Week 14

This week I have been quite a busy bee. On Wednesday I went for lunch with my girlies Sarah and Amelia. We went to Frankie and Bennies and sat outside in the sunshine, it was lovely. We then went for a bit of a shop around town. It was nice to catch up with them and have a good old gossip.

On Thursday my friend Laura came to see me which was nice. I lived with her in my first year at Uni and then played netball with her in my third year before I had to leave, so it was good to see each other again. We went for a yummy lunch at The Hedgehog. It was lovely especially the giant puddings we had. The chocolate fudge brownie was amazing.

On Saturday I went to see the new Twilight film, Eclipse with my boyfriend Ben. We watched it at Star City where we went Gold Class which was an experience. You get your own big, leather arm chair that reclines, a bar, free popcorn and then there are only a few seats in the actual cinema so it is like been in your own screening.

On Sunday I went to Birmingham with my Mum and Sister to look for a Graduation outfit. I thought I would either not find one I liked or it would take me ages to pick one, but luckily I found a gorgeous dress almost straight away. I then got a clutch bag and some bracelets to match. I won’t tell you what is it like because I don’t want to spoil the surprise, I’ll put a picture in with my column the week after I graduate so you can see it.

I’m so excited, I really can’t wait. I will get to see all my friends from Uni that I haven’t really seen since I left in January, so that will be really nice. The ceremony is at Trentham Gardens in Stoke, so I am hoping the weather stays warm and dry as if it rains I don’t think us girls will be happy. Heels and mud don’t go well together.

I had my chemo last Friday with no hiccups and didn’t even need to have the dreaded bone marrow injection which I was happy about. I do have some exciting news about my treatment but I will wait till next week to tell you.

Week 13

ITS time for a celebration! Yes I did it, I passed my degree and I am officially a Broadcast Journalist and Bachelor of Arts.

On Monday everyone’s results were released and I was able to find out what degree classification I had got. I achieved a Second Class Honours: First Division which is a 2:1.

For those of you who do not understand the University grading, a 2:1 is the second highest grade you can get. I couldn’t believe when I found out. I had to double check I’d got the right student number just in case I had got it wrong but I hadn’t. It still hasn’t sunk in yet. I did not think I would do so well because I was doing all my Uni work from home and it was very hard, so it is a huge shock.

I had a lovely bottle of Pink Champagne with my family to celebrate my success which was nice, but the big celebration will be when I graduate in July. It’s only a few weeks away so I am really looking forward to it. It only feels like yesterday I was starting University all shy and nervous and now look I have successfully passed my degree while battling cancer. That is one big achievement. My family, friends and boyfriend are very proud of me and were over the moon when I told them.

Now it is time to start looking for a job. I have to wait a few months before I can begin working properly as I haven’t finished my treatment yet, but it doesn’t stop me looking around and showing that I am still interested and dedicated to getting a job in broadcasting. If anyone is reading this that knows of any jobs in broadcasting then that would be fantastic news and could you please let me know.

On Friday I am off for my next lot of chemo. I should be able to have it as I had that nasty bone marrow injection last week to boost my blood count, so fingers crossed. I am hoping that day the weather is horrible as I hate being stuck inside having my treatment when it is hot and sunny. If only I could have it while sat outside on the grass, now that would be good.

Week 12

Well it still hasn’t sunk in that I’ve officially finished university yet. There are only a few weeks till I find out what grade I have got and then I can really look forward to my graduation.

I don’t know what I am going to do with myself now I have no university work to do. I can’t get a job in Broadcasting because of all the treatment I am going through and can’t even get a little weekend job because I can never tell what each day will bring while fighting the cancer, I could be really tired one day or sick the next. It sucks a bit as everyone I know from university is applying for big jobs and I am stuck at home.

I had my chemo last Friday and it all went okay, but to top the day off I was told I wouldn’t need to have the nasty bone marrow injection because my blood count was high enough, I was so happy. I know the injection is for the best and helps, but being told I didn’t need to have it put a huge smile on my face.

