Hi all!!

I met with my radiation oncology doctor yesterday (Feb.5th, 2010).  His name is Dr. Taylor and i met him while i was in the hopital last April when we were trying to decide which way to treat, radiation or chemo.  He said he is glad we chose chemo at that time because A) I responded so well to chemo and now we can go in with full guns blasting using radiation.  If we had started with radiation last year i would not be able to recieve a full dose because the body can only handle so much radiation in a period of time.  He said there are 3 very, very small spots on the left side of my brain.  He said they are so small they arent even considered tumors at this time.  He said we could wait a month, scan again to see if theyve grown,  and then decide whether to proceed with  radiation.  I told him I'd rather be agressive with it and he agreed for 2 reasons...1. we already know i have an agressive cancer in my body and #2  when Dr. Cavalcant found out i had the spots he immediately put me on steroids.  Steroids reduce brain swelling.  Dr. Taylor said since there had been no decrease in the fuzzy vision on my left side that means that one of the spots is pushing on a nerve that is leading to my left eye.  He said its possible i could regain my vision back or the damage has been done.  We wont know until after radiation treatments.  So on Monday i will go in for a CTscan to map my brain out.  After that they will fit my face for a face shield that holds my head to the radiation table during therapy to hold me still.  Then we will start 15 consecutive treatments and blast these little bastards into oblivion.  I thought they would point the beams at the the 3 spots but he said they treat the entire brain otherwise the cancer just bounces around and then you cant get it all.  He said there is probabaly smaller spots already growing that we just cant see yet so treating the entire brain is the way to go.  Side effects include hair loss (been there-done that), possible fatigue and nausea (been there-done that as well).      He also said this is the same cancer that started in the breast.  Once it moved into the bones it entered the blood stream and once into the blood stream it is very common to move into the brain.  So far, I've had it in my breast, lymph nodes, spot on the lung, spine, ribcage, pelvic bone, and lymph nodes surounding my heart.  I had 3 fractured vertabrae and a collapsed vertabrae and all that cancer is gone now!!!  So there is no doubt in my mind that we will kick the brain cancer as well!!

This has been especially tough on my Mom who has been thru this with me from day 1.  My Mom lost both of her parent to cancer and  a younger brother (uncle Jim)... just a few years ago.  My aunt Alice had breast cancer and is now cancer free.  My aunt Linda was just diagnosed with bladder and pelvic bone cancer.  So this hits very close to home for my Mom and I want to thank her for being so strong and supportive of me.  We WILL get thru this Mom!!!  I love you very much!!!

I would also like to personally thank two people who had a hand in getting me the best health care possible and those two people are Valerie Simpson my BFF and her mother Barbara Duffy.  Barbara referred me to Dr. Freedman who reffered me to Dr. Cavalcant and on to Dr. Taylor.  I truely believe i ended up with the best doctors in the state if not in the United States.  Thank you SO much Val and Barbara!!!
Also thanks to everyone of you who keep me in your thoughts and prayers, IT is working!!! 

When i told my boss Richard the cancer had spread he hugged me and assured me i have a job with the Town of Gilbert.  Thats a huge relief as I love my job there and am SO proud to work for such a wonderful community.   I believe i work in the best department in the Public Works Department and so lucky to be surrounded by so many awesome individuals.  Ok, thats enuff blubbering....

I love you all and consider myself blessed!!!

Thank you---Shelly

My Mom and I just got back from the doctors office to get the results of all the scans I've had done recently.  The MUGGAscan of my heart looks good and so did the PTscan.  Unfortunately the MRI of my brain show some small cancer tumors.  He said they are tiny and were caught early which is very good.  So now he wants me to postpone chemo and start radiation right away.  The reason they did an MRI is I've been having blurred vision in my left eye. 

On a happier note...My Mom and Dad and I are meeting Dan for a camping trip at Joshua Tree National Park in two weeks.  Leah cant make the trip due to school work      So, stay tuned for pictures of our camping trip!

Howdy bloggers!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.  I know I did.  We had a great time while Dan and Leah were here.  Tanner still misses his cousins.

