Whew. The whirlwind of tests, procedures, and scheduling culminated in my first chemo treatment of TCHP (Taxotere-Carboplatin-Herception-Perjeta) is done. Monday was a long day, but I had the help of my daughter, Megan, to completely saturate my scalp in preparation for the DigniCap (37-degree cooling cap) in hopes of preserving some/much of my hair. The cap remains in place for about six hours, or the time of the chemo dosing. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be able to utilize this relatively new-ish, (though spendy) technology - thanks to those who are helping to make it happen. 

Megan also brought lunch from across the street, My Father's Kitchen, which is Vietnamese comfort food - which accomplished its mission. Nothing like a steaming bowl of pho when your head is freezing. 

Several people were curious how I tolerated the 37-degrees - it's relatively simple if you consider that I'm a woman of a certain age familiar with hot flashes. 

We arrived home last night, and I'm feeling pretty good. The Neulasta dosing last night is expected to result in bone pain, but I'm trying to keep ahead of that with meds. Neulasta is intended as "a colony-stimulating factor, a man-made form of a protein that stimulates the growth of white blood cells, used to decrease the incidence of infection, by treating neutropenia, a lack of certain white blood cells caused by receiving cancer chemotherapy".