That night though the chemo kicked in and from about three o’clock in the morning I was wide awake and could not sleep at all. In fact I was that wide awake I could have run a marathon, I am not joking with you. The reason for being awake so early was from all the glucose I had been given when having my treatment. I had been given over 2 litres of glucose which is the equivalent to a lot of energy drinks.

On Sunday the side effects began and my mouth infection started. Even though I know it going to happen and can start to take tablets to help it, I can never completely get rid of it and it lasts the week. It does upset and annoy me because it really hurts and I can’t eat or drink properly.
I have been to the cinema a few times this week. I went to see “She’s out of my league”, “Death at a Funeral” and “Sex and the City 2”. They were all really good films and I would definitely recommend them.

Week 11

YES! It is official I have finished university forever. Today I handed in all my work for the very last time. I can’t believe it. It only feels like yesterday I was starting there all scared and nervous and now look, I have my very own column in a newspaper.

I have loved every minute of being at university. There have been highs and lows but I will have some great memories to take away with me. I have met some lovely people and made friends that I will hopefully keep for the rest of my life.

Now all I have to do is sit and wait one more month to see if I have passed my last year and graduate in July. Fingers crossed I can, Mum’s already brought my outfit and ceremony tickets.

I am a bit upset though as I cannot apply for a big job in Broadcast Journalism till at least six months after my treatment has stopped. This is because it takes about that amount of time for your body to recover and get back to normal.

I had a bit of an eventful trip when I went to get my line flushed last week. I nearly had to have a blood transfusion. I had been feeling a bit tired and drained and had very, very bad stomach ache and the nurse’s thought I might be anemic, so they took a blood test to see if I was. If I were anemic it would mean being admitted into hospital to have a blood transfusion, my worst nightmare.

Those few minutes waiting for the results to come back seem liked hours and I had everything crossed. I really didn’t want to have a blood transfusion. Thankfully my results were okay and my red blood count was fine.

Last Thursday I went for a meal with my girls and I had a lovely time. It was really nice to go out and have a good catch up with them. I miss going out loads with my friends. That’s the down side to having side effects from the treatment they really affect your life.

My weekend away in the Peak District was a nice get away, shame about the weather though. I don’t know what it was like here, but where we were it rained and was cold most of the time. It was nice to not think about being ill and have a change of scenery.

This Friday I have another session of chemo and then the dreaded bone marrow injection the day after. I’m not looking forward to that at all.

Week 10

Well it seems like my treatment is back on track now. My mum and dad alternate taking me and last week it was my dad’s turn. I was able to have my chemo with no hiccups which makes a chance as the last couple of times my dad has taken me things have not gone to plan.

However when my consultant came to see me on the day he gave me some news I did not want to hear. He told me every time I now go for my chemo, the day after I will have to have that nasty bon marrow injection I had a few weeks ago. Well when I heard the news I just buried my head in my hands.

The reason for having the injection is to make sure my blood count is high every week so they don’t have to delay my chemo when it drops or even worse admit me to hospital. I know the injection is for the best but when you know it hurts and causes you bad side effects you don’t think about the positive side.

So last Saturday I went to have the injection. My stomach was doing summersaults because when I had it last time it hurt a lot and I knew it was going to hurt again. Out came my best friend the emla cream which mum put on my thigh an hour before we left home to try and numb my leg.

I got a bit of a shock when it came to having the injection this time. Diana decided not to use the freezing spray as well and the injection hurt and I did scream but for some reason it did not hurt as much as last time. I don’t know whether it was because she didn’t use the spray or because I wasn’t as tense, I guess when I go next week for my third one I can work it out and let you know.

I haven’t had as many bad side effects this time round. I have had some pains in my legs and ached a bit, but nothing like when I felt like a 90-year old lady that was not fun. I have had my mouth infection from my chemo though. Hopefully my weekend away with my family in the Peak District will give me some time to relax and recover.

