Round 18/Round 3
After our unexpected bonus week, we checked back in to Hotel SCH on Tuesday morning for our next round of Ifosfamide and Etoposide. As with her earlier courses of this treatment, Charlotte seemed to tolerate this cocktail pretty well. The biggest physical side-effect we've seen is fatigue, usually in the first day or two of the treatment. She took a couple of big naps the first few days, but otherwise was feeling pretty good for the whole course.
The mental toll of this journey was a bigger presence during this admission than some of our earlier trips. Charlotte was annoyed about having to be admitted and expressed her desire to be home or at school with her friends. Frankly, after 18 rounds of chemotherapy, plus surgeries and radiation, she has every right to be frustrated about the situation. We did our best to let her know that her feelings are completely valid and encouraged her to keep sharing her emotions. She has been so positive throughout this process that this felt a little like the dam of frustrations bursting. She's made it easier for me to stay positive with how tough she has been overall, but it's not surprising that she had some pent up feelings. It did seem that venting helped her demeanor a bit afterwards, but there was still the reality of the situation - even though it was annoying to be at the hospital, we still had several days of chemo left and we were stuck there until it finished.
We did our best to fill the time with activities while we were there. Charlotte had visits from multiple therapy dogs, she painted in art therapy, and she made slime and built LEGO with the UW Volleyball and (National Champion) Men's Soccer teams. These distractions helped with short-term boredom, but the general frustration of having to spend days at the hospital remained.
Charlotte's closest hospital friend, her Sarcoma Sister, got to ring the bell on Thursday for officially completing her chemo. We made the trek from our room to the clinic to support her & her family for that. Unsurprisingly, watching this brought out a lot of emotions for all three of us. It was bittersweet, as we are so happy for them to be in that position, but also wishing it was Charlotte who was ringing the bell. For her part, Charlotte seemed pretty sad about the situation, but not out of jealousy or frustration that it wasn't her. She told us that she was sad that she wouldn't get to see her friend as often anymore.
We were discharged Saturday and were able to enjoy the afternoon at home. Charlotte was noticeably more comfortable and happy to be home, and we all enjoyed some down time free of beeping pumps and nurse interruptions. Charlotte had been craving Lauren's tomato soup and grilled cheese for dinner, and it was the perfect choice of comfort food. We all went to bed more relaxed than any day of the past week.
Next up is a day of scans on Monday. We won't know the results for a few days afterward, but are definitely curious to see the impact of the new chemo and the radiation therapy. Keeping our fingers crossed for good news!