CA 15-3
So, I had labs taken the last time I had my infusion and I had my first big panic attack in a long time. It all started because my nurse couldn't get good blood return from my port so she started to vigorously flush my port with saline syringes. I'm not sure how many flushes she did but it felt like 100. With each flush all I kept thinking was that my port was clogged and that one of the flushes was going to dislodge a clot and cause me to have a stroke, pulmonary embolism or brain aneurysm. I know, my mind goes on overdrive and starts thinking irrational medical thoughts which cause me to have a panic attack. My nurse had me change positions several times and I could feel the flushes in my neck which is a very odd feeling. If you don't know, part of my port goes up into my neck and the other end goes just above the right atrium of my heart. My port is used to give me IV medications and for blood draws so that they don't have to use the veins in my arms. Chemo medicines can really mess up your veins so it's better to use one of the big veins in your body to deliver toxic medications. The veins in your arms are more delicate and over time chemo can make it more difficult and painful on your arms.
I've never really had problems with my port except for maybe one other time. Every time my port is accessed they flush the line with heparin (a blood thinner) right before they de-access my port to make sure the line doesn't clog and most people should have their port flushed at least once a month if they are not needing it often. I have IV infusions every 3 weeks so it works out. I also have labs drawn every 9 weeks and my past appointment was one of my lab days. I thought I was just going to get the normal labs that are usually drawn such as electrolytes and blood counts but apparently they added on the lab for Cancer Antigen 15-3 which they have been using on me to help them detect a cancer recurrence. The normal level is <33 U/mL. Anything higher than 33 could indicate a cancer recurrence. Well, my current level is 12 U/mL! That means it's normal! I do have to say that these labs aren't always a good measure of detecting cancer recurrence in everybody but in my case they have been pretty reliable indicators. This makes me a little less nervous about my upcoming scans in about a month. I hope this means that I am still showing NO EVIDENCE OF DISEASE. That would be great news after the holidays. Below is a picture of what my port looks like from the outside on my left chest and a sample diagram showing port placement on the inside.
I've never really had problems with my port except for maybe one other time. Every time my port is accessed they flush the line with heparin (a blood thinner) right before they de-access my port to make sure the line doesn't clog and most people should have their port flushed at least once a month if they are not needing it often. I have IV infusions every 3 weeks so it works out. I also have labs drawn every 9 weeks and my past appointment was one of my lab days. I thought I was just going to get the normal labs that are usually drawn such as electrolytes and blood counts but apparently they added on the lab for Cancer Antigen 15-3 which they have been using on me to help them detect a cancer recurrence. The normal level is <33 U/mL. Anything higher than 33 could indicate a cancer recurrence. Well, my current level is 12 U/mL! That means it's normal! I do have to say that these labs aren't always a good measure of detecting cancer recurrence in everybody but in my case they have been pretty reliable indicators. This makes me a little less nervous about my upcoming scans in about a month. I hope this means that I am still showing NO EVIDENCE OF DISEASE. That would be great news after the holidays. Below is a picture of what my port looks like from the outside on my left chest and a sample diagram showing port placement on the inside.
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| My constant companion. |
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