Thursday, August 25, 2016 was Lynette’s first day of chemotherapy. I found out much later that the particular TYPE of breast cancer Lynette had was HER2 Positive Inflammatory Breast Cancer. The MAIN chemo drug she was to be on was Herceptin (Never saw it written out, but I can’t imagine any other way to spell it). In the taxonomy of breast cancers, I’m told that’s a bad kind, but not as bad as HER2 Negative.

The night before she was to begin, I filled prescriptions for steroids and for anti-nausea medication..Herceptin can engender allergic reactions, which the steroids were supposed to address. We (I) did well remembering to administer them at the right times.

Lynette was, at this time, still just a few days post-two surgeries. She had a Home Health nurse from Camellia Home Health who was coming regularly for wound care and dressing changes. I wish I could remember her name, but she was a great blessing in a hard time.

The first day of chemotherapy turned out to be VERY long. All the chemo patients for Memorial received treatment in one big infusion room. For the sake of patient privacy, only patients and Memorial clinical staff were allowed in the infusion room. That put me (and others attending to Lynette) in the waiting room. Pat Kornegay and Gina Burrus from Mississippi City and Elizabeth Galloway from St. Paul “spelled” me during parts of the day. I needed to take Luke to the day center he attended and pick him up.

At this point we had not yet told Luke his mother had cancer. HE can often be remarkably UN curious about what’s going on around him. We still were not sure what his response would be. By the time it was time for me to leave to pick him up, Lynette was not finished with her chemo. When I picked him up, he asked where his Mama was. I said “She still needs some more medicine.” “What KIND of medicine?” Is it chemotherapy? Now, I may withhold information sometimes, but I never directly lie to my child. Yes. “Does Mama have cancer?” He’s sometimes incurious, but he’s not stupid. Yes.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” We weren’t sure how you’d respond. Of course, that meant the FIRST thing Lynette would face when she got home was a disappointed son. The thing is, she always knew how to talk to him and let him know how much she loved him. He confronted her, but they were friends again almost immediately.

The Herceptin protocol was infusion every three weeks, with a lab and office visit with Dr. Hightower one week after infusion. This would go on for six treatments-meaning the rest of the summer, fall, and early winter. I’ll address how Lynette coped, how the rest of us coped, and what happened during that time soon. (Possibly longer from now than tomorrow.).