Watching chemotherapy drug being made showed how complicated the processes are

Not much has happened for me this week. So because I have not had any good or bad news so I thought I’d tell you about when I was lucky enough to film how my chemo is made.

I thought my chemo just came in a bag already made up for when I got there but I was completely wrong. Each person’s chemotherapy drugs are made when they get there. This is because they go on your blood count, weight, height and type of cancer. So everyone’s drugs are completely different.

You arrive for the day and have your blood taken. The blood is then sent to the lab to be checked to make sure your count is fine and you are able to have the treatment. The drugs are then made in a special room that is off limits. However I was allowed to go in and film the process for my dissertation.

It first begins in room one where the pharmacist sorts out all the things she needs to make the chemo, like different types of needles, containers, the drugs measurements and so on. She has to make sure she has everything she needs as once she has gone through room two and into room three she can not come back out again, unless she wants to do the process all over again.

She then washes her hand with different soaps and starts to clean all the items she has sorted out to take with her. She cleans the boxes that she is going to put the things in, and then wipes each item over. She then does the same process for a second time. They are then passed through a sealed hatch into room three.

The pharmacist then goes into room two and puts on a special coat to cover her clothes, a hat to cover her hair, gloves for her hands and some crocs for her feet. This is because everything that goes into room three has to be sterilised. I actually got to do all this myself, so I certainly looked a picture when I was suited up ready.

Room three is where the drugs are made. All of the items that were cleaned in room one and passed through the hatch are cleaned all over again. Even the telephone and measurements sheet is cleaned and placed inside clear bags. They are then left for two minutes and this is actually timed with a stopwatch.

The drugs come in liquid or powder form and are placed inside a special container that is locked for another two minutes. Once the time is up, the pharmacist can begin to make then up. They are made in a container that has two hand holes so the pharmacist can sit in front of the glass with her hands into the container. After she has made them up she rings the pharmacy to get another pharmacist to make sure she has made the right drugs and measurements. This is called a volume check. They are then placed inside a final container for two minutes. The last thing to do is attach a sticker with the patient’s details onto the drugs.

I now know why it takes so long for them to make the chemo drugs. I never realised how much preparation went into making them and found it really interesting to see the process.

Scan results gave me a boost but university work's so hard

Hooray! I finally have some good news for everyone. After weeks of bad things, something good has happened at last. I have had the results to my PET Scan and they were negative which means I have no active cancer cells in my body, so all the bad side effects I have had have all been worth it. I still have to carry on with my treatment until I have been told I can stop but at least I know it is working when I have my down days.

While we are talking about good news. Last Friday I was able to have my chemo as I couldn’t have it the week before because of my bone marrow. My blood count was up at 22, which is even higher than someone who doesn’t have cancer. It felt a bit funny having it again, I think my body thought it was all over after the little delay.

This week I have been trying to carry on with my university work. I graduate this year so I wanted to carry on when I found out I was ill. I thought it would be fine doing my work at home but it’s been hard. I can’t just pop into university to talk to my tutors or go to the library whenever I feel like it to do some work, I have to plan it in advance or suddenly chance my plans if I am ill or tired.

My dissertation is what’s taking the longest. I have to make a documentary on a topic of my choice and I was doing it on Teenage Pregnancy but then I became ill so changed the subject to all about what I am going through but it is really hard. There is more to making and producing a documentary than people think, it isn’t that easy.

I then have my photo journalism module, where I need to take 200 pictures and pick the best 10 and turn them into a feature for a paper or website and finally my work placement module, where I need to evaluate my work experience at Touch Radio in Tamworth last year.

Some days I am either too tired or I cant concentrate. This is because of the chemo fatigue and it’s really frustrating. I have worked so hard over the last 3 years I don’t want to give up and I am only a few weeks away, but I keep thinking am I going to get it done in time. I best do, Mum has already brought my graduation tickets and outfit.

