Schrödinger's Cancer

I think my DH coined this phrase. It's what we've taken to calling the seemingly endless period of unknown between a CT scan and meeting with my oncologist to discuss results. While some people receive results the same day, my oncologist has split his time between 2 cancer centers and I've always had a 7-12 day wait to find out if I'm able to continue looking ahead to the 5 year "cured" goal or if I'm facing more surgeries and/or chemo. Am I still NED (no evidence of disease) or am I living with some degree of malignancy.

Yesterday I had a CT scan and have another 5 days to wait until my results. I would have had another 11 days, but my beloved oncologist, Dr. C, will no longer be dividing his time between 2 centers. So, I get faster results, but my new doc won't be literally the smartest person I know, any longer. I don't think she's a colorectal cancer specialist, either. I'll give her a chance, but I may choose to follow Dr. C. It wouldn't involve a massive hassle, since he'll be 45ish minutes away, rather than 25. And as long as I'm only doing scans every 6 months, that's no biggie. I could probably continue to have scans, blood work, and port flushes closer to home and just make the trip to Grand Rapids for in-person appointments. Were I still in active treatment, there is no question that I'd follow him. An MD friend of mine is also a patient of his and she thinks the world of him, too. She's very much encouraging me to stick with him. I still have 6 months to make up my mind....

I have seen my blood work. My CEA (tumor marker) is largely unchanged...but it was never even close to above normal, even when I had a massive tumor in my ass. What's frustrating is that my white blood cell count is still low. And this time even lower than 6 months ago. I'm >2 years out from chemo, so it should have rebounded. My ANC is also low, now. But I think I figured-out why.

I've been working on losing weight on-and-off since late last Fall. When I haven't actively been cutting calories, I've been eating too many carbs and not enough protein. When I've cut calories, I've focused on eating plenty of veggies, berries, and salads...but not so much protein. Especially as I avoid a lot of red meat and I'm so tired of chicken. Most days I'm probably getting half the protein I should be ingesting, from the look of my diet log (Lose It!). *light bulb moment* Insufficient protein can cause low white blood count, brain fog, sluggishness, poor/slow exercise recovery, dry skin, hair loss -- all things I have been struggling with.

So, I'm going to make a better point of paying attention to my protein intake, even if it means drinking more smoothies. Muscle Milk's cake batter flavor is pretty good. It's a good excuse to make more batches of chili, too. That's one of the few ways that I don't mind eating chicken, since the beans and sauce and tomatoes add so much flavor to otherwise bland meat. I could eat a lot of chicken salad, too, and an occasional pouch of flavored tuna.

Cutting back on alcohol would be helpful, too, though I'm not really indulging more than 1-2 nights/week, in large part because I end up exceeding my calorie goals fast with more than maybe 2 servings. Booze can cause low white cells and it ups my cancer recurrence risk.

Inspiration

Buuuut...martinis are so fun. We made our first traditional vodka martinis in the past week, as well as DH's first lemon drop. I cleaned-out a mostly junk cabinet to move all of our adult beverage glassware, shaker, bar accessories, and sad assortment of liquor bottles. Even with only a few bottles, it's hard to see what's available. So DH wants a woodworking project.

This is cheap RTA unit on Amazon, but would be really nice in something like real walnut or teak. He could source the glass doors through his work.

This is only 30" wide...we'd likely go closer to 36". Maybe attach the stemware holders to one side. Perhaps some sort of LED strips for interior illumination.

Our deck needs to be redone (the cheap wood was still oozing sap for probably 5+ years, so the stain didn't stick), but we have too many mosquitos to make that a priority. A classy midcentury modern piece of heirloom quality furniture seems like a far more satisfying project.

Fxck Cancer!