Treatment Number 4

First things first.  The tumor has continued to shrink!  So, for those keeping score at home, it initially measured 5cm X 6cm and is now 2cm.  Why only one dimension?  Because that's the best he could do as it is becoming harder for him to find.  These are all of the things we want to hear.
Amanda has started her fourth round of treatments.  While I could make a laundry list of the ravages that these chemicals do to the body, there is really no point other than to demonstrate another reason of why this disease suckity-suck-suck-sucks.  I will point out one that is never really covered in the movies, and that is fatigue.  The oncologist warned early on that all of the symptoms would be cumulative as the treatments go on.  Fatigue, he said, would continue to get worse most noticeably.  For example, after the first treatment involving chemo, there was a day when Amanda was climbing the stairs at her office.  As long as I have known her, she has been a climb-the-stairs person.  However, on this day she hit a wall.  Not the type of wall we all hit when, say, we are exercising and stop the elliptical after an hour, because we just can't do another minute.  This was a complete physical shut down.  Her body was now in a war with gravity, and it was not putting up much of a fight.  She had to abandon the stairs with only one flight left to go, and take the elevator to her floor.  That was after the first chemo treatment.  So, you can imagine what a typical day is like for her now.
As a husband, this, plus all of the other side effects are so frustrating, because there is not a damn thing that I can do about them.  For Amanda, who is a stubborn and strong-willed person, they are frustrating, because, eventually, her body reaches a threshold much sooner than her mind does.  I think that all of us know the frustration of having the desire to do something, but not the physical means.  I know that I will never be able to go one round against Roy Jones, Jr., but I can get on with my day despite that.  Not being able to walk to the coffee shop with my family, however, is not something that I, personally, have ever had to face.  It is something that Amanda has to deal with all of the time now.  Every event must now be considered and scrutinized far more closely than it has been before.

1.)  Will there be a lot of walking involved?
2.)  Will there be a lot of people there, threatening the immune system?
3.)  How closely can we park?
4.)  Is there comfortable seating?
5.)  Ad infinitum...

It is a completely new world for us, and adapting to it has been tough, to say the least.  However, in the long run, all of these things are the toll to be paid for destroying this horrible disease.
One walk around the infusion center is all it takes to see that we are among the lucky.  Patients in varying stages of their own battles bring both inspiration and perspective.  Each and everyone of them has a story of his\her own, and each of those stories is full of every bit of heartache and revelation as Amanda's story has been.  To see so many people rage against the dying of the light can make things like having no WiFi seem a little less life threatening.
If any of you are wondering what you can do to help, there are a lot of people who are going through this all alone.  There are places that can use volunteers to help support those who have no other support.  (http://cancersupportindy.org/, http://www.youngsurvival.org/about/staff,   I would encourage each of you to consider giving a little time to these places or even check in with local infusion centers to see how you can help support those in need.  Some centers allow volunteers to sit with patients and read to them or just have a conversation while been treated.  There are a lot of people who could use a smile or two.  Think about it.  Okay?
If you are not a member of the Facebook page, and would like to be, request a group add at https://www.facebook.com/groups/275956439194637/.  This is a private group, so if you have a problem getting to it, shoot me an email at, droahrig@gmail.com.
 Once again, thank you to all of you for the continued support.  Amanda has truly drawn strength from every card, email, package and Facebook post.  Thank you to all of you, from all of our family.