Oncologist...

On November 13, 2008, we met with Dr. Zafar, the oncologist. He said her wounds have healed perfectly. During the surgery, not only did they remove the tumor, but they also inserted a "port-a-cath" into the left side of her chest. It is a port for the chemotherapy to be given to her. Since she is fully healed, chemo is the next stage. He gave her the choice of waiting until after Thanksgiving to start, so she chose Monday, December 1 to receive her first dose. He also said she only needs to take 4 doses, once every three weeks. Each dose is injected into her at the doctor's office and the dosing takes 4 hours. The next day, she will go back to the office to receive a "growth factor" injection, which will restore her white blood cells to keep her healthy. He warned that she will lose her hair by the 18th day of treatment... which means around the 19th of December. He also advised that she takes the week of treatment off of work so that she can recooperate from the side effects. Lastly, a chemo teaching class was scheduled for November 19 to teach her all about the chemo drugs she will be receiving and how a normal chemo day will go.