Port Installation and More Fluids

4:30AM came quickly after a night of no sleep. Tossing and turning and not much else.  Showered using medicated soap as I was instructed and into my clothes albeit a little gingerly.  The leg is still swollen and because I am favoring it, my right knee is sore as well.  I drove by my sons house on the way to the hospital and he then dropped me off using my SUV.

Ok, I am here, it is 5:30AM, and wondering just what in the world I was doing here two hours before my
surgery was scheduled. Waited in the staging room and watched TV for a good hour and then was asked to
change into my gown and lay back on the bed.  We can put a man on the moon but we still can't develop a hospital gown that is easy to use.  The nurse said this style has been in use for over a hundred years.

About 6:40AM my doctor dropped by and asked what the heck was going on? Evidently no one had told him I was diagnosed with cancer.  He reviewed the documentation and then simply said "a port huh?"  Uh not a warm comfy feeling knowing your doctor walks in cold to the situation.

A port is a device that allows them to give you chemo without having to constantly insert an IV.  Eventually I will have a small pump strapped to my waist that will control the drip.  It was installed on my left side, in front, and just below my collar bone.  The surgery went fine and, yes, there is pain but livable.  When showering I am not to face the shower directly for fear of loosening the edges of the clear plastic covering over my wound.  A pain, yep, but it must be done.

I dropped by OC cafe afterwards and had a swiss steak dinner and did it taste good after fasting for twelve hours.  The doctor told me that I must keep my walking up and eat a good diet and this I will try to do. It's rather hard right now due to the swelling in the leg.

It appears that even within departments, some times coordination isn't done. I had two appointment for Thursday. One at 7:45AM for chemo and one at 8:30AM for radiation. It takes six hours for chemo alone. Can we say oops!  So far the hardest thing has been trying to understand them and double checking their scheduling.