I went for chemo #31 yesterday.  It was tough starting an IV again and is painful.  That is the worst part of chemo now.  It was nice to see the chemo nurses tho.  They are all so kind. After 31 trips I'm on a first name basis with all of them and have gotten to know them pretty well.  They always have encouraging words, and a smile.  We manage to have some chuckles while we are there.  I saw Dr. Cavalcant yesterday and told him that my vision is blurry in my left eye and he wants an MRI of my brain done and also wants me to see my ophthomalogist.  Its been 3 months since my last PETscan so I will be having one of those as well.  We will get the results of those tests on Feb. 11th.  My Mom has taken me to damn near every chemo and has been very strong through out this experience.  She doesn't like to drive but my Dad brings her down from Payson to go with me and drives me home after chemo when I'm looped on Benadryl.  THANKS MOM!!   I've been feeling great and am getting stronger everyday.  Beer tastes good again and thats a GOOD sign!!


Tanner


Tanner and Amy


Clint on our last "dig", Oscar in the backhoe.



It is SO good to be back to work!  I know I've said that in past blogs but I cant over state that.  When I'm at work I don't have cancer.  And we have been really busy.  In the past few weeks we've had 3 "digs".  Thats where we go out and replace/repair lateral sewer lines.  First we have the area blue staked which essentially locates utilities in the area for us.  Then we saw cut the asphalt and sidewalk.  If there are utilities in the area we have the Vac truck crew come out and "soft dig" to physically locate the utilities for us.  Then we use the backhoe to excavate.  We dig as close to the pipe as possible then install shoring.  After shoring is installed we can enter the trench and hand dig to the pipe then repair/replace the pipe.  Then we pull the shoring out and back fill with pea gravel to bed the pipe.  After that we start back filling with AB dirt and use a "wacker" several times to compact the area.  Each dig takes 3-4 days working through lunch.  Its involved but time flys.  I love working with Clint.  He knows what he's doing and working with him is non-stressful. 

Life is good!   

Thats the story from Spring Circle,

Shelly

Hi everyone,  I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas.  The Bovee's did.  My folks, Dan and Leah came to Mesa for a week of frivolity.  Dan brought his smoker and cooked us a Farmer John ham Christmas day that was outstanding.  He used Moms apricot/habenero jam for a glaze...best ham I've ever had!  A couple days later he smoked some baby back ribs that he calls "Dans dirty bones" that were pretty tasty.  Of course we ate our customary king crab legs while we were together.  I put Dan to work while he was here and had him help me fix my roof, install a new garage door opener and trim an orange tree.  Everyone pitched in and took down decorations before they left.  The doggies got along great and played from sun up to sun down every day.  Tanner misses his cousins already.  Dan and Leah brought a Wii game and we had some laughs playing that one day.  We played baseball, golfed, boxed and skied and never left the front room.  All in all it was a great Christmas.

Work has been extremely busy with 2 lateral line replacements in the last couple of weeks.  Richard said we have 3-4 more lined up, so work will be busy for awhile.  Unfortunately my body is extremely sensitive to temperature change and i've been breaking out into hives every morning.  I've been combating it with Benadryl which helps a little.  Soon enough it will be warm again.


Hard to believe this year is over.  After everything i've been thru this year i'm not sad to see it end.  Hopefully 2010 is full of positive test results and no cancer.  I should be getting a PETscan in the next few weeks to see if there is any cancerous activity.  Hopefully not.

I hope everyone has a healthy and prosperous New Year!!!

Shelly

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't written in awhile but I dont have much to report.  I'm still having side effects to chemo after they told me I wouldnt be having any.  My latest side effect is the hives.  Cold air seems to trigger them.  I'm either hot or cold and ultra sensitive to temperature changes.  Other than that I can tell I'm getting stronger and my stamina is increasing which is a good thing.  It is so good to be back to work, working with my partner Clint, back in a routine.  I dont get winded as easily now and getting up at 4:30 am isnt as hard as it was when I first started back to work.

We found out today that my Aunt Linda (Moms sister) was diagnosed with cancer.  She has a tumor in her bladder and in her pelvic bone as well.  She starts chemo Dec.30th.

Next week Dan, Leah and the pups will be coming into town for a week and my parents and I are really looking forward to the visit.  My freezer is full of crab legs, prime rib, baby backs and turkey just waiting to be cooked up.  Us Bovee's do know how to eat!  Usually we go all out decorating my parents house up in Payson but since they will be down here this year we put up lots of decorations here and my house looks great.





