Life goes on

Hello all!

Have you missed me?

In case you were wondering, or not keeping track, it has been three months since I got the remission announcement. For those of you that remember, I meet with my oncologist every three months for the first three years and have a CT scan every three months for the first year. I meet with Dr. Azar a week ago today. And I am still in remission.

In other news, I am back in Bloomington and loving every minute of it. I am taking four classes and I have an internship with the Sylvia Plath literary symposium (happening at the end of October if you want a literary reason to visit me). I am not particularly excited about any of my classes but I don't hate any of them either, and I am beginning to be more interested in the majority as time progresses.

I am embracing the social life of Bloomington- in a responsible way. I am having fun and doing what I want.

I am also looking into putting my photos on cards and possibly selling them (hence the post below) to build up my travel fund. Check out some of the photos I am more proud of here. <Click the "here" to look at the photos.> If you want cards made, let me know the picture (I will come up with an ID system), card type, message for the card (can be blank) and how many you want.

Anyway, shameless pitch aside, nothing much is new.

Maybe there will be more later. Do you want to hear more? I started this blog to keep everyone up to date on my treatment. That chapter continues to be written, but it is slow and steady without much excitement. Life continues to change and deal me new experiences, challenges and adventures.

5x7 Folded Card

Picture In Landscape 5x7 folded card

Shutterfly custom cards for Valentines Day, Easter & Mother's Day.

View the entire collection of cards.

If you didn't know (good news!)

My deepest apologizes if you have yet to receive the memo but I have been making the most of it and have been quite busy.


However, without further ado:
I AM IN REMISSION!!!!!!!!


No more caps lock, I don't want you to feel as if I am yelling at you.


Here is a brief-ish summary since I last typed:


I went to Bloomington and got a studio apartment behind-ish Yogi's (really it is more behind Mr. Copy but it isn't as well known). We also took a mini-trip for spring break to Columbus, OH. We went to the Franklin Park Conservatory and COSi. Pictures available here.


And there was Rummage Sale.


And then I had chem #10 and then chemo #11.


And then chemo #12- the finale! A few close friends went with us (plus Dad and Kim). And one of my nurses stayed past her shift end to see me ring the done-with-chemo bell. (Video on Dad's FB if you want to see and are "friends" with him.)


Being the awesome person I am, I made roughly 4 dozen cupcakes for my Thursday class and chemo nurses (red velvet w/cream cheese and funfetti w/white & sprinkles and Oreos b/c one girl was vegan).


When we got home, I found 3 boxes of flowers on the front porch from "Becky". I put the quotes because there was a bit of confusion about the flowers. 2 of the notes said "Becky"- Becky P. However, the third was signed "BBE&A" so Mom and I thought is was from Becky, Brain, Email and Andy. Nope, it was also from Becky P (and her family).


I also got flowers from Brandt & Christine (the balloons from the previous flowers were still floating in the living room).


I went to Bloomington for CollinsFest- Mom drove as I was still tired.


I went to California to visit the West Coast Van Wyks. It was very much fun. Special shout-out to "Uncle" Gary for the plane tickets. Picture here. 


I also started cognitive training with a woman at Mom's office- I can name the presidents forward and backward really quickly. When not training with Naz, I worked a few hours a day (2.5) at MCCOY in Early Intervention & Prevention admin assistant stuff.


Then I had an interview with IU Health as a Corporate Communications intern (spoilers... I got it an I love it).


Then I had my CT and PET scan. And I got my results and I am in the clear (pending the next 5 years).


We met with Dr. Azar and as you can guess from the beginning of this (turning out to be long) message - I am in remission. I have a 5cm bit of scar tissue in my chest but there are no live cancer cells in my body. But Dr. Azar can't get rid of me that easily. I will see him every 3 months for the next 3 years and every 6 months for years 4 & 5 (scans every 3 for the first year, then every 6 for years 2 through 5).


Dr. Azar told me to expect to gradually start feeling better. It can take up to 6 months to get to 80% of "feeling good" and a full year to get back to 100%. 


I am feeling much better. I got my port out - I was ready to rip it out on my own or seriously cut myself in the area and then go to the ER and just have them take it out while fixing the gash.


