Chemo Plant #2

I have made it past the worst effects of my second round of "chemunotherapy," so it's time for my next chemo plant! This time I'm am getting a 24-inch tree rose. This particular variety claims to be  resistant to many diseases, including the dreaded black spot of roses, thus I am going with this Take It Easy variety rather than the more deeply red Black Cherry variety that I found elsewhere and salivated over briefly. At this size, it should fit on my back deck—though my back deck will, as usual, be very crowded once the tropical plants go outside for the season.

Meanwhile, my new little kumquat tree (chemo plant #1, pictured) arrived on Saturday and is settling in nicely.

Kumquat: Chemo Plant #1

As for me, this round of chemo aftereffects went a bit better than last round's, what with better medication and better knowledge of what to expect. It still has not been any fun, though. There's the insomnia and exhaustion, the nausea and general malaise (thankfully greatly muted by the medications this time), the sore gums, the runny nose and itchy eyes, the metallic taste, the flushed face, and (less overtly) the chance of plummeting blood counts resulting in infection and/or suspension of treatment. 

The good news, though, is that I think the treatment is starting to work! I am in much less pain than I have been in for several months. My cough (caused by "pleural effusion," or fluid in the pleural space around the lung) has nearly disappeared. My lung feels much less stiff when I breathe. I'll have another PET scan after another two treatment rounds, and we'll see just how much progress has actually been made. For now, though, I'm going to enjoy my next two chemo-free weeks as much as I can.