Yes, Iolan, the list is helpful. I, for one, think that pets are part of the family and their loss can cause every bit as much grief as a human relative.
I've thought about much of this and mom has already said that if the chemo makes her too sick that she may stop taking it. I haven't openly agreed with her, but she knows that we agree because we've had discussions about such things in the past. My cousin, who lived next door to us, died from cancer in January, and both mom and I agreed with her decision to stop chemo. (She didn't actually ask us, but we did talk about her decision.) But even with chemo she was given little hope of survival and the chemo was only to try to help decrease the pain. Mom's case is different.
The doctors have said that meds will help control nausea, but mom is not eating well, her skin is in bad condition and she is at risk for breakdown even though she can get up with a walker. She is allergic to morphine and codeine so pain control could be a problem. We thought until recently that she was probably also allergic to the synthetic morphine drugs, but she recently took a Lortab at the hospital and she wasn't allergic. That means that she can also take Oxycontin which is very helpful with cancer pain. She is leery about that and says she doesn't want to get addicted, but I've assured her that she shouldn't worry about that.
She hasn't had much of an appetite, but, interestingly enough, she has wanted peanut butter and crackers (those pre-made ones) and cashews and so she's been eating those. Both are good protein sources.
I'll let all of you know what we find out on Thursday.
Thanks, everyone, for your concern and especially your care.
Nancy
