November 11, 2018 by Tammy Carmona

Rest and Recovery

I have to update you all because I was in really bad shape in my last post. That was the closest to death I’ve ever been. The chemo therapy elevated my calcium levels so much that it almost killed me.

I came from the hospital and had a home care nurse visit twice a week and a physical therapist visit weekly. My vitals slowly became better and my strength started coming back. I can walk again! I’m not back to where I was. I can walk around inside my house. I can get out of the car and make it inside the grocery store to the wheelchair. Oh, the joy of going to the grocery store again for the first time! I can’t drive and still have to take a lot of breaks. I can’t do steps, but I do see progress!

I made it outside on Halloween and sat around a bonfire with my family! Memories💕. I will include pictures.

I see my oncologist again on the 28th of this month. Until then my plan is to rest and try to recover more.

Thank you all for the love and prayers. They mean so much to me!

Enjoy the holiday season and make lots of wonderful memories!💕

August 29, 2018 by Tammy Carmona

Dropping Tumor Markers!

After one triple dose of Paclitaxel my tumor markers have dropped from 1615.9 to 999! It wasn’t easy, but so worth seeing such a big drop after one treatment!

I was down for a while and was extremely weak. I still managed to have a day out with my grandbabies Sunday. My legs were still weak. I sat down with Evie and T.J. had to help get me up. First to my knees, then to my feet. Exhausting but so worth it! Here are pictures….

Then they spent the night with me on Monday! I miss them so much after chemo! Jax always has to have a pizza party in our bed and Evie wasn’t feeling well that night. I was just so happy to spend time with them! More pictures…

Now I’m off with my Javiee to see Lynyrd Skynyrd this weekend in Atlanta!! I come home to port surgery on Tuesday and chemo on Wednesday! At least I’ll have a good weekend before!

I love you guys! Get out and make some memories!💕💕

August 26, 2018 by Tammy Carmona

Paclitaxel (Taxol). Back where I started.

I’m back in the chemo chair. I’m revisiting Taxol, the first chemo regimen I ever did. It worked the first time so I’m hoping since it’s been 5 years it will work again. I’m doing three rounds at once every three weeks instead of one round every week for three weeks. I was told the side effects would be harder but liked the idea of only going once every three weeks. I’ve had and I’ve recovered from round one. I actually like doing three rounds at once. I was exhausted for eight days. I even fell when I stood up to get out of bed because my legs didn’t hold me. It left me with a nasty rash that cleared in a few days. My port has been removed because it had cracked. We went into a vein in my arm which was a mistake. It burnt my arm and my fingers. I’m having a new port surgery before my next round. I had a little nausea and the skin is peeling off every one of my fingers, top and bottom. It’s not painful, just ugly. I can deal with these side effects. I’m just praying it works! Here are some pictures of what round one left me with……

I should be having my next treatment this Tuesday. I’m putting it off for a week because my aunt and uncle gifted me with Lynyrd Skynyrd tickets for next weekend! I grew up with that band! Not missing that!

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Thank you Aunt Cindy and Uncle John! You couldn’t have ever given me a better gift!❤️

Last week my sweet mama drove me almost six hours to see Kris. We talked and had an 8 hour food fest. She’s doing so good! It made my heart so happy to see her! We had pictures made. They will be here soon and I’ll share them then! I love you mama! Thanks for always being there!

Here’s the cherry on top! T.J. started 10th grade! He was in 4th grade when I was diagnosed. I cried like a baby once he left for school. I’m so blessed!