Cancer 159

I have already mentioned being discharged from the district nurse service. I have now gained a strange satisfaction from independently doing my own bloods.

It is a strange feeling taking blood out of your own body, especially doing it when there is no one else in the house. I didn’t have to put a needle in my vein or anything complicated, just use my Hickman line.

Nothing went wrong. I took the blood samples, labelled everything, and put them in a specimen bag, then took them to the GP surgery next door. That was it.

Yesterday the consultant rang and told me my blood results – basically I am still boring, all results as normal as can be – but I was inordinately pleased because I had taken the sample. Small things.

We then discussed treatment. I will have number 29 next week, and then number 30 on Christmas eve, which means I will be on the bottle Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Not a problem for an atheist who stopped enjoying parties the moment he gave up alcohol. The consultant asked about chemo disconnect on Boxing Day. I told him I would do it. He seemed surprised. I am not sure why as we have previously discussed it. Anyway, it is easier than taking bloods, just disconnect the bottle from the line and put it in the bin.

Next, how I learn to administer my own chemotherapy – ot perhaps not.

In the New Year I will be taking another break from chemo. My third since starting. I am hoping to take more breaks, but it is important to balance the benefits of chemo – keeping the cancer controlled – and the benefits of a break – not feeling like shit a lot of the time.

Anyway, I like my chemo. It is enabling me to reach my two years since diagnosis next month. Life expectancy on diagnosis, two to two and a half years. Sod that. The record number of chemo rounds is 132. I have a long way to go yet. Two six week breaks a year, so 14 rounds a year, 30 already completed at the end of this year. I will be nearly 70 by the time I get into the Guinness Book of Records.