Port Problems

Today I began my second half of treatment with a different chemotherapy drug.  I will be doing these treatments once a week for 12 weeks.  They were very proactive in trying to ensure I didn't have an allergic reaction to this new drug.  Thankfully, it worked and I didn't have a reaction at all.  However, there was a problem accessing my port.  As soon as she inserted the needle, I felt pain in my shoulder and my neck.  In fact, over the last 5 days of so, I had been having some discomfort on the port side of my neck and shoulder, but just figured it was from exercise or stress.  Unfortunately, the nurse decided that there may be something wrong with my port and scheduled me for a port study tomorrow morning.  They will inject a dye into the port and follow it to see that nothing is wrong with the pathway.  If something is amiss, they will have to take out the current port and give me a new one.  O JOY!  Just another little bump in the road.  I have to be at the doctor by 6 AM tomorrow morning and won't be home until after 11 if they have to replace the port.  They will be able to do that right there in the office (Interventional Radiology, I think it's called).  When I asked what they will do to ensure that I don't feel anything from the port replacement, I was told they would insert an IV and send me off to "my happy place".  I am good with that.  We need this thing to work properly for another 11 weeks and then we can be done with it. 

On the flip side, there was some really good news today (in addition to not having an allergic reaction or so far no side effects).  Upon examination, the doctor kept using the word "vague" when she tried to measure my tumor.  She had a hard time finding the edges to know where it started and stopped and even in the middle it felt very "vague".  That is very good news - my tumor is responding to the treatment.  PRAISE GOD!!!  Keep praying and love to all of you.