Had my labs drawn and met with the oncology physician's assistant (PA) today (my oncologist was out of the office). Confirmed that I have decided to move forward with the recommended chemotherapy (Xeloda), guess I could have said no but seems dumb at this point. The drug was ordered after my labs were reviewed and found to all be normal. Now, I just have to wait for the specialty pharmacy to work with my insurance to get it covered. Apparently because it is an oral chemo medication and is done on an outpatient basis, as opposed to inpatient like all my previous chemo infusions, insurance authorization is more difficult. I am assured it will be covered, but just takes a little more paperwork and approval time. Once it is approved, then the pharmacist will be calling me to go over all the details of the medication (how to take it, when to take it, potential side effects, what foods to take it with, etc.). They will also work with me to schedule a time for delivery or pickup. Some insurances cover the medication being delivered directly to your door, so let's hope for that. Since it is end of business on Friday, I am assuming I won't get the medication today, but likely early next week. I am actually hoping this is the case because I want to enjoy the weekend and not have to think about it!
Goal is still to complete 6 to 8 rounds (1 round = 3 weeks) of the medication, depending on how I tolerate it. Hoping everything goes smoothly and the side effects are manageable.
Got my flu shot today at the recommendation of the PA. She said it is important to get it while my blood counts are high enough, otherwise I might not be able to get it at all. With flu season right around the corner, and my immune system likely to be tanking very soon, I figured it was probably a good idea to try and boost my immunity now. Andy got his through work a while back, so fingers crossed!
That's all I know for now. Peace!