I make no bones about it, the injection hurt

Well not many of you could have had your fingers crossed very well last week for me because when I went for my chemo last Friday guess what happened? … I wasn’t able to have it again!

This time it wasn’t for my white blood cells it was my to do with my bone marrow. When you reach the middle of your treatments your body finds it harder to recover after each chemo and so your count becomes low unless it is given longer to recover before been hit with more chemo or boosted with a special injection. Well you can imagine with my luck which route I had to go down. Yes you guessed right, it was needle time for me, my worst nightmare.

I had been told all about this when I first began my chemo back in February but me been me kept thinking it wont happen to me and I will be fine, I wont have to have the big injection, how wrong I was.

When Anita told me the bad news I just burst into tears. I knew I had no other option to have the injection and it would be for the best. It was either that or have to be admitted into hospital because my count was that low, if it had gone any lower then I would have been in trouble. I had my best friend the Emela cream (used many other times I’ve needed a needle) rubbed on the top of my thigh in hope it would numb the area a bit, but did it? No it did not.

I felt the needle go in, but I then screamed and cried so loud as I felt the liquid been squirted into my leg and then I felt the needle coming out my leg. It hurt loads, in fact it hurt more than having my two operations and then having the stitches out after and that is saying something.

The injection is to help boost your bone marrow, it basically forcing your body to produce more as it cant do it naturally, but there can be side effects and I didn’t half feel them over the weekend. I had really bad pains in my back and legs and at one point I felt like a 90 year old. I couldn’t walk properly or sleep very well and at sometimes I could feel my heart beat, it was throbbing that much. It was just horrible and I thought I want to give up now. I can’t be going through this each week if my counts get low again.

Watching episodes of The Bill takes me right back to those university days

This week I am writing this from my bed while watching The Bill. Yes I watch The Bill. I have watched it for years and I used to make everyone at University sit and watch it each week so I wouldn’t miss it. Very sad I know but quite funny at the same time.

I got a bit annoyed and upset last week because I was ill. I had had my chemo on the Friday so it made it my good week where I am able to go out, but for the last few treatments I have had bad side effects which means I am ill on my good week and by the time I am better it is my low week where I cant really go out, so this got me a bit stressed and down with myself.

Every Sunday after my chemo I wake up with a bad mouth and then for the next three or four days I am not able to eat, drink or talk properly because of the pain. I then have pains in my chest where my line is, so I am not sleeping very well at night because whatever way I lay it hurts. It got that bad I ended up going to Little Aston to have a blood test to make sure my blood count was okay and nothing else was wrong. My blood count came back and it was the highest it has been which surprised me a lot. I felt like rubbish yet my blood count was fine, very strange. I know being ill isn’t my fault but I hate knowing it is going to happen every time I have my chemo. I don’t think I can put up with going through that pain until the end of my treatment.

My sister Sarah’s sickness bug hasn’t helped either this week. It is my low week and I am not if I can help it allowed to go by people who are ill. So every time she goes into a room I come out of it. It has been quite funny when it comes to watching the TV in the lounge. We have had to sit opposite ends of the room like two little kids who have been naughty.

Fingers crossed for this Friday. I am off for another session of treatment, so lets hope I can have it seen as I have been unwell again. Last time this happened I couldn’t have my chemo and it had to be delayed.

People told me I was inspirational

As you will know from last week I wasn’t able to have my chemo because my blood count was too low. Well after it was delayed to this week I was very anxious about going because I kept thinking to myself it’s going to be low again and then I will be two weeks behind my schedule.

However my blood test came back fine. It wasn’t as high as they would have liked it to have being but it was at an acceptable point for me to have my treatment. It all went well, and having this new line has definitely made a huge difference and it a lot easier. The one thing I did not enjoy that day was having the last of my stitches out of my chest. Anita did so well to get them out, I don’t know how she managed it to be honest, they were tangled so much around my line. It didn’t half hurt though and I did cry and almost scream at one point.

