Six more to go.

I can't remember what all I've updated here about Tim's melanoma, so bear with me if I'm repeating myself. The second surgery went very well. It left Tim with another large scar, and a deep depression under his arm, but the most important news is they found no more cancer cells in the soft tissue that was removed there.

Interferon treatments are recommend following the surgery. The treatments started about three weeks ago. This has been an incredibly long month. I am so ready for it to be over. Tim is at the hospital every week day for about an hour to receive the treatments intravenously. Before starting treatments we had read that the side effects were flu like symptoms. "Flu like symptoms," well that could mean a lot of things, and we hoped for the best.

The first week was rough. Following his treatments, Tim first got the chills. Chills so severe that he was still cold in the ninety degree heat we were having that week. The chills were followed by the sweats, and it was all accompanied by body aches, nausea, and fatigue. We hoped the next week would be better.

The severity of the chills and sweats was a little better the following weeks, but the nausea, and extreme fatigue remain. The treatments also caused his triglycerides to skyrocket. The doctor gave him a prescription for this. The side effects of the medicine is more nausea. *sigh* He has lost over ten pounds, has little appetite, and has basically spent the month of June going to the hospital and staying in bed. Even the simplest of chores or task zap all his energy. It has been a very long month. He has six more of these treatments, and I think the whole family will be much relieved when this is over and done. 


When these treatments are completed, he will have another year of treatments at a much lower dose. These treatments are done at home three times a week. The side effects should be much less severe.

That is where we stand in this process. The treatments have been far worse than the surgeries, but we know that in the realm of cancer treatments it could be a lot worse. We're almost through the worst of it. Gritting our teeth and pushing through.