I saw my chest x-ray today. The port catheter I have has "migrated." This was no slight shift in position but a major pilgrimage. The claim is that the catheter originally snaked straight down into the jugular vein. Then it moved on its own back upwards, took a left and ended up across my breast bone in a smaller vein, 3-4 inches away. Apparently, this is something that does happen, crazy as it sounds. But I wonder if that isn't where it was from the beginning. They did not xray it then. How do they know it went correctly the first timeg? if it did move, my guess is it moved over a month ago, when we first had the trouble with blood return.
Before this started, I didn't know what a blood return was. When you get an IV, they push saline into it and then draw it back to see if they get blood. Blood is good. Means you are well into a vein. No blood is bad, means you need to start over. Those of us with small, crappy, slippery veins learn all about blood return or the sad lack thereof.
Today, no blood would have meant the cath was not in a good vein and we couldn't use it for my chemo. Even though this would have meant struggling with IV nastiness, I was relaxed. I felt sure somehow we could manage to get a good return and avoid gigging into my veins. I had the same nurse who was with me when we had trouble before and she was more nervous than I was. I sat up straight, held my chest out, she drew back the syringe and beautiful red blood flowed into it. We cheered. I would never have thought I'd be so happy to see my own blood.
So, with no allergic reaction, and 9 hours at the cancer center later, I'm through another treatment. I have to decide what to do about this port, and I need not to get another cold. Then we move on to surgery and the radiation. There will be decisions to be made, which is the hardest thing of all.
Right now, I am eating my mom's pecan pie with ice cream. Knowing its not good for me, I figure I'd better really enjoy it!
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