This week has been my low week, where I am not really meant to go to crowded places like the cinema or the pub because my immune system gets low and I could catch things really easily so when the sun came out I made the most of it and went for walks round Lichfield and Tamworth. It was nice to get some fresh air and clear my head. Having cancer doesn’t half take over your life and mess with your mind.

On Thursday I took part in a fashion show in aid of The Teenage Cancer Trust. The evening was organised by the ladies from Pink, the hair specialist in Birmingham. It was to make people aware young people and teenagers with cancer, and also that you can still look good even if you are ill. The night was held at Pier 39 in Mere Green with a lovely three-course meal. When it came to the fashion show part I was so nervous. I had to walk down the stairs in front of over a hundred people, stop for them to have a look and then walk in between the tables. If it wasn’t for the people clapping and cheering me on I would have panicked and chickened out. The night went so well and I had a great time. To top it all off was all the different people I didn’t know coming up and telling me how brave and inspirational I was.

A 'pizza' of the action as I have my first PET Scan

THIS week wasn’t as hectic as the week before thankfully. We had a lovely meal in Après for my Mum’s birthday. In the end I picked the pepperoni pizza to eat. I have really got into pepperoni pizza since starting my treatment. They do say your taste buds change when you have chemotherapy and they weren’t wrong.

On Thursday I went for my first PET Scan. This is to find out if the treatment is working. I had to be injected with a radioactive liquid and lie down in a room for an hour. This is where Mum set the buzzers off because she was catching too much radiation from me. It was a very funny moment. Every time she came near me the number on the bleeper would get higher. I went in the scanner for half an hour, with my head strapped into a cage so I wouldn’t move, it was very scary.

On Friday I was meant to have my chemotherapy. I had geared myself up to have it and in the end I couldn’t. My blood count was far too low for them to give it me. Fingers crossed it will be ok for this Friday. I shall let you know.

I thought I would take this time to say a huge thank you to my two oncology nurses at Little Aston Hospital. They have been amazing since I began my treatment back in February.

On the day of my emergency operation Diana had begun her shift early in the morning and did not leave until I went home at nearly midnight that evening. Her shift finished at four that day and came into my operation with me and was there when I woke up in recovery. That’s dedication for you.

Anita is my other nurse and she has spent hours and hours with me trying to get my old line to work. The patience she must have is untrue and I don’t know how she didn’t scream every time it didn’t work because I was ready to. I will never forget her face the first time she used my new line and actually got blood from it for my blood test. She couldn’t stop jumping up and down with excitement.

They are both lovely people and do not get enough credit for all the hard work they put in, so thank you for everything for that you do. You are both brilliant.

Meeting presenter was a dream come true

AS you will all remember from last week I had to have an emergency operation for a new Hickman Line. Well it was a success. The new line finally works and I was able to have my chemo. To be honest I was dreading going for my treatment because deep down I thought knowing my luck it wouldn’t work again and the operation would have been pointless.

The rest of my week has been hectic. On Saturday after my operation I went to my boyfriends 21^st birthday party. I managed to get my best dress and dancing shoes on and have a good time despite being dosed up on the anaesthetic from the operation and painkillers to help my chest.

A few days after my chemo I fell ill. This hit me hard because I haven’t yet been ill from my treatment and suddenly I was. I had a mouth infection and had white blisters all over my tongue and mouth, so I was unable to talk, eat or drink without it been very painful. It was horrible. I was feeling rubbish from the infection and wasn’t eating or drinking and because of that I felt even worse and sick. It got that bad I almost passed out in Tesco when I was shopping with my Mum. I am a lot better now but not looking forward to my next treatment in case it happens again.

On Good Friday my dreams were made true when I met and had coffee with my idol Anna Richardson. Anna is the presenter for Supersize vs Superskinny on Channel Four. I was originally interviewing her for my dissertation at University but when everything with the cancer happened that all changed, but she still wanted to meet up with me. I was on cloud nine for the rest of that day after having had the best time ever.

