Phase Four Begins

I'm in the Home Stretch, sports fans! Now for the easiest of all the anti-cancer treatments since this all began in May. I have been scanned, probed, needled, cut, re-opened, re-cut, poisoned and nuked. The scars are fading to a less angry color of pink and the burnt skin is turning to tan. It's time to rest the body and heal and let the world of pharmaceuticals protect me from any Big C recurrence.
Today I started a five year regime of a one-a-day pill named Tamoxifen. This is because I have..I mean HAD a hormone sensitive receptor in my tumor. This drug blocks the growth of hormone-sensitive tumors and the effect of estrogen being produced in my body. Side effects are extremely menopausal sounding: weight gain, hot flashes, loss of libido, tiredness, aching joints, hair thinning (what! wait a minute...) and headaches.
And because I managed to escape the last two chemo treatments, I'm being injected once a month with an anti-cancer drug called Zoladex. That will decrease the estrogen and progesterone being produced. Side effects? Even MORE hot flashing, tiredness, decreased libido and weight gain. My waist-line is DOOMED!
Good thing I still have a cute butt. Oh wait...I won't care because I'll lose my sex drive. Maybe we should put the husbands on the same stuff at the same time? Slip a little into the bottle of wine he gets to drink the majority of. They say "alcohol in small amounts does not appear to affect" the use of these drugs. I hate how they let that hang. Meaning, we're not 100% sure if it does or doesn't at this point. What would YOU do when looking at having to go through all this again. Right, avoid the sauce for now. Actually, I've lost my taste for most of it. I'm quite content with the Saudi Champagnes ( sparkling water with a splash of white grape juice). If a VERY great bottle of wine gets cracked, I love a sampling. Not a glass, but a taste of it. Stressful days still demand a rye and water. I don't always finish it. Still, I do have moments like last weekend when I couldn't walk past the bottle of Baileys. Before anyone could witness it, I tipped the bottle to my mouth and took a big swallow. Then I walked away. It was all I wanted.
But for five years...I don't know about that. What I do know is it was time to start seriously slowing down on the 20+ drinks a week. Get it down to the recommended three to seven (4 ounce drinks) for women. Think of the calories I'll save. Between that and the loss of two pounds of hair and a half pound of breast, the scales are going to be friendlier for awhile yet.
What comes after this? I'm trying to spend some time working on the books and then plan on doing a cleanse and liver detoxification in two weeks. I'll make sure to fill you in on what we have planned for that. It's going to be a hot topic!