Yesterday was the six-week visit to the KU Cancer Center, this time just for blood work and a consultation with Jennifer, the Physician Assistant.  The waiting room was packed, and, though this is hardly a revelation, it's a good reminder that cancer is no respecter of age, race, or economic status.  The one exception is that pediatric oncology is at a different site.  The blood draw is fast and painless, and, though Marci was there, I avoided her yet again. 

After a short wait, we saw Jennifer.  The blood work was all in the normal range, so that was good news.  I'm in the second day of the week without Votrient, and the trickiest part is regulating my blood pressure, which has been running low.  When I'm on the Votrient, for years I took three meds to lower the blood pressure, but the last couple of runs, I've gone down to two, and even that reduced dosage keeps the level slightly lower than we'd like.  After over four years of taking the chemo, my body seems not to react as strongly with hypertension.  Other than drinking Gatorade, though, there doesn't seem to be much to do at home to keep the b.p. up, the new problem. 

We had planned to have lunch with a KC friend or two, but both the ones we asked had to work.  It seems so unfair that people actually have to work instead of being available for short-notice lunches.  Mohamed and I had lunch at a First Watch a block away from the cancer center.  The waiter recognized us from six weeks earlier, perhaps because we're an odd couple in the looks department.

I managed to stay awake the whole way home for the second time in a row, but then crashed for three hours once I saw the bed. 

Our next visit is October 12 when I'll have the annual full-body x-rays, CT scans, blood work, a consultation with the oncologist, and the bone-strengthening shot--a much longer and more exhausting day than yesterday.