Ringing the Bell
Today we finally got a win!! And I say WE because my husband is with me every step of the way. I don't know what the future may hold, but today I got to ring the bell after completing my last scheduled Chemo!!! I'll still be going back as I participate in the RUBY Clinical Trial with immunotherapy. But today, we reached a milestone.
Weird story, when I completed my adjuvant radiation last April (28 EBR/2 Brachy), there was no bell to ring. Literally, the bell had been removed due to COVID!! Heaven forbid patients should have had just a glimmer of joy in the midst of horrible situations. Its not like they couldn't have required gloves to be worn or something equally simple. Just remove what could be a highlight of someone's life. So I was joking today, that if they had only let me ring that bell LAST April, maybe I wouldn't have had to suffer through a recurrence after less than 6 months followed by 6 rounds of chemo. :-)
I am really so very grateful today. I don't have a crystal ball (I've tried to get one. No luck thus far, you know...supply chain issues), but today is a good day!!
Thanks for listening,
Ginnie 👊👍️
Comments
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Ginnie…you’re funny!
Whoo-Hooo and Hallelujah! Ringing the bell! Done! I’m so glad you got through it!
I, too, always use the “we!” My husband was right in the thick of it!
It’s kind of funny how our minds work and our little idiosyncrasies! I was asked (during COVID) if I wanted to ring the bell and I declined! My chemo nurse thought that was so odd! I was afraid if I rang it, it was premature to declare victory and I might be tempting fate! 😆
Enjoy your weekend!
❤️, A
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Funny thing is, at the time my original radiation treatments were done I really DID think it was over! I would totally have been ringing that bell and counting it as a victory! This time, I'm wiser. I know enough to know that this isn't over yet and will be an ongoing battle. I chose to simply celebrate the fact that the chemo was done...for now...lol!!
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cmb,
Yes it is!! And I am very much looking forward to a break for some healing.
I've been taking the Dostarlimab concurrently with the chemo, (in my pea brain, I have decided that I am most definitely NOT getting the placebo...lol). Now, during the maintenance phase, I'll continue with Dostarlimab infusions and add Niraparib orally.
I do still need to get past the CT Scan that I have coming up in about 10 days. We saw an almost complete response with my most recent scan, so I don't anticipate an issue. But these are sneaky little beasts and there's no promise that they'll follow logic.
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I felt the same way, but then everything went so wrong that last chemo I rang it just to get out of there faster.
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Hurrah, Ginnie!
My old school chant V I C T O R Y that's the victory battlecry!
My 6th and last chemo was a real trip, too. Started feeling breathless. Chemo stopped, call to Doc then restarted slower. I would have crawled to that bell because my cousin had given me a ' I ❤ my caregivers balloon' and I wanted that photo!
I rang the bell after external radiation and again after the 3 following brachy treatments. The radiation staff had plastic hand clappers. Lol I have a whole series of me indistinguishable in a head cover and mask.
On to immunotherapy 4 you, Ginnie!
((Hugs))
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Hugs, and very great, peppy post!
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Well, I had a CT Scan this past Thursday and got "not horrible" news. Evidently, I mis-read my previous scan report and since I "knew" what it said, I didn't bat an eye when the GO was so pleased with those results. Between poor grammar (or typing skills) on the report and wishful thinking on MY part, I thought that all of the lesions in my abdomen had resolved and couldn't be seen any more. That was incorrect. There is still one lesion measuring 1.1 cm x .5 cm and the 3mm (tiny little deadly beast) on my lung is also still there. Both are unchanged after the last treatment, so the report is calling them both "stable disease, no progression". I'll be seeing my GO on the 11th, so I'll be looking for more clarification.
I know that this is still good news, but it doesn't feel like it.
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TeamT, my best wishes to you. I have been "stable disease, no progression" for three years this summer, assuming the July scan is still stable. It's good news that it's not doing anything, but we'd like to be rid of them, right? Hope you get some good news from the doctor!
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Ginnie,
We all have a goal of "No Evidence of Disease." I haven't given up on that, but am coming to terms (yes, it takes me a while!) with the fact that maybe I'll get a long stretch of "progression free survival," and that may be the win for me.
It's been just over four years since my recurrence. I finished chemo four years ago this summer, but the following summer there was some question of possible progression. They changed my maintenance medication and my scans have been stable since. So sometimes I count it as four years. ;-) In any case, I'm ten years out from my original diagnosis.
Hoping for a true NED result for you!
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