For Easter I went away for a few days with my family to the Peak District. It was a lovely break and a chance to not think about the cancer, and I had good time apart from all the rainy weather. I hope you all got some yummy Easter Eggs. I got a nice handbag and the new Twilight DVD. I am not a big fan of chocolate.

It’s my Mum’s 48^th birthday at the end of this week so we are off for a lovely meal to Après in Lichfield. I am undecided on what to have to eat. I can’t choose between a pizza or the fajitas, I like them both. I’ll let you know next week what I picked.

A big thank you

I would like to start by thanking you all for reading my column last week and hope you enjoyed it and found it interesting.

This week I was going to tell you all about my needle phobia and all the tests I have gone through to get where I am today, but I had a bit of a drama last Friday that I thought I would share with you instead.

Nothing is ever simple when it comes to me, especially with my treatment. For those of you who don’t know me, I have the biggest phobia of needles ever and to overcome this fear I had a Hickman Line inserted into my chest so they wouldn’t need to keep using them. The line goes into my chest, along a vein and into my central vein above my heart. However this didn’t end up making things easier and as the weeks have gone on the line has been playing up, and stressing me out and making my treatment a nightmare and then on Friday I had the worse day so far.

I had just begun my chemotherapy when I was in that much pain I was crying and could have started to scream it was that bad, so to be on the safe side I was sent for a line-o-gram to check the line was working okay. I knew deep down something was wrong as it took ages for them to get the results back from X-Ray and I was right. My line had spilt inside my chest and so the toxic drugs had leaked out into my body tissue. Well you can imagine the picture on my face, I couldn’t stop crying, and then the news got worse. I was told I would need an emergency operation that night to have the old line removed, my body flushed and cleaned from all the toxic drugs and a new Hickman Line put into the other side of my chest.

This was the worse possible news I could hear, ever! I had gone through all the pain of the last operation and my body finally getting used to my line to have to have a new one put in. I now have five holes in total across my chest. The operation was successful and I have spent this week recovering and trying to get over the pain of the new line. Something I didn’t want to have to do all over again, it wasn’t meant to end up this way.

I was too young to be a one-in-three statistic

IMAGINE being told you are that one in three statistic who has cancer. Now imagine being told you are that one in three statistic who has cancer at the age of 21. I am Laura Jayne Brown, I live in Lichfield and in January 2010 I was told I had cancer.

Up until Christmas last year I was in my final year at Staffordshire University studying Broadcast Journalism. My goal and future ambition is to become a TV or Radio presenter and I have always wanted to achieve this dream ever since I was little.

I was your normal average girl working hard towards my degree and looking forward to my graduation in July, blissfully unaware what was happening inside my body. It wasn’t until December last year when I found a lump in my neck and knew there was something wrong, but like many other young people I really didn’t assume the worse. In my case I thought it was down to stress and too much hard work at university, how very wrong I was.

It was after a trip to the Doctor, who then referred me to a surgeon when my world came crashing down. Following an operation to remove the lump from my neck I was diagnosed with Hodgkin Lymphoma.

Almost three hundred thousand people are diagnosed with cancer each year with nearly two thousand being teenagers and young people. In other words out of every one hundred thousand people in the UK, slightly more than two people will get Hodgkin Lymphoma.

Hodgkin Lymphoma is cancer of the lymphatic system and affects your immune system. In simple terms, it stops your body from fighting infections properly. Cancer cells are made instead of normal cells, so instead of making normal cells to fight infections, the body makes cancerous ones. You cannot catch Hodgkin Lymphoma from someone and you cannot pass it so someone else. There is also nothing to say that anything you have done or not done has caused you to develop the illness. It is not your fault and of course this is the first thing that came into my head when I was told, what did I do wrong?

Over the next few months as I battle with cancer I will share with you all the new and different experiences that I have had to endure on my road to recovery.