Starting a new drug...on World Cancer Day

I picked up my new med, Ibrance, today.

My oncologist included a prescription for Zofran with it. Zofran is for nausea, so I have a pretty strong hint as to at least one of its side effects. I don't read about side effects before I start new meds because I don't want to plant subconscious suggestions. But I do know that Ibrance is similar in many ways to the Kisqali, which I could not tolerate.

My oncologist says some patients can tolerate Ibrance when they couldn't tolerate Kisqali. I hope to be one of those. Because I know that the double-pronged attack on the cancer in my bones is more effective than a single prong of Letrozole. Ibrance has been around a lot longer than Kisquli, and it has given lots of cancer patients longer lives.

Letrozole hasn't been as tough on me as the Kisqali was. But it's not without any impact.

I have trouble finding something I enjoy eating. My house is too full of packages of food that sounded good or were good—but for only a few days. Some foods actually make me feel bad. I first struggled with constipation, and now I've had the opposite problem off and on.

Apparently these cancer meds particularly affect the digestive system. But at least I'm not losing weight as I was before the meds slowed down the cancer.

The tip of my tongue and the front part of my palate are more sensitive than they once were. I've loved spicy-hot foods most of my life but can't tolerate them anymore. Even the mint of toothpastes burns too much for me, so I've gone to children's toothpaste.

But the good news is that I've felt better the last two or three weeks than in months!

Today, though, I have a new med that I'll start taking tomorrow morning... and I'll hope that its impact doesn't make me too miserable. I'll have blood work every couple of weeks to keep an eye on its effects. But at least it's not hard on my heart, so I won't need to have EKGs.

Today also happens to be World Cancer Day.

I'm only one of many many many many many people around the globe who are going through a cancer journey.

I found these United States cancer statistics on the V Foundation (a cancer research foundation for which I've done fundraisers the past two years) page:

There are an estimated 18.1 million cancer survivors in the United States. The number of survivors is expected to increase to 22.5 million by 2032. The most common cancers (listed in descending order according to estimated new cases in 2024) are for men: prostate cancer, lung & bronchus cancer, colorectal cancers, urinary bladder cancer and melanoma of the skin; for women: breast cancer, lung and bronchus cancer, colorectal cancer, uterine cancer and melanoma of the skin.

I doubt there's anyone in the United States who doesn't know several people who are going through cancer treatments or who are cancer survivors or who have died from cancer. It's a disease that touches everyone in some way. I survived an almost-triple negative cancer but then 11 years later was diagnosed with estrogen-positive, HER2 negative cancer. That's the one that metastasized to my bones.

With the meds I'm taking now, I might have a few years of life left. More if research finds new ways to treat this cancer.

I choose to be hopeful.

But I'm not a pollyanna. I'm not ignoring the truth that the current United States administration has cut a lot of funding to cancer research programs. I've read about quite a few research grants that have been aborted or have suffered disrupting cuts. Research is one of my hopes that scientists will discover a more-effective treatment for the type of cancer that I have. The cuts are one reason I choose to donate to and fundraise for the V Foundation. It gives 100 percent of money raised to research. And it doesn't only focus on one type of cancer.

Just personally, I know several people who are on cancer maintenance meds, those that keep their cancers in check. Like my meds, some of these only work for a few years before the cancer outwits the drug and starts growing again. Some of my friends have outlived projections and are still enjoying life many years later.

I don't know which category I'll fall into—one that meets the projections or one that outlives them. I try not to spend time thinking about what might be and try to live each day in a mindful way, appreciating the positives in my life. Because the past two or three weeks I've actually felt a lot better, and I've found it easier to stay positive.

I'm hoping the new med doesn't put me back to having so many feel-rotten days. Then it's harder to be positive.

But right now I feel good. And actually am hungry!

I'll take advantage of feeling better and eat a little more tonight.

And then I'll hope that Ibrance doesn't cause nausea. Or not much. The pharmacy that supplies this med had an M.D. call me this evening and go through what I need to know about the med. He suggests taking the anti-nausea med 30 minutes before I take the targeted pill. I'll sure give that a try.

This med came with a whole package (in my photos below), including a journal and zippered bag and a special container for each week's doses. Honestly, that seems a waste of money. These meds are very expensive. Not too bad if you have good insurance. But I don't think they need to be spending money on superfluous things. Just put the money in the meds and making them affordable. And into research for even more-effective meds!

But back to World Cancer Day. I made a donation to the V Foundation. You can do the same. Or you can donate to one of the many groups that fund cancer research or help cancer patients.

Because going through cancer is a tough journey.

One that I hope many many many fewer people have to take in the future.