karenulijohn

Due to a change in the schedule, Harvey went for his fifth radiation treatment this morning. The Doctor’s office called yesterday and said that since the Dr. did not see him on Tuesday, and he doesn’t come to the Roseville office on Friday, he would like to see Harvey on Thursday. Similarly to the treatment on Tuesday, it only took about 10 minutes and when he saw the Dr. he was told that he had finished the course of radiation treatments. They had accomplished all that they had intended and that he need not come in for a sixth treatment. Hallelujah!! They discussed the soreness he was experiencing in his face and it turns out he has a very large blister on the inside of his cheek. He was assured that this is quite normal and was given a prescription for an oral rinse to be used every four hours. As Harvey was walking out, the Dr. handed him what Harvey lovingly refers to as “the death mask.”  You will recall that I described this mask in a previous entry.  Looking at the picture below, imagine that his head is fully enclosed and that the left side of his nose, cheek, and neck are exposed through the hole.

Now, we move on to the next phase which is lining up and having all of the tests that are required to determine if he is a candidate for the study.  The blood test needs to be done sometime the week of August 13.  The ECG is scheduled for August 6th.  As yet we don’t have a date for the PET or MRI.  On Wednesday, August 1st at 2:45 PM he will have a port inserted surgically for the drug infusions.  For Harvey, having a port has brought this “adventure” out of the realm of the abstract and into the cold light of day.  He is struggling a bit to come to terms with it.  He does not want it.  My heart cries for him.

The Death Mask