So anyways, thank you for all of your support- physical, emotional, philosophical, religious, telepathic, etc.
It meant and continues to mean the world to me.


If you want to share my story with anyone, feel free to share. If you would like me to share it with someone, let me know or give them my contact information.


Thank you.

Late but worth the Wait

I'm sorry it has been awhile since my last post. My classes take more work than I had originally anticipated and I haven't been bouncing back from chemo as much as before.

I went down early Thursday, Feb 16 with my aunt Becky to get my lab work taken care of. The wait was a bit longer than usual and the nurse had some trouble getting a blood return. Luckily we had enough time for lunch and enjoyed food from the campus center. I had some yummy pizza and Aunt Becky had a salad. I went to class, two literature classes. We had good discussions and I went over and met Mom for treatment. The port worked fine and we were out of there after no time.

Friday was special because my sister, Katherine, came for a visit. Friday Katherine and I went into Broad Ripple so she could buy new running shoes, she has a big race coming up. Then we all went downtown to meet Dad for dinner at Creation Cafe. Saturday night we had a family game night for the first time in a really long time. The last time we had a family game night we played Trouble when I was quite little and I cried because people kept sending my pieces back to the start. This time we played Clue. Turns out we are missing one weapon piece and two of the character pieces. We still have all the cards though so it still works out. Kim took a gamble and lost out. Mom ended up winning which surprised us all. After we finished the game, I convinced everyone that we should continue on to a family movie night. We watched Clue, the movie and it was a hoot. Watch the trailer here if you have never watched Clue Sunday saw the entire Van Wyk clan at church for a great service led by the youth group at Fairview.

The rest of the week went by without much incident. Turns out everyone was hating one of the books as much as I was. It was a huge relief. Classes went along as before. On Friday I picked my friend Nathan up at the airport to move along to the Megabus. It was great to see him for a few hours. Mom went to Chicago for the weekend with Aunt Becky so Dad and I made tacos for dinner. Saturday Dad and I went to work out together and then went to see a movie. We got free tickets and ate at Johnny Rockets and then watch This Means War. It was a lot of fun. It was a good mix of explosions and covert operatives and pretty men. Sunday was more church. I also picked Nathan up from the Megabus and took him to the airport. I spent the remainder of the weekend reading.

Monday and Tuesday of this week were a bit boring, though Monday morning I got to wake up to two lovely little girls playing in the basement, I think college should get President's Day off as well. Wednesday was not so fun. I went in for a CT scan and that was less than fun. They were doing a contrast so they went through my port- which wasn't numb so that was not comfortable. The scan went well on its own but then I got a heparin shot it is did not go well. The heparin makes me feel a lot of nausea and really crummy so I went home and slept it off.

Today was much better.
Mom, Dad and I met with Dr. Azar and he had some very good news.

Dr. Azar had hoped for at least a 50% reduction in the cancer sites (I'm approx. 66% through chemo) Instead we got - NINETY PERCENT! (Or more... he didn’t want to be toooo optimistic)! He said it could have been a better report. He is feeling that I may not have to have radiation this summer, but isn’t saying it is still a possibility or the cancer could return.

I still have to finish the remaining three rounds of chemo and 4-6 weeks after that have another CT scan and PET scan. Between the two the tests will give Dr. Azar a clear picture of (PET) metabolic activity [i.e. energy] and (CT) shape, size, location if any cancer remains - but who knew what beautiful words these could be

As it stands:
liver is normal
spleen, pancreas, adrenal glands are unremarkable
kidneys are normal
bowel, intestines, uterus, and bladder are normal
abdominal aorta is normal
bones intact
heart is normal, aorta & great vessels are intact
(and great medical lingo here (scrabble players note))
the left supraclavicular lymphadeopathy has also nearly resolved.
previously visualized mass effect upon the SVC and azygos vein has improved with persistent attenuation of the left brachiocephalic vein (I think that’s the left lung)

They had some trouble with the blood drawn for my labs so they gave me a "clot buster" but had to draw my labs from my arm. The clot was cleared in time for chemo so that was great. It took a bit of time to get my drugs but they get them and I was home just before 6. A lovely neighbor brought dinner and dessert. It was very yummy.

Thank you for all your support and prayers. They mean a lot to my family and my self.

