Since my last blog a lot has happened, COVID finding ended for the most part. I was diagnosed with bladder cancer and two of my best friends passed away.
Let me start from the beginning, my RV trip to North Carolina would be the last time I would see my friend Sue. Her cancer was rare and aggressive, it metastasized to her lungs, and she had brutal Chemo and radiation. But ever the inspire person she was, she would play tennis or pickle ball in spite of the pain or nausea. So, when I was coming back home and started peeing blood, I was a little unnerved. After calling my physician and being told to get to urgent care in Nebraska and again emergency in Colorado I was given antibiotics and told to get an MRI when I get back home. I had thought the bleeding stopped but after seeing my physician she instructed me to see a urologist and I was diagnosed with a high-risk cancerous tumor in my bladder. So, for the next 3 1/2 years I fought this cancer. I had several rounds of Chemo injected into my bladder which wasn’t fun, but I didn’t have the hair falling out or the nausea. During this time Sue and I talked regularly about our “cancers”. My tumor was taken out and it came back 2 more times. The Chemo wasn’t working, and the tumor sat right near the ureter (where the tube from the bladder to the kidney meet) and I had to have stent put in because it would collapse. At one point a nephrostomy tube was inserted (not fun) so I was transferred to UCLA and the doctor was awesome. He immediately did a robotic surgery to move my ureter to the top of the bladder and there was no need for a stent or tube. I was scheduled for immunotherapy in which they genetically change cells to fight the cancer cells. This is also injected into the bladder, and I had to go to LA UCLA to get it. The first time was once a week for 6 weeks. But during this time Sue had passed away and I no more had a friend who knew what I was going through. This broke my heart.
During this time my sweet Priscilla had been diagnosed with enlarged heart, she always had a small murmur but nothing to be concerned about. But when I took her to see the vet for her allergy shot, the vet was concerned and wanted to do a blood panel. Priscilla was immediately put on heart meds. She was doing good until she wasn’t. One night she wasn’t breathing well and at 3 am I called my son, and we took her to emergency. They put her in an oxygen chamber for 12 hours. She was there for 2 days and when I went to pick her up, they put her on Lasik pills and upped her heart meds. She had fluid leaking from her heart, she lasted about 6 weeks, her heart just gave out. I miss her so much, she was the best traveling companion even though she hated being in cars and the RV, I know my friend Sue has taken her under her wing.
After my first round of immunotherapy, I went in for my 3-month cystoscopy. That is where the doctor puts a tiny camera into your bladder to see if there are any tumors and they take out fluid for testing. The test came back negative for high grade cancer which means I am in remission! I still have to go every 3 months for 3 rounds of immunotherapy probably for the next year just to make sure I stay in remission. It has been a long road, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I just wished that my two best friends Sue and Priscilla were here to celebrate with me. But I know they are happy for me in heaven!
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