Today’s movie quote:  “I’m just one stomach flu from my goal weight.” (From The Devil Wears Prada!)  Ken’s down 11 pounds since last Thursday. Caregiver FAIL. The nurse gave us some suggestions, some options to tempt a chemo palate (Ensure in a milk shake, peanut butter on apples, meals every 3 hours). If his weight isn’t better next week, we’ll be getting a call from the dietitian but at least for this week, the doctor approved continuing treatment.

We managed to get Ken’s blood flowing through his port this morning for his blood work. The nurse was having trouble with it but relaxation techniques worked.  Odd, right? It doesn’t seem like tension should be able to prevent blood draws. I guess stress effects are subtle as well as obvious.

Ken’s colorectal surgeon wants a copy of the PET/CT scan. This should be a common request and an easy process, right?  The lady I talked to at the hospital was super nice but “oh, oh, you need the scan AND the report?!” “Yes, I need the actual scan and the report.” “Wow,” she responds. “I hope you don’t need it soon. That’s going to take some time.” Aaaand, I’m picking it up in a week. Good thing it wasn’t urgent because pitching a fit is stressful.

Did you know that stress can cause dry skin? I have alligator hands, seriously! It doesn’t seem to matter how much cream I slather on them. I finally did some research because right now my skin is in worse shape than it is in the middle of winter. Sure enough, it’s another subtle effect of the stress cancer places on a family. Ken also has very dry skin but his is a side effect of the medication to treat the rash caused by chemo. Yep, that’s right; the medicine to help combat the chemo causes severe dry skin. Someone warned me that we would spend a lot of energy fighting the effects of chemo and we do, we really do.

The medical team took Ken’s weight loss seriously. We now have some recipes, three samples of Ensure, some over the counter medications and a prescription. I also got a recommendation for a website that offers tips for managing chemo symptoms (such as food disinterest).