Finding Fun

February 2 was chemo number 7 with a meeting with Dr. Azar.  Mom and I met with Dr. Azar, with Dad on speakerphone (ratings & Superbowl meant no day off this time!)  Dr. Azar is very happy with  my answers to his questions and to what he is NOT finding in his physical exams.  I will have a CT scan at the end of the month and Dr. Azar is hopeful that the scan will show more than a 50%  reduction in the size of my lymph nodes.  He doesn't believe that I will need radiation but if I do need radiation it would only be for a month. As a result, I have started to look for housing in Bloomington for next fall. Bloomington is...special when it comes to housing. People start looking and signing in August for the following year. I am currently looking at one bedroom apartments near campus and trying to find friends who need to fill a room.

Chemo itself went well enough, ish. It was delayed because the nurses wanted to double check with Dr. Azar that he was alright with me getting chemo because my white blood cell count is really, really low. He gave the green light but I am supposed to wear a mask out it public. This made church difficult on Sunday because it was my first time having to wear a mask. It is surprisingly uncomfortable, hot and unattractive. I have been wearing masks daily during my classes and it is surprising how much it restricts air flow when I am walking from building to building. On the plus side, it is a great diet tool; as I learned during my cousin's Sweet Superbowl 16, masks cut down on grazing.

Chemo makes me more tired now, as I mentioned before. The weekend after this last one was a bit tough in that regard. Originally, I was supposed to have two tests and two critical response papers due the week after. One test was moved to this Monday because of the Superbowl class cancellation on Monday. One of the papers was moved to this Tuesday because the prof had not returned the previous paper and she wanted us to know how we had done before we turned in another. I don't know what I would have done with all of those things to do.  Sleep is great and the easiest way to fight being tired but when work needs to be done, it is hard to shut off my brain and sense of responsibility to my academics. I have been cleared for some light exercise so I am going to try to find time to work that into my routine.

I got my hair cut. No new purple though, trying to decide if my hair would hold the color. Currently my hair is 3 different colors (has a bit of an interesting look to it) and 6 different textures (yay chemo!). 

This past weekend was awesome. I went down to Bloomington to see my friends and had a great time. I was able to see people I hadn't seen during my first trip and eat places I hadn't as well. My friend Hanna celebrated her 21st birthday with a party and trip to the bars, don't worry, I stayed out of the germ-filled bars, though Bloomington is more cancer-patient friendly than Indianapolis, all of the bars are smoke free so I could go in them if I wanted, whereas I can't really in Indy. It was also the annual Viennese Ball at Collins LLC (where I lived my first two years on campus and helped to plan those years). We looked mighty fine. More pictures available here! 

This week has been rather unexciting since returning from Bloomington. I got my test back from one of my classes- 98%. I took a test and wrote a paper. I also gave out Valentines to my Tuesday classes, I am so sweet ya know. More class tomorrow. Thursday I go in early for my blood draw, followed by chemo #8.

And now I go to bed.

Sleep sweet.

Halfway There with Hair

My last chemo appointment marked the halfway point for my chemo treatments. Six down and six to go.

This was my first chemo since starting class at IUPUI. My good friend Deb took me down early to get my blood drawn to try and speed up the process for later in the day. Then she took me to lunch at the Campus Center, the cheese pizza was surprisingly yummy. Then I went off to class. The first one went well enough except that my port had been accessed and I had a needle in my chest connected to a length of tubing. It was quite uncomfortable. My next class was alright, we had read a short story for the day involving a guy with cancer ("The Pura Principle" by Junot Diaz) and it didn't sit well with me. Due to having chemo that day, I was a bit on edge and while trying to explain my dislike of the story and pretty much all of the characters in it, prefaced by saying I was a cancer patient, I started crying while trying to make my point. For those of you who know me, you know I hate to cry for no reason- if I am bleeding for instance, I am fine with crying, but a story isn't a very good one, so that was a bunch of fun. After class I went to meet Mom and our friend Christine for chemo. Because I had had mouth sores for the previous two weeks, the nurses decided not to order my drugs until they had a chance to talk to me about how bad they were. We worked out that the sores were manageable and fading so they ordered the drugs. We had a nice time while there though the person one booth down from me was listening to the tv at an annoying volume. After chemo we came home to a yummy dinner of ranch chicken and noodles and homemade rolls from Sandy. It was very yummy.

