as I understand it, very easy to get to. The only downside is that part of my back is kinda numb still. Maybe it'll come back one day. The other nice thing is that since they were in there already, they just went ahead and put the port in right then and there. Less surgeries = less money = AWESOME!

Lymph Node - Lymph nodes are present all over your body in different places. Wikipedia writes: A lymph node (pronounced /ˈlɪmf noʊd/) is a small circular ball shape organ of the immune system, distributed widely throughout the body and linked by lymphatic vessels. Lymph nodes are garrisons of B, T, and other immune cells. Lymph nodes are found all through the body, and act as filters or traps for foreign particles. They contain white blood cells that use oxygen to process. Thus they are important in the proper functioning of the immune system. Basically, they are there to help fight diseases, and when you get sick they usually swell up because your white blood cells are being sent to the lymph node closest to the invading sickness. Like flys to a light. Lymphoma is a type of cancer that affects your lymph nodes and your lymphatic system.

White Blood Cells - These are the cells in your body that fight off infection. I equate them to your body's elite police force. There are a few different types, and each is made for fighting off a different type of bacteria or organism. They travel around in your blood stream, and when any foreign body is detected they bum rush it. The thing to note about them is that they have a very short life cycle. Typically your white blood cells live for anywhere from a few days to a few weeks. In Lymphoma patients however, the white blood cells are mutated, and continue to live outside of their normal life cycle. They clump into your lymph nodes to fight infection, and end up sticking around like an unwanted house guest. This is where the tumors associated with Lymphoma come from (I may be wrong about that, but that's how I understand it.) While going through Chemo, your white blood cell count may fall dangerously low, which puts you at heightened risk for infection... which means when you come to my house, you get hand sanitizer THEN a hug.

People:

Dr. Wahl - My Oncologist (AKA: Cancer Doctor.) She's pretty awesome. Her confidence was something that put my mind at ease about this whole thing from day one, and so far she has been right about everything that she predicted about my disease. I am in good hands!

Skeletor - My roommate Johnny. This guy has been literally the best friend I could ask for through this whole thing. He has taken time off to help me get to appointments or to drive me from point A to point B, or even just to kick it with me when I need him, and I never had to ask once. Somebody's getting a big fruit basket this christmas! AHAHAHA

Angela - My very supportive and oh so awesome girlfriend. Angela makes me smile no matter what kind of mood I am in. The only unfortunate things is the physical distance between us. But I'm pretty sure what we have can stand up to that challenge.

T-Bizzle - I never call her this but I felt like coming up with a nickname for her. This is my loving cousin Tamar. She is the closest thing I have to a sister, and I definitely look to her a lot for confidence. She is a great cousin and a better friend!

Matt - Matt is my boss, and as I have come to realize, though he has a weird way of showing it, one of the most dedicated and compassionate friends you could have. In times of need Matt is always willing to help, and literally goes out of his way to make sure that his friends are taken care of before himself. Not many people share this amazing quality.

The Hodge - From here on out, this is how I will refer to my, cancer as a whole. And lemme tell ya... this bitch is goin' down!

There are a ton of people that I am sure I should list here, but I kinda need to get back to work, so I will end now. If I didn't put your name up here, don't trip. You are VERY important to me. I will amend this list as time goes on.

PS: I didn't list my parents because I figured it was pretty self explanatory who they are and how awesome they are. I have the best parent's ever (That means you too Megumi!) and I am thankful that they are willing to put up with me. :-D