Another Day, Another Treatment 

I went for another bleomycin treatment Friday and all went well and I expect to be back at work on Monday.

It was finally explained why the ECG attachments left a mark on my skin from previous treatments. Apparently in the first 48 hours or so the bleomycin reacts with your keratin (a component of your skin that partly affects colouring - I think) so any "contusion or hematoma to the epidermis" causes discolouration. In other words, any scratches, rashes or bruises I get in the next 48 hours or so can turn permanently brown. I might skip hockey on Monday, just to be safe. I wouldn't want a puck to the leg to make a big permanent 3" brown circle.

For some reason the anesthetist wanted to try a new technique of sedation rather than putting me under general anesthetic. I can't say I noticed a difference.

The only side-effect I've noticed so far has been some nausea (immediately puked up some broccoli and I'm having trouble getting rid of the broccoli-yak taste) but otherwise I'm fine though a bit sleepy - slept for 7 hours once I got home. I'll probably convince myself it would be best to spend the weekend on the couch, eating ice cream, watching football and movies as a form of convalescence.

It will be over the next 8 weeks or so when I'll be able see whether it does much good or not.

Here's to modern medical science and living longer through chemistry!

Note: I noticed a weird spike in page views lately and I feel I just have to add this note to this page that I receive Bleomycin treatments for VVM (venous vascular malformations) in my mouth/jaw/neck and not as any chemotherapy treatment for cancer. So no cancer. Just boring old vascular malformations.