Returning to Routine

Ah, the holiday's are over! BIG sigh of relief. Normalcy as I know it has returned. This week I returned to my internship, resumed classes, and returned to the UIC Medical Center daily. It's good to be back (well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad)! Although spending last week on the couch reading was wonderful!

Health Update:
I visited my oncologist this week. Things are on track. I'll start my 6th round of Chemo this Friday, and finish this round by the end of the month. Afterwards I'll be 're-staged.' Which will include a CT Scan. Which will hopefully show only the scar tissue of the mass, then (2 to 3 weeks later) I'll have a PET scan (which could translate to a treatment free February!).

School Update:
I'm taking two classes, and working at my internship 24 hours a week. I've opted to take my electives this summer when there are smaller classes and a broader variety of topics to study. My classmates will graduate this spring, and I'll be done mid-July. Then it's the good ole' job hunt for me!~ (anyone wanna give me a job?I'll be cancer free soon-- hint, hint?)

Other Odd Things:
I went to a Lymphoma networking group at Glida's Club last week. In speaking with other folks with various forms of lymphatic cancer, as a group we realized that we no longer had arm hair. Odd, yes. Had I noticed?--not a bit. Which really makes me wonder what's the purpose of hair on ones arm?

Pass the Veggies:
Over break I did a ton of reading & web surfing. I've been really interested in diet & cancer. Did you know that vegetarians in general have much much lower cancer rates then carnivores? Additionally, many of the holistic doctors (combination of western medicine with a 'mind, body, spirit' emphasis) in the field put their patients on strict vegetarian diets during treatment. Vegetarian, low sugar diets have helped cancer patients respond to, tolerate treatment, & recover faster. Some doctors even attribute diet as a major contributing factor in keeping patients in remission. I'm still researching, but I'm getting closer and closer to concluding that more veggies & less sugar may be one of the best ways I can stay healthy & stay out of oncology units in the future.