Chemo this time around was more tiring that previous treatments. I think this is because of the amount of activity I have taken up since that last. I am going to class four days a week for 12 hours and am using my brain a lot more than before. It has been nearly two weeks since my last chemo and I still feel a bit drained.

Since chemo, though, I have been busy. There is school- yay! I also put in a few hours at work with Mom and done some babysitting- money! (I definitely work for the money and it is a nice part of babysitting but I enjoy the kids' company and antics as well.) Last night Mom, Dad and I went down to the Super Bowl Village and had a good time. We parked for $0.50 at a meter near the Statehouse and got pizza for $8. It was the cheapest night we have had in awhile. We also got to see the Village People concert for free. (And I got to yell at a drunk guy trying to dance but running into the people around him, the yellow jackets removed him a short time later. It is one thing I hadn't realized that I missed from Bloomington parties, I really enjoy telling drunk guys that they are being stupid.)

Not much else in going on. It feels as if my hair is getting thinner by the day, I find it on my pillow and shedding on my clothes and whenever I run my hands through my hair (which happens a lot when you are thinking about your head). I'm not ready to shave it though. I tried on a wing I got for free and accept that I have been walking around with purple hair for the last few months, it could be my length (had I not gotten the messy bob) and color. As it turns out, purple hair doesn't really work with a transition to wig. Maybe if I had thought to start wearing it when I started classes but I think it would be quite noticeable now, not to mention confusing to some of the teachers that take attendance. As I am filling out internship and job applications, I think I might wear it to interviews but we shall see where things go. The future will come with whatever it wants, I just have to wait and see what it brings, like a church pitch-in.

Uncommon Cancer Patient

It's nearly my next and I've yet to tell you about my last.

So...two weeks ago I had chemo #4. We (Mom, Dad and I) went down early to buy a parking permit for IUPUI so that I can park closer to my classes and not be constantly out of breath. Time was running out at the permit office so Dad stayed to acquire the permit for me and Mom and I went up to get checked in. We met with my doctor after a bit of difficulty with my blood draw, someone didn't notice that I had a port so the first nurse that took me back couldn't do it and my name may or may not have been passed on to the port-drawing nurse. My doctor said everything is looking good. He did say that I won't know that I will keep my hair until I finish treatment and still have my hair, though the longer I keep it the better my chances. If by some chance you were wanting to shave your head with me, don't wait, shave it if that was your plan all along or keep it.

We went over for the actual chemo portion. My friend Tommy joined us. Mom went home after a bit but Dad stayed around giving the nurses a hard time in the way that he does so well. The chemo went well enough though a bit slow- I think I have said this multiple times.

The rest of the evening passed without much incident. I rested and then ate a yummy dinner and watched Bones and went back to bed. Good night.

The next morning was coffee group, a group of Mom's friends that started in our old neighborhood over 18 years ago. More yummy food and good conversation. When my aunt Becky got ready to leave, she mentioned that the family was going tobogganing over the weekend. I convinced her to take me with them. It was awesome. There were 13 of us. We went tobogganing, walked around the park, did puzzles, played some games and ate more good food.

Really "fun" puzzle with my cousin Emily, though it was a group effort.

The whole gang, aren't we good looking.

Then I started classes on Monday. Yay! I am taking four classes, four days a week with two on each day. It works out nicely except that I have two literature classes on the same day. Lots of reading, but it could be much, much worse.

Since there was a three-day weekend, I decided to go down to Bloomington to see people down there. It was a great time. I was able to see friends that I met in Bloomington, my cousin who just moved down there and a friend I met in London. I didn't get to see everyone but it was really nice to see the ones that I did and there is plenty of time to go back.

Tuesday was back to class (grr Huck Finn). Which bring me to today. Yay! You are all caught up. Doesn't that feel good. You may have noticed that this covers two weeks which mean, you guessed it, I have chemo tomorrow. I will give you a bit of a preview since I have a feeling I will run late on my next post as well.

Our good friend Debra is taking me to campus early to get my blood drawn. Then we will grab lunch. Then I get to go to both of my classes. Then I will meet Mom and our friend Christine for the actual chemo.
Fun Fun Fun.

The End, for now