Last Friday they removed the current (my second!) port-a-cath. The fistula just below it showed signs of a staph infection, so now hopefully the red line on my neck will heal along with any other issues.
Conscious sedation (i.e. Versed and Fentanyl) gives one an odd feeling. I undressed, put on a hospital gown and an extra pair of socks, and a nurse started an IV line in my right arm. They rolled me from the prep area into the interventional radiology surgery area, which featured lots of high tech x-ray etc. equipment and an enormous computer screen for the doc to track his work.
I scooted from the gurney onto the "table" and tilted my head to the left, away from the port site, while Nurse Romeo set up a blue fabric screen with a big hole out the left side, to prevent claustrophobia on my part.
The nurse gave me Fentanyl first (for pain relief) and I almost immediately went into la-la land. Then she gave me the Versed and I was no longer aware of anything.
Versed is funny: you probably can answer questions the staff put to you, but you don't remember what's happening from moment to moment. Rik will have to say if I repeated myself over and over again afterwards, which is the typical side effect.
We went to lunch at Mediterranean Kitchen (oh those farmer's wings!) and then walked back to Swedish for my monthly shot of Faslodex and my every two months' dose of bone-strengthening Aredia.
It ended up a very long day. Rik had to go home to feed the dogs, then came back for me at 5 PM. In the meantime, Dr G walked over to say hi and check in with me before he left for the day.
After we came home, I crashed on the bed for a couple of hours, woke up at 8 PM, had a snack, and took the first dose of Ibrance round 2. I spent the weekend recovering, relaxing in the sunny weather and am ready for today's scans.
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