Chest Infection

I had another X-ray today to see if the last two days of antibiotics have had any impact on my chest infection. Looking at today's X-ray alongside the one from two days ago, I couldn't see much difference. But my doctor said there's slight improvement so I should be feeling better soon.

Tomorrow, I start Tykerb (lapatinib), a new breast cancer drug that just came on the market last year. It will replace the Herceptin I've been getting, but unlike Herceptin, Tykerb penetrates the brain. This is important to me because 1) I like my brain and would like to keep those pesky cancer cells out of there, and 2) Tykerb is taken orally rather than by IV drip. Unfortunately, Tykerb is more expensive.

My doctor is meeting with a group of oncologists next Wednesday to discuss my case and decide what chemo drug I should go on next. I'll see her on Thursday and we'll start a new chemo to go with the Tykerb. The one she told me she'd recommend would make my hair fall out. So I'll be bald again. I don't really mind losing my hair though. It seems such a silly thing to worry about when one is dying.

My doctor and I talked about all the different options that are still available to me in terms of drug combinations, so I have faith that we can drag out this dying thing over a very long period of time.