Today is the official start of the drug trial and I must be a glutton for punishment.
I am escorted up to the research section again by the nurse in charge of the drug trial. It is quiet today, no one else is around. The nurse draws my blood this time. She misses on her first attempt (argh!) and has to try again. I pee in a cup again. One of the doctors on the research team gives me a quick once over - I guess to confirm I haven't caught any illnesses in the last few days. We enter the data into the computer and then head down to the infusion center. It takes the pharmacist about a half an hour to prepare the injections (they need to be thawed). So we wait.
Waiting sucks. All I can think about is the pain from the shots two days ago and today I get four at full dose. Blah.
It is finally time. These shots are going into my right thigh. There are two nurses now. One to hold my leg still and the other to do the injections. The nurse sprays the area with a topical antiseptic to numb it. And the first shot goes in. The pain from this shot is off the charts!!! This is so not fun!!! The antiseptic takes away the initial sting of needle going in, but the fluid that follows hurts - 10 on the scale hurt. I get a couple of minutes to regroup and they do the second one. This one is two inches off to the side and does not hurt as much, maybe only a 7.5. Again, I get a couple of minutes to regroup. The third does in two inches below the first on the top side of my thigh. A little less pain than the second. Regroup. And finally, the last. This one goes two inches off the side from the third, and it hurts!!! Almost as bad as the first. Argh!!! Damn cancer!!!
Now that the torture session is over, I have to be monitored for an hour before I can go home. So I lay back in the recliner and watch tv on my smart phone. The hour passes, they take my vitals. All is good, no allergic reaction. I get to go home. Yay.
I have to monitor the injection site for the next 72 hours for any anomalies.
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