driven
just because you have cancer, doesn’t mean you can’t live a normal life. had a couple business meetings this week and starting to develop hello hapa to sell physical products as an extra source of income. trying to jam pack everything before my next infusion next week. lets fucking goooooooooo.

“the better i get to know men,
the more i find myself loving dogs.”

dog
tomorrow is national puppy day, so today’s post will be dog-themed! what am i watching today? no i am not crying to marley and me or homeward bound, or reminiscing to beethoven, but i will ride the mostly-positive emotional rollercoaster to dog with channing tatum. this movie is about Two former Army Rangers, briggs (channing tatum) and lulu (a belgian malinois dog) are paired against their will to drive down to lulu’s former handler’s funeral. do they make it? gotta watch to find out. this movie is streaming on prime video, apple tv+, and more.

@approvedbydog instagram
this is a great account to follow for those who are like me, and love to travel with their dog. you will find posts of dog-friendly restaurants, activities, and events specific to the san francisco bay area, which is extremely helpful.

dog days are over by florence + the machine
selected a catchy, happy throwback for today’s dog theme.

vetcbd 20:1 cannabis tincture
not for humans, and intended for dogs. i don’t use this product often, but when i do it, it’s extremely effective. sophie has an intense fear of thunder and when i see one on the weather forecast, i give her a dose of the tincture, which helps calms her nerves. when you purchase this product, there are two options: 20:1 or 10:1 ratios of cbd:thc. i choose the 20:1 ratio as it has lots of cbd and just a hint of thc. if you are unsure, don’t be afraid to ask a budtender. there are also instructions on the dose amount to dog weight which is extremely helpful. it also takes about 30 minutes for it to start working so plan a little in advance.

doodle slicker brush
this brush is for the doodle owners, or any dog that has long hair that can knot easily. it looks aggressive, but it works so well to take out any matting and most knots – plus it does not hurt your pup.

waterproof silicone dog collar
if you have a dog that loves the water, or just absorbs all the water they drink from their bowl, i highly recommend a silicone dog collar. the silicone does not absorb water, which means it lasts longer and does not smell like a wet sponge. it also comes in a bunch of colors, which i obvi picked pink for my girly fluffy monster. pair this with a silicone airtag holder and you can track your dog with style.

medical update
i had a few medical appointments yesterday, which included a zoladex injection (menopause), research blood test, and mri with and without contrast. all went well, and i already received results from my test. here is the breakdown of the things that happened yesterday:

• zoladex: this is a monthly injection to trigger my body into menopause. yes, the hormonal mood swings and hot flashes are all apart of protecting my fertility for future mini-me’s – sorry mom, dad, and stepdad, but at least i am aware? ◡̈
• research blood test: they took 8 vials of blood for the ispy clinical trial. couldn’t tell you what for, but it’s just to continue to monitor all my vitals and document for future patients.
• mri: there two pretty neat pros about the ispy trial compared to standard chemotherapy treatment:
  • 1: medication
    even though ispy is still a form of chemo, it’s actually a less-invasive version as it is primarily antibodies they are injecting through an iv to fight the cancer, versus giving me straight up chemicals to kill the disease.
  • 2: timing
    before each infusion, they monitor how my body is processing the treatment with a 45-minute mri test, which then results into next steps for my treatment. next steps could be more treatment of the same medication, a different type of medication if it’s not responding, or surgery if the masses have melted away – which means i could do just 1 infusion or up to 4 infusions depending on how my body responds. with standard chemo, regardless of how my cancer is, i would be required to undergo 6 infusions over an 18-week period (1 every 3 weeks), and then see if i need more chemo or go into surgery. there is still a chance of me doing standard chemo if 4 infusions don’t work, but at least it gives me the chance to end treatment early if it’s responding well in a less-invasive way.

results from yesterday:

• zoladex: i don’t know if i can just be a bitch, or if it’s the zoladex, but mood swings are here and present. no other side effects to report.
• research blood test: i have a lot of blood and my vitals seem to be normal thus far. my personality may not be, but at least my health seems to be (outside of this whole cancer thing).
• mri: it looks like my two big masses have decreased by half, and my overall mass area has decreased by 40mm. well see what dr. rugo says on next steps on tuesday 3/26, but i have my assumptions.