Deb’s Update: February 6, 2007 10 AM PST

Hi all,

Just wanted to give you another update but I won't be writing it as a song, okay Mollie!?

It's been a full week since my last chemo/radiation treatment. I still feel the same and unfortunately, it's still a bit woozy in the morning. I don't do too much in the morning since my stomach is still a bit unsure of what it wants to do! I haven't actually vomited recently but I am definitely controlling what I am allowing myself to eat in the morning.

I'm still actually losing some hair where they radiated which I guess will continue to happen for a few weeks... thank God I had tons of hair before. If the wind blows people are definitely able to see the bald areas... I am still hopeful that I won't need a wig, but I guess I have to let the stuff that is still on my scalp grow a bit just to cover the bald areas.

The swelling on my left side of my temple area is definitely getting better. I was told by my radiation oncologist that it would take several weeks to get rid of the swelling. I can't wait for that... I will be excited to finally see my left temple! You'll never guess what else I still have on my head: my scab!!! It's been 3 months and I still have about an inch long scab at the end of the scar (on the top of my head) which continues to fascinate me... I'm hoping I'm going to continue to set records like this one!

I was told that the vaccine study ICD is still not approved so I can't screen yet. I got a message from Dr. Yu & Anne to tell me that they hope to be able to see me on the 16th of February for screening. Stay tuned on that one. I will be moving forward on my first cycle of chemotherapy so hopefully we can all figure out how to get the vaccine stuff started soon as well. I believe that my chemo will either be the last week of February or the first week of March.

Today I will be getting labs done and will have my medical oncologist order the Temodar and have it shipped to my house. The new prescription insurance stuff that Amgen has is different so it's better to get the prescription drugs ordered earlier (done via fax or US mail!). If I don't fax or mail the Rx in, I will have to pay more because I will be getting it at a local pharmacy.... so clearly I would rather "order it". I've got the time on this one!!!

I'm still dealing with understanding the STD and LTD stuff (Short Term and Long Term Disability). I have finally decided that I will discuss the questions/answers on the phone but will confirm them on an email. It just seems like there are more people that I need to talk to each with different skills and knowledge... so, now I'll get it all written down and I will know it is a right answer rather than just a guess (on their part).

I've also recently been being called by doctor's offices or hospitals since none of them have been paid by my insurance company. It's been 3 months so they're starting to involve me.... another thing that I have to deal with! Fun, huh? So, I will be calling my insurance company today just to discuss the 'pre-existing condition' details with them (there obviously were not any pre-existing conditions for me). I'm guessing that they do not know that Glioblastoma grows really fast!? Or, they just want to stall so they don't have to pay right away... stay tuned on that one!

Okay, so you've heard enough about all the paperwork stuff!!! The rest of Amy and Meredith's visit was great. We of course had to do Disneyland since both Meredith and I were excited :-) Luckily, it was a Fairy Princess day (I can't remember if that is what they actually called it!) so Meredith was able to meet several Princess that she loved. We only went on a few rides because she was just as happy to walk around to see Mickey or other characters so she could get her picture taken! They left on Friday morning but Meredith thought she should stay another day so she could ride Slim Shady again (the neighbor's horse)! She was definitely getting into the farm thing!!! The neighbors were so nice because they gave Meredith a pink, little, stuffed animal horse... she was excited definitely!

On Friday, Antonietta and Paul (her husband) came with Oscar (the Cairn Terrier puppy) for a visit. What a great weekend. The weather was wonderful, Sunday was a Superbowl Sunday and Nala got to play with a doggie friend! Paul of course decided that he would help with something: he re-caulked the bathtub/shower area which was an item on the list. He also decided that he would be the one that could get me a Starbucks coffee while he was out and about! He was loving Thousand Oaks I think :-) Of course Ant cooked a wonderful lasagna which was very tasty... she made her own Italian sauce and so the whole thing was a personal Italian meal! YUM!!!

Ant and I also decided to make some 7 layer dip and Milky Way cake for the Superbowl Sunday BBQ that my neighbors invited us to go to... basically it was just the neighbors next door, me, Ant and Paul! So, we had a bit too much food, but it was tasty. I think that Ant is also hooked on the Ray's Bagel that she had for her breakfasts!

My mom will be here on Friday and we are definitely headed out to AZ to get Radar!!!!! I am sooo excited to get him home. I'm majorly missing him... I am so missing Radar that I decided that I needed to help Ant and Paul train their male puppy- Oscar is as energetic as Radar always was at that age! That was a fun thing for me to do... Oscar sure is a cute puppy with tons of energy. I just figured out that I think that the house may have termites (I saw the wood/dust pieces on the dining room floor this morning)! So, I have to look at the termite inspector's report to see how this will all get fixed... I believe that it's paid for either by them or by an insurance company for a year ... stay tuned.

That's it for now. I am going to try to do some things around the house little by little the next few days just to see how things go when I'm here alone. Stay tuned...

Thanks again for all of your comments... I obviously log onto the blog site several times a day to see what has been said! It makes me smile, laugh and be happy just to hear everyone give me support!

Love Ya!
Debbie