Hi Everyone,

This is Natalie. My mom is doing ok after the first chemo appt but the last few days have been a bit busy so my mom is really tired. For the next few days, my mom will be taking a break from everything to just get some good rest. I know she has a lot of support so I’d like to kindly request that you refrain from calling and texting for the next few days. You can send cards or reach out to me. I am more than happy to keep you up to date! If you need my number just message below.

Thanks everyone for the continued support and love! I know my mom really appreciates it 🙂

Natalie

First day of chemo which took all day but everything went well thank god.

Last week (Monday April 22) I was supposed to start chemo but when I went in my creatinine levels (an indication of kidney function) were too high. So high in fact they wanted to admit me to the hospital to figure out what was going on. After a week at the hospital, with constant hydration, they finally discharged me last Friday with lower creatinine levels. Over the weekend and until tomorrow (Tuesday) I will continue to have IV hydration therapy at home so that I can bring my creatinine levels down because they were still a little higher than what the doctor wanted when I was discharged. I spoke to my clinical trial nurse today and she told me that she is scheduling an appointment with my oncologist on Wednesday (May 1) and I will hopefully start chemo on Friday (May 3) pending good blood tests this week. Hopefully my treatment plan will finally get to start soon. 😕 Thanks everyone for your continued love and support. I really appreciate it. Much love to all.

Getting ready for chemo. Tests next two weeks.

Chemo ???

So my mom’s oncologist, Dr. Pal, called us tonight and told us that the results show her kidneys are functioning well. This means she can move forward with chemotherapy. Next Thursday we will meet with Dr. Pal and learn what her options are and potentially start chemotherapy that day.

He also said he noticed a previously enlarged ovary has grown by ~3cm so he is going to consult with Dr. Chan (the urologist) and a colleague in gynecology to examine this further.

One step closer to a plan!

Hello,

On Wednesday I had my first appointment with Dr. Pal, my medical oncologist. I’ve heard great things about him and I’m hopeful he will create the best plan for me. In the appointment he very clearly laid out a plan of action for me. He told me that he wanted to some blood tests and do another abdominal ct scan to understand whether my kidneys were functioning well and whether he could detect any distant cancer. He said he didn’t think there was distant cancer but wanted to rule it out before moving forward with chemotherapy. So that same day I had my blood tested and scheduled the ct scan for today, Friday.

Then yesterday I got a call from my urologist, Dr. Chan. He informed me that my kidneys aren’t functioning as good as they hoped. They weren’t functioning poorly just not good enough to move forward with ‘platinum chemo’ so he said we should move forward with surgery sooner rather than later. There are other chemo options that don’t require my kidneys to be as strong but Dr. Chan explained they aren’t as helpful so it wouldn’t be worth foregoing surgery for those chemo treatments. He wants to get me in for surgery in the next 2-3 weeks but before that he wants me to have the abdominal ct scan and one more round of blood and urine tests to ensure Wednesday’s labs weren’t just a result of dehydration.

So today I went to City of Hope and had the tests and scan. Now I just sit and wait to hear from Dr. Chan as to whether I will move forward with chemo first or go straight into surgery. I should hear from him by Monday.

It’s been a long month or so of tests and scans and I’m looking forward to having a plan in place already. There has been more pain recently (which I already reported to Dr. Chan and Dr. Pal) so I just want something to happen soon.

Will keep you updated…

-Queen B

Hello,

I decided to start a blog to keep my family and friends up-to-date on my journey as I seek treatment for stage 2 bladder cancer. I know many people have reached out and I appreciate the love and kind words thus far. So for those who want to follow my journey, I welcome you to join me…

-Queen B