Day 1 and 2 of Testing and Treatment

Wow, these two days have flown by!  I didn't even have a chance to walk today and get my usual 7 miles around Bad Emstal.  It was probably for the best because I was too tired and it was a bit overcast, rainy, and cool.  

I met my fellow patients yesterday for the first time and we seem like we have known each other much longer as of the end of today.  The patient to doctor/nurse ratio is just as I had hoped for (the individual attention... I have met with my doctor on both days.  There is one patient from Germany (the only one who speaks no English), two Swedes, a woman from Slovenia, a woman patient accompanied by her husband from NY, another woman from Sacramento, CA, a Chinese woman from Ireland, a woman and her husband from England, a young man from Kuwait with his brother, and an American who lives in Germany and works for the federal government.  Some of us are in our first of three weeks while others are in their second/third week of treatment.  All my fellow patients and doctors and nurses are super friendly and helpful.  And the clinic doesn't smell like a hospital or doctor's office as per back home! It is clean, modern, feels kind of homey, with lots of windows for natural sunlight.

Yesterday I had numerous tests...a bioelectrical impedance test, my heart rate variability assessed, an ECG, and enough blood drawn to wonder if Halloween had arrived early!  Then I had an evaluation by an osteopath and an upper body massage to finish my day.  Somewhere in all of that, I had a consult with Dr. Nour for about 45 minutes.  I was surprised yet pleased when he described the doctors and nurses at the clinic as my team and that I was the head of the team.  Of course, based on my test results, the docs/nurses would make a treatment plan for me BUT that I had final say-so in how that might ultimately look.  He encouraged me to ask questions and make changes/adjustments as I saw fit.  How unusual?!  I'm not certain I can recall a time when I was the leader of my cancer team!!!👍

My day, Monday, was finished with an assessment from the osteopath and an upper body massage.

My first treatment today was whole body hyperthermia. Of course some of my fellow patients had already had one of these (one a week is usual the rule for frequency).  They told me what to expect but, honestly, it was far worse than they described it!  Here is the page on the clinic website that describes it...https://www.arcadia-praxisklinik.de/en/cancer-therapies/hyperthermia/

I have NEVER been so hot in my life.  It made/makes sense that the cancer cell membranes are weakened by the heat (104 degrees) and the healthy cells are not.  Obviously the goal is to induce the heat that one would have with a fever BUT it takes about 90 minutes to get the body temperature to this point (I'll let your imagination determine how they measure this😉) and then you have at least 30 more minutes to be in the "cocoon" where only your head is sticking out from the HEAT CHAMBER OF DEATH!😆. Thank goodness the nurse was constantly making cold compresses for my head, neck, and face and giving me water because it is so hard to be that HOT and not be able to do anything about it but hope the clock goes FASTER!!!  About one hour in, the botanical infusions are supposed to start.  Often they use vitamin C, curcumin, green tea extract or the like to enter the cancer cell and weaken it.  The botanicals don't harm the healthy cells.  Usually, in western medicine, a doctor would infuse chemotherapy BUT, of course, hyperthermia is not FDA approved and so it isn't used to "set up" the cancer cell to chemo infusion.

Only problem other than the heat...they couldn't access a vein (mine are notoriously hard to find because they are so small).  So, I didn't get any botanicals today but I'm getting a port or a picc line tomorrow so I won't have four extra holes in my forearm like I experienced today (it has happened many times before, not just here!)

After I wobbled back to my apartment, took a shower, and grabbed lunch, I met with the doctor again to discuss my lab results and get an ultrasound.  I think the testing is over so now we will execute the treatment plan.  The last event of the day was a meeting with Dr. Henning Saupe, the medical director of the clinic.  I really enjoy listening to him as he explains in a way that is understandable and he so passionate about his work.  You might have looked at the YouTube interview I mentioned previously (with Chris Wark) but you also should watch his short video (8:50 minutes) on his Cancer Field Theory.  This is what he was explaining to us today in the meeting.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xggzG2bFVrg&ab_channel=ArcadiaPraxisklinikGmbH

Tomorrow I will have an appointment for body work with the osteopath and local hyperthermia on my pelvis and abdomen.  I can't imagine it will be as difficult as the whole body because I won't be cocooned.  Thankfully they should be able to give me the botanical infusions.  When these botanicals are infused in this manner, they have 1000x the effect of taking them orally because they get into the bloodstream right away without having to get into the digestive system first.

Time for bed...it IS 10:09 p.m. here!