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| Um, this isn't me. This is Mia Farrow. |
Last month when I finished radiation treatment, I noticed three things: I was no longer bald, I was really tired of wearing a wig, and I felt a lot more relaxed about showing up in the world "as is". There was something about having cancer treatment behind me that made it pretty easy to leave Mavis at home.
Now my hair is a bit longer (although very short - think Annie Lennox, or Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby, and then make the bangs even shorter) and blond. It's sort of a sandy, strawberry blond I guess. Naturally my hair is white, and I wanted to try something different from my previous auburn color, so I decided to try going blond.
I'm getting used to the new look, and it cracks me up that even people who don't know me compliment me on my hair, like I cut it this way on purpose.
In the meantime, I've healed very well from radiation and am completely thrilled to be doing something else with my time other than heading to the medical center every day.
What Now
Now that I'm done with the Big Three (surgery, chemotherapy, radiation) I just have a couple of things to do, cancer-treatment wise: herceptin (an IV infusion every three weeks through this June) and tamoxifen (an oral medication I started a couple of weeks ago and will take for at least five years).
Herceptin doesn't bother me a bit, and it's a wonder drug, so I don't mind at all that there are 8+ infusions left. I'm assuming that when I'm done with it in June I'll get the chest port (aka alien tracking device) removed. I'm looking forward to that.
Tamoxifen is an estrogen suppressor and affects women differently. So far I haven't had problems with it. Hot flashes are the most common side effect, and there are various other possible effects that are similar to what women entering menopause naturally can go through. The serious side effects are rare, so I'm not going to worry about those.
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