Following the appointment that laid out the game plan the next few weeks were filled with appointments as radiology prepared to ensure they were targeting the exact spots. They actually gave him small tattoos – three of them - one on his abdomen area and one on each of his sides. They would serve the purpose of pointing the exact spot where the radiation would be given to target the tumor.
The schedule was to start chemotherapy and radiation on the first Monday in May. I believe that was May 3rd, 2004. He was to get radiation everyday Monday through Friday for six weeks. Chemotherapy (Ociplatin and 5FU) was a three hour infusion every two weeks along with a pump he wore 24/7.
It started with a bang. I had a schedule of who could take Chris up on what days. He was very sick on the treatment and a couple weeks in he got a hernia from vomiting so violently (amazing this would prove to be on of the many miracles). I think over the course of the six weeks we ended up in the emergency room three times. The hernia was one of them. Emergency room visits were usually good as they gave him a time to get re-hydrated, leaving him feeling better coming out than he did going in.
When the hernia sent us to the emergency room is was a Sunday morning. Since it was Sunday our local hospital did not have the staff to adequately diagnosis his hernia. With the fear of other things that could have been causing the pain they sent him via ambulance to a hospital about 45 minutes away.
Our whole day was spent there as person after person came in to check him out. Each shrugged their shoulders and said, “I better have my boss take a look at this”. Once they ran out of ‘bosses’, they said this might be for a different department and we would start all over again! I think we ended up in the ER of this hospital for about eight hours, until they finally sent us home.
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