Thank you for visiting the LindsayStrong blog. Here I will share my thoughts throughout my cancer treatment at MD Anderson.
First, here is a little about me and a background of my story...
I am a 34-year-old mother to Carter (7) and Luke (18 months), and wife to Michael.
In May 2018, I was diagnosed with Sarcoma. The doctors believe it is a spindle cell sarcoma on my right distal femur. I am currently in treatment at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas. Unfortunately, I am no stranger to cancer. When I was 8 years old, I was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). I was treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. Treatment protocol lasted 2.5 years, followed by 8 years of follow up.
Here we are 26 years later and I am in the midst of chemotherapy again. The first cycle of treatment will consist of 4 rounds of chemotherapy, each of which will require a 1-week inpatient stay at MDA. Following each week of inpatient stay, I will be off for 2 weeks. However, the first 2 weeks off, I will need to stay in Houston. The 2 weeks off following the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th rounds of inpatient chemotherapy, I will be able to return home. After the 4 rounds of chemo, I will have surgery to remove the tumor and insert a prosthesis to repair damage caused by the tumor. The tumor will be analyzed to determine how successful the chemo was in killing the tumor. The second cycle of chemotherapy will consist of more rounds of chemotherapy. The type and duration will be determined on the analysis of the tumor.
Due to the certainty of a compromised immune system, I will be unable to work in a profession of which I am very passionate – caring for children as a school nurse and as a Nurse in the pediatric emergency room.
As some of you may know, there are always issues with chemotherapy that will cause delays. Determining a timeline for how long I will be in treatment is difficult. Full updates of my treatment will be posted be posted here on the LindsayStrong Facebook page.
I am strong in my Catholic faith. I am is a fighter. And I will beat cancer AGAIN!
