The last week of the VMP was pretty difficult although I think my mother was in a little better condition than when we began the break (she was suffering a lot at that point). She suffered with nausea and was barely able to eat much. At least the sores on her lips didn't recur. After the last week of chemo, her white blood cell count was low again so Dr. Picozzi cut out the last three days of her chemo and she only had radiation for those last three days. Mom's last day of radiation was Friday, March 24. The radiation team was so nice - they gave her a certificate of completion and we rang a bell to signify she was done with that round.
She also developed a low grade fever during the last days of her treatment. We were a bit worried because having an infection when your white blood cell count is low can be extremely dangerous. So we took her temperature very frequently and it generally varied between 99.5 and 100.5. It reached 100.8 at one point. The VM team's "when to call" sheet stated only to call when fever reached 101 so we never called in off hours. We saw Dr. Picozzi on Monday and he decided to run a battery of tests to check for infection just in case (since we were planning to leave Seattle on Wednesday). All the tests were fine and he gave us permission to leave! We will return to Seattle at the beginning of May for a CT and restaging and to plan the next phases. Dr. Picozzi said the next phases are "much easier" than what she went through. I really hope that is true because I don't think my mother can go through that again.
It has now been a little over a week since her treatment finished and I would say that today is the first day I think my mother feels somewhat OK. She's still been suffering from nausea and indigestion but everyday seems just a little better. I hope the trend continues and that she can make a full recovery as soon as possible.
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