Recovery from liver surgery and chemotherapy 2

Two weeks after the surgery, we returned to Southampton to see Mr Armstrong for a follow-up appointment. He explained the details of the operation and hoped that he had been able to remove all the cancerous cells. He then examined the remaining drain, but decided to leave it in place as some bile was still leaking from the liver. That was bad news because the drain was becoming quite uncomfortable. I mentioned that in a couple of weeks I was going to a reunion and asked if I would be able to have a couple of drinks by then. His reply was that by then I could return to “normal drinking” I guess it depends on what he meant by Normal! The good news was that within a few more weeks my liver should have regenerated to near normal. I felt like Dr Who.

When we got home, Masha worked on the drain in my side, reducing the length slightly, and turning it so that it could drain properly. She also unblocked it and although the flow increased for a couple of days it then slowed to a trickle. I became much more comfortable, but it was still a drag and I couldn’t wait for it to be removed.

Two weeks later I had an appointment to see the oncologist Dr Harle at Poole. She seemed pleased with my progress, but recommended that I started a further 4 sessions of chemotherapy as soon as possible. Because of my previous reaction to taking Oxiplatin, she decided that this time I would only take the Capecitabine tablets, but that she would increase the dose to 4600 mm a day. Afterwards, Caroline the cancer nurse examined the drain in my side, and eventually after several indecisive opinions from others, decided to remove it. What a relief, and what a great nurse Caroline is.

At the end of that week we spent a couple of nights at Ross on Wye for a reunion with my old school friends. Although we only stayed for a short time and I couldn’t complete the longer walks, it was great to be there and to rekindle old friendships. We also spent a night at Hereford, and visited the cathedral and the Mappa-Mundi.

A week later I restarted chemotherapy. As before, I attended Wareham hospital where they checked me over and handed out the capecitabine tablets. I was to take 12 a day, 6 in the morning and six in the evening. Nicky, the head nurse agreed that I could take an extra week off after the first of four sessions so that we could take a holiday in Tenerife. So, in mid-October we flew to Tenerife and spent a very welcome week relaxing in Los Christianos. We did some walking and I even managed a few swims in the sea. The first since my diagnosis.

A few days after we returned, I started on the second session of chemo. Although I was only on the one drug this time, the dose was high, but despite that I felt reasonably OK and prided myself on being able to cope with the treatment.

They say, “Pride comes before a fall,” and in my case that was true, because as I began the third session I started to feel some of the side effects that were predicted for the drug. I felt tired and looked washed out. I began to get small cuts on my fingers and toes and my arthritic pains were worse than ever. At the end of the first week, I went to the podiatrist who poked around my big toe to try and improve an ingrowing toenail. She kept saying that she wasn’t sure she should be doing it as I was on chemotherapy. She was proved right because within a few days the toe became infected and in pain. On top of that I developed a really bad cold which seemed to come back for the third time

Consequently, I arranged to see Dr Harle the oncologist a few days before I was due to start the fourth round of Chemo. As soon as she saw me she said that she would cancel any further chemo and prescribed antibiotics for my fingers and toes. She said that I had done well to get as far as I had, and that the chemo should have had its effect by then. Looking at the comments on the internet, it does seem that 4600 m of capecitabine a day was quite a high dose.

Whatever, it was a huge relief to be taken off and to have a few weeks to recover before Christmas. 2017 was almost over, and by the end of the year I was beginning to recover and to feel more like my old self. Some effects from the chemo lingered, but 2018 began with me feeling better than I had a year before. AND, I was still alive.