Tanner is still growing rapidly and last weekend I had him neutered.  Mellowed him out for about 24 hours and then he was right back to his rambunctious self.  He weighs 40 lbs and is filling out finally.






Thats about all I have for now.  Hope everyone is well.  Have a great Holiday season!!

Shelly

Howdy bloggers, 

I saw Dr. Cavalcant on Thursday and he said my heart looks great and my lungs look good also.  The fluid in my lungs tested negative for cancer cells.  He said he has no idea why they filled with fluid.  He was very happy with the results and I am feeling much better.  I will have a chest x-ray on Monday to make sure they got all the fluid.  So this is a short blog but its all good news.  I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving, I know I have a lot to be thankful for!!

Peace!!

Shelly

Hi all,

My side effects carried on during the week and I stopped in Thursday to see Dr. Cavalcant.  I was having problems breathing.  Dr. Cavalcants office connects to Banner Desert Hospital so getting tests done just requires an elevator ride and a small walk depending on what department you are looking for.  On Thursday he sent me up to radiology to have a CTscan done.  The results came back as an enlarged heart and fluid in both lungs.  Dr. C. said he wanted the fluid removed ASAP and radiology was able to fit me in Thursday afternoon (Nov. 12th).  As a precaution they only remove the fluid from one lung at a time in case a lung collapses you still have one good one to work with.  They give you a shot in the back to numb the area and use ultra sound to guide the tube into your lung to drain it.  The procedure took minutes and I was able to breath better instantly.  The procedure is uncomfortable and painful but over quickly.  The tube is inserted into a vaccuum packed glass container so you can see what comes out.  It was gnarly!  Looked like a nasty beer with a whole lot of foam on top.  They removed 800cc's of fluid from my right lung on Thursday and over 700cc's of fluid from my left lung on Friday.  They also did an EKG on Friday morning.  On saturday I had to go back and have a MUGGAscan done of my heart.  I will see the doctor on Thursday and learn the results of all the tests.  I am breathing much better, altho there is still some pressure in my chest and side. I will blog again later in the week after i get the results back.



Hope everyone is well!

Shelly 

Howdy bloggers...

Last week was my first dose of 'herceptin only' and it was quite a hangover when it kicked in over the weekend.  They gave me a "loaded dose" meaning it was a larger dose than normal and it really packed a punch.  Saturday I was fatigued all day, but Sunday was the day all the side effects came out to play.  Started with vomiting Sunday morning  which lasted until early afternoon.  On top of that I had the chills and then I'd get hot and break out into a sweat.  Hot and cold all day.  My skin was crawling and i felt like I had a weight on my chest and was having trouble breathing.  My body really wanted to sleep through it but when I would lay down I felt like I couldnt breath and then anxiety would kick in.  All in all it was a miserable weekend.  I had some residuals Monday afternoon with more vomiting.  So they are either going to decrease the herceptin dose and/ or increase the benadryl dose.  My next treatment is December 3rd  and I see doctor Cavalcant that day.  Meanwhile I got the results from my PETscan last week and it looks like there is some cancerous activity in some lymph nodes surounding my heart and also in my spine.  Doctor Cavalcant said its mininal and strarted me on tamoxifen which is an estrogen blocker.  It acts by binding to the estrogen receptor on the breast cancer cell, thereby blocking stimulation of the cell.  It is the least toxic of cancer therapies.  Unfortuately it comes with possible side effects as well, including blood clots, endometrial cancer, increased risk of cataracts and most promintently hot flashes.  Doctor Cavalcant believes the herceptin and tamoxifen combined should take care of the activity found on the latest PETscan. 

This is my 3rd week back to work and it has been GREAT!!  I really am lucky to work at the Town of Gilbert.  Everyone is so supportive and positive.  Next week i will start working 40 hours a week again.  I'm sure its going to kick my butt for awhile,  since fatigue is one of the biggest side effects from treatments, but I'm looking forward to working with my partner Clint and getting back to "normal".

Tanner is growing like a weed and is turning into a good little pup.  He will get to meet Amy and Rolo, my brothers retrievers next month when Dan and Leah come out for Christmas.  We are all looking forward to that visit.  So stay tuned for lots of doggie pictures next month!




Hope everyone is well.  Enjoy life, its getting shorter everyday!

Shelly