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Our Cancer Journey Week 17

Although Kathy's body is sore and her hands/feet are numb, her mood is good as we finalize our house sale, pick out the chickens we'll raise on the new farm, and prepare for the life ahead instead of looking back on our old life and the events of the past 5 months.

She lost her last eyebrow hairs this week and the toenails on her big toes will likely fall off soon.   She cannot open jars or water bottles because of diminished grip strength and today she visits the orthopedist for followup of her probable right knee medial collateral ligament tear.  But she's happy.

The chickens we've decided to raise are Buff Orpingtons, Jersey Giants, and Brahmas  - all docile large breeds.    We'll likely raise a small number to start with, ensuring we learn chicken care incrementally.   We have local farms and grain mills as well as web-based chicken farming resources to help us.   This Summer, we'll build a portable chicken tractor, then design a permanent coop for Winter.

Just 4 more treatments of Taxol and then hopefully Kathy's weakness/numbness will resolve as we move onto surgery and radiation.

Milestones ahead - films/orthopedic examination today, MRI of the breast on April 25 to determine if any detectable tumor remains, then a breast surgeon appointment on May 31.   Although lumpectomy is a long shot and mastectomy is likely, Kathy's response to chemotherapy has been so good, that there's a possibility for minor rather than major surgery.   We'll know by June, just about the time our chickens will be old enough to enjoy the long Summer days outside in our meadow.

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