New

Sorry for the late update. My sisters test results came back from the donor screening place. Unfortunately they are not compatible with me. I am told there are 12 international leads they will follow up on, but it means my transplant will be later than expected (Jan instead of Dec). They need to contact these 12 people and find out if they still would like to be donors (they could've put their name down 10 years ago or something and have changed their mind) and then they need to be tested and retested to make sure everything is compatible. Then after that they will be asked if they want to donate stem cells or bone marrow. Stem cells are more preferred as they are infant cells and will take to the body easier but it is the donors decision. The doctors remain confident that a donor will be found and we are still aiming for the transplant in Jan.

I finished my first cycle of chemotherapy on friday. Each cycle is about 8 doses of chemo i think and I have one or two more cycles before the transplant. I am coping........ok with the chemo it is just really draining. I am constantly tired but hardly get any sleep because of the meds I am on and always have a sore gut. My hair is also still here! It is unusual, it should've started coming out by now. I have noticed that my fringe/brow is thinning though so its a start. I am anxious for it to fall out so I can just shave it off. I mean I would rather have no hair than desperately try to keep the thinning hair I have left.

I haven't done too much over the last few days. Just taking it easy at home. I have put on more weight (the doctors are very pleased about this, I was way too skinny) and now my injections aren't so painful thanks to the flab round my tummy. The district nurse still comes round every single morning to give me these injections, its more of a nuisance now than anything. I do have a massive pain threshold and my techniques for coping for pain are pretty awesome I reckon. I have been taught to put myself in a state of light-hypnosis and it actually really helps.

Hmmm what else to write.......... I guess I could tell the story of the fuck-up the hospital made. When I was supposed to be having my second dose of chemo I was told to be at the ward at 9am to talk to the doctors and receive some meds. I waited eight freaking hours to see a doctor and get chemo. eight. hours. I wasn't even allowed out of the ward for a second in case the doctors came while I was out. Auckland apparently hadn't shipped down my chemo in time and they had missed two more flights to get it down (the chemo only has a shelf life of 6 hours). To make matters worse, it was only a registrar who saw me and pretty much checked my breathing and gave me a once over. I didn't know what treatment I was having and what the plan was. I was in the dark about everything. So after waiting eight hours for this doctor I was given my lumbar puncture (chemo injected into the spinal cord fluid thing - ouch) and then was given my regular chemo. All went according to plan up until we were about to leave and mum just did a double check on my protocol. Turns out they had forgotten to give me one important chemo. It had been left in the drugs room and wasn't picked up because "there was a sticker on it". That sticker was a piece of scrap paper. What makes matters worse is that it is imperative I get chemo on the days I am registered for it. It all has fits inside this nice puzzle/timetable and one balls up and they have to change my protocol. After mum inquired about the chemo I didnt have the nurses went to find my protocol. They had lost it. They had lost my treatment plan. My original chemo treatment plan that lists all the drugs I need and the whole plan for everything. Fast forward a couple of hours they call the charge nurse from home in, we get an apology (fyi it was a very heartfelt apology) and we are assured it won't happen again. Hopefully you can follow the story haha it si not very well written...

It is so obvious though that the nurses and doctors are overworked at the hospital. Assigning one nurse to three or four patients that are receiving chemo is way too much of a work load. When you are being given chemo the nurse has to pay all her attention onto you. You are monitored before, during and after the chemo is administered and this means the nurse is with you the whole time. They can't manage three or four different people like this. Then I hear the government is cutting more nursing jobs so it is all going to turn to shit. I semi want to go up to the law makers and ask them what they would do in my position? Health care should be top priority to be honest. If Mr.Keys daughter/son was in hospital suffering from cancer I am sure he would think twice about cutting nurses jobs. End of political rant.