English Community

Welcome to the beginnings of 2026 Teal Thursdays! 

Teal Thursdays are an opportunity to connect 'live' with others by posting in the thread below. While the Teal Thursday is set for Thursdays at 1pm Eastern, feel free to add to the conversation when it works for you.

If you have any questions, please reach out to me, anytime. 
Marianne

@Tanja

Hi!! Still here 🤣. Thanks for asking about me.

The last three months have been pretty crazy for me. Started a new drug so have had dosing adjustments and had to have a blood transfusion. In the middle of all of that, I had two infections (Pleur-X and chest port)…one landed me in the hospital for three days 😵‍💫. I now have a PICC line for infusions…a home nurse comes once a week to change dressing and flush it.

I am currently on Gemcitibine…the second last standard of care drug available.

I'm waiting for my CT results. Once my results are available and reviewed, my case will go to the tumour board for discussion. I may have the results by next week. In the meantime, my treatment will continue. I'm hoping to get a full cycle in without interruption.

If there is progression, the Dr will want to stop this treatment. There is one more drug (Topotecan) that she says is "brutal." I have not spoken to her about what that means exactly…don't want to think about it until I have to. So I'm having the quality vs quantity of life debate with myself. I won't really know which way I'm going until I actually have to make the decision. I'm trying not to dwell on it and just be grateful that I am getting some treatment right now. 

Now…regardless of the CT scan…and if I can get through an entire cycle, I am going to bring up the Cisplatin/Gemcitibine combo option. I've read that they work well together. It will be a tough discussion because she will probably dig her heels in to not do it (outside of the norm😵‍💫)…or maybe she'll surprise me. If I do go this route and find the combined side effects are too much, then I can always stop. I really would like to give it a try but things have to come together to allow me to advocate for it.

I'm also having mobility issues. My legs are weak and tired. I'm ok for short distances but not for the long game. Bought a portable mobility scooter that offers me some freedom and independence. I can zoom up to our mall at the end of the street, can get out to other shopping sites and get to my Dr appointments. I have also modified the way I do things in the kitchen…sit at counter to prep and bake 🤣. Fortunately, my husband does all of the daily meals so it's really only for things I want to do for myself. 

That's me in a nutshell. Nothing is easy about this disease. 

Wishing you an abundance of good health, happiness and lots of memories in 2026!

@GloHo fingers crossed for great CT scan results, hope the chemo is working and you are kicking a#$!

@Meinvan

Thanks!! 🤣

@GloHo you are our Teal Warrior Extreme!!! I'm hoping for nothing but positive news from your recent scan and no issues with your current treatments🤞🙏

#Supportandencouragement

Hello all and welcome to 2026! I figure we are eight days into the new year so I'll drop the normal new year greeting. I have a former work colleague (now a very good friend), and it used to drive crazy her crazy if you said "Happy New Year" more than a few days passed Jan 1st. Of course, knowing that I just texted her that greeting. It's now a thing between us. It makes us laugh. Sometimes it's the small things that we need to get a smile on our faces.

How is everyone doing out there today? I know. Such a loaded question. I am however sincere in asking. We share a common enemy however our paths are often so different. 

My year started out at PMH but it was routine. I had my Parb Clinic (Lynparza) check up on Jan 2nd. My CA-125 was 18 on Dec 26th (got it done before my appointment). They re-ran it on Jan 2nd when I did my normal bloodwork and it was 22. I took a deep breath and tried to let my mind rest. I went back and looked at all my readings post chemo and my average is 18 however I've been as high as 23. A four point increase is not cause for concern. I've always been told that doubling or tripling is. My other bloodwork was all in the range that they are happy with so we marshal on. I do have some strange left side pain that I've had for 6+ months. My last CT was in August (last year) and was NED. I had the pains then too. The working theory is that I have scar tissue building up around my sigmoid colon. I believe I mentioned in a previous post that during my routine colonoscopy last May, the Dr. discovered my sigmoid colon had narrowed due to my OC surgery. It was not cause for concern, it was just a fact. I will continue to monitor (I keep very good daily records). 

I'm back to PMH on Feb 12th for my next routine appointment however I'll see my oncologist (this is the case, every other appointment) and we shall see how my labs are then. It will have been 6 months from my last CT so I'll be pushing for that however I've reacted to the contrast so that's a whole other story. My reaction has always been at PMH (and I'm pre-medicated with Prednisone 13 hours and 1 hour prior prior, plus Benadryl 1 hour prior). It has not been a major reaction. Just itchiness around my eyes for about a minute and then it's gone. I've never reacted when having a CT at T.O. General nor T.O. Western. Not at other hospitals either. The Medical Imaging Team says they won't do CT's with contrast due to the risk and per the oncologist, the CT is just not worth it without contrast. An MRI is an option but is very time consuming based on how the imaging process works. So they are referring me to an allergist to try to figure this out. I am prepared to go to battle on this one. Self advocacy is SO important in our journey's. There are options. They can increase the pre-meds (add another dosage at 7 hours prior which is common at other imaging centers). Alternatively, put me on prednisone for two days before. They are just being narrow minded in their thinking from my perspective. So stay tuned on this one....

I'm looking forward to seeing who is here today. Your stories are all so important.  

@Alwayslearning, you have had a busy start to your year!  I have been busy on this side of the country too.  2025 ended with a trip to the local ER with a fever.  So you know being immunocompromised a fever means get to ER to get checked out.  I had had labs the day before and had just spoke that morning with my oncologist, I told her I had a low grade fever and was coming down with something, so we had already agreed to stop Niraparib for a week while I recovered.  In that one day my wbc dropped to 3.2 and my lymphocytes dropped to 0.6, but my neutrophils were still 2.2 so they felt I was able to go home, yeah!  Made it home before midnight, fell asleep, I woke up at 11:55 so at midnight I was able to say happy new year from my bed to my son and husband.  Not the new year I planned but oh well.  So Influenza A was on start to 2026, luckily I was able to get tamiflu so I think that helped me get over it a little faster.  My son of course caught it from me, he is still suffering thru the sore throat and cough.   

I have a CT scan booked for Sunday, fingers crossed it is still clear.  I'm not expecting any surprises but you never know.  My ca125 has been 6.5 so I feel positive going into this scan.🤞. Next labs February.  I will see my oncologist in person in February, I haven't seen her since September in person.  Will be looking at having to go back to work in the next few months, not sure how that will look yet, especially being immunocompromised not sure direct patient care will be doable.

hope everyone is having a great day!  🙏🏻🩵