Treated like a Guest not a Patient

It was a rainy ride down the mountain to Chapel Hill Thursday evening.  After Helen settled my beloved sister Nancy into her new role as proprietress of The Mercantile we left Todd around six in the evening and arrived at Karen and Rick Wilson's beautiful home in Chapel Hill just after nine.  Karen and Rick are neighbors in Todd and have been so generous to us.  Their guest cabin was home to visiting family and Karen bought out the local Harris Teeter supermarket so that we would not go hungry - for that matter I think we could have fed all of Todd with the food she so kindly dropped off.  

Karen was waiting for us when we arrived and welcomed us with warm brie and wine.  Her house is amazing - even more so with her talented touch at decorating.  The long drive made us poor company and the schedule at Duke required and early wake up so it was not long before we were off to bed.

It was raining buckets in the morning as we headed north on 15/501 to Durham (a metropolis known as the "City of Medicine").  The deluge made the Valet Parking (I'm not kidding) tempting but I told Helen that I'm not that far gone yet, so we headed to the parking structure and a warm welcome from a greeter stationed at the parking ticket gate.  A covered concourse kept us dry as we headed to the Cancer Center.  The medical facilities at Duke are HUGE but great signage made it easy to navigate through the Duke Clinic to the Cancer Center.  The Cancer Center itself was just completed in 2012.  The architecture is beautiful with bright natural light (yes, even when it is raining) and amazing curved wood accents.  Think of the best five star hotel you have ever been in and you will get the idea.  And I think that that was the idea of the whole center - to make you feel special, like a guest at a resort, which is a very nice state of mind to be in when you are looking cancer square in the eye.

I had three appointments scheduled that day - Lab Work, Doctor Appointment and Treatment.  Each appointment was on a different floor but only one check in was necessary because we were given a flashing pager, like you get in a busy restaurant, which we kept with us a the day progressed.  So we checked in at the Lab and waited in the comfortable lounge - I can't call that nice an area a waiting room - until the pager went off and it was time to meet the Lab Tech.  I did not receive any special dietary instructions but my experience with blood tests always included a admonition that I was not to let anything pass my lips after midnight so I had missed out on the yummy muffins that the ever generous Karen had left out for us.  After I asked about eating before giving blood the Lab Tech naturally told me that I could have eaten anything I wanted to.  So after the "sticking" and letting of blood we stopped at the clinic cafe for some Starbucks and scones before heading to the third floor to meet my oncologist Dr. Hanks.

Let me say here that I have met specialists at Duke before when I lived in Chapel Hill and, suffice it to say, I was so impressed that I never went back.  Nothing could be more different than my meeting (for the second time) with Dr. Hanks.  May all of you never, ever need an oncologist for melanoma but if, god forbid, you do, you will never find a more solid, down to earth, look you straight in the eye doctor who makes you feel like you are the most important person in the room.  He explained the treatment plan to Helen and I and was ready willing and able to answer any and all questions that we had in a most relaxed way.  What a great guy and, as Helen can attest, he is easy on the eye.  Condensing all that was said down to a sentence, I will be treated four times three weeks apart with an infusion of Yervoy with the most common side effects being diarrhea and rash with rare side effects ranging from bad to awful.  Helen and I both feel extremely comfortable in the care of Dr. Hanks.

So upstairs we went to the treatment area and another lounge where we waited for our pager to light up and do its vibrating dance.  After the dance commenced we met Nurse Melissa who escorted us to a comfortable room with cushioned recliners (mine was bigger because I'm "special"), a flat screen TV and a gadget with two bags hanging from the top.  You can see me looking at the bags in one of the pictures that Helen was good enough to post.  I am reading the orange sticker on one that says "Caution! Hazardous Drug" - how comforting.  Melissa explained that the infusion would take about 90 minutes and would be followed by a "flush" which would take just a few minutes more.  After she settled us in with a warm blanket (I told you, five star hotel) she got me hooked up in a most expert fashion.  A little while later she had some paperwork to review about side effects and how to contact the Cancer Center if any should present.  She also gave us some paperwork that looked like it was prepared by the drug company's attorneys that mentioned things like death being a possible side effect at which point I decided not to read on.  It really did say that but please do not be worried.  Yervoy is a very gentle but potent treatment especially compared to chemo.  The pharmacist also visited to further explain the drug and how it worked.  One of the interesting things that we talked about is how the over the counter sleep aid that Helen and I sometimes take may be exasperating her restless leg syndrome which can keep her awake!  After a very relaxing couple of hours watching the bag collapse Melissa came back and unhooked me from the I-V pump and we were good to go.

It may seem strange but our first stop after the treatment was Dickie's Barbecue where we enjoyed some excellent pork barbecue with all the trimmings.  We were both pretty hungry by that point and the food tasted wonderful.  We went back to the Wilson residence where I enjoyed a nice nap then went for dinner in a little Italian restaurant in Southern Village where I used to live.  Helen and I have been so busy dealing with the nuts and bolts of getting treatment that we have not had a lot of time to really talk about my cancer and what that may mean.  We had that chance while eating at the bar in this bistro and it was good to get it all aired out.  Such a subject has to lead to a few tears every now and then and Helen was wiping her eyes when we realized that folks in the restaurant were probably figuring me for the cad that dumps his partner in a public place.  This of course got us laughing at the irony of it all and I am sure totally confused our onlookers.  

We are back in beautiful Todd now with one treatment under our belts and three more to go.  I feel fine and even better than fine knowing that I am in treatment with some kind of chance of overcoming this disease.  Dr. Hanks explained that the onset of side effects was cumulative so that the more treatments the more chance of them occurring so I expect that I will have a fairly easy time of it for now.  

Thanks to all of you for your prayers, love and generosity.  I am surrounded and lifted up by the blessings that you all have bestowed on me.  

J