Saturday 18 June - readjustment is quite hard

So, I have now been without my Hickman line for just over two weeks.  The scars and bruises are fading and it is so nice not to have to tape it up in a plastic bag to take a shower.  When I went for my consultant appointment on Tuesday I had to give blood in the usual way, from an arm vein - that was a bit of a shock, but that will be the new normal.  The appointment went fine, blood results good, consultant pleased, come back in two weeks.
Adjusting to not being under constant care from the hospital has been a lot harder.  My life for the past 10 months has revolved around the treatment and at least 3 trips per week to Addenbrookes.  It is slightly odd to be able to be at home every day and not rush off to the hospital.  I am in discussions over going back to work but right now I am in a type of limbo - not at work, not under constant treatment, not on holiday. 
On the plus side there is time to garden, walk to try and get fit again, and get on with the quilt.  I am hand quilting it which takes a lot of time, but since I do it on my lap it is also quite restful.  Getting fit is important as I have signed up to walk 5km in the Cambridge Race for Life on 17 July.  Judging by my recent walks I should manage it in under an hour, which is ok.  I've also been out on my bike for a couple of short rides.  I was pleased not to have any balance problems but horrified at the lack of strength in my leg muscles!

Friday 3 June - I no longer have my Hickman line

I now have a very physical reminder that I have got through the intensive chemo.  Yesterday I had my Hickman line out, a procedure done by the same specialist nurse who put it in by chance. It was a 15 minute procedure under local anaesthetic.  The site is a little sore but seems to be healing well.  On the same day I had another lumbar puncture.  Amazingly the doctor was early, so was I, and the whole thing was completed within 10 minutes of my stated appointment time.  How's that for service?!  Then I needed an intravenous drip of bone-strengthening solution (apparently to protect the ball of the hip joint from the effects of all the chemo) and for the first time in over 10 months I had to have a cannula.  I felt a bit like a pincushion by the time I got home.
No more hospital appointments till 14 June.  Weird.

Wednesday 1 June - I have arrived at maintenance!

After a nerve-racking week when I was neutropenic for the first time since Christmas my blood counts recovered in time for my consultant appointment yesterday and I am now officially into the maintenance phase of my treatment, which lasts for 2 years.  Maintenance runs on a 12 week cycle with 1 dose of chemo (Vincristine) and 1 intrathecal at the beginning of the cycle and otherwise all tablets to be taken at home.  So I had my first chemo of this phase yesterday, picked up a large bag of drugs and go back tomorrow to have the intrathecal and to have my Hickman line removed.  I think having the line out will give me a physical reason to believe that I have made it through the intensive treatments - at the moment it all seems a little unreal.
The most amazing thing is that I will now only have blood tests when I go to the clinic, initially fortnightly and then monthly.  So next week I don't have any appointments at the hospital at all.  That is going to be very strange.  After 10 months of knowing my blood results 2 or 3 times a week only knowing them once a month may be a little nerve-racking to start with.

In other news here is the latest from our garden - the rook and jackdaw gang attacking the fat ball feeder.  No wonder we seem to go through so many fat balls.  And the noise this lot make is astonishing!