Tuesday 15th September - final day of treatment

Can't quite believe this day has come.  After so long working towards this, it was certainly a weird feeling, walking away for the last time.  The only analogy that springs to mind, is that feeling after finishing your exams.  Like a weight has lifted off your shoulders, and that you are free to do what you want with your time again.

When Toby was having his treatment there was a meeting with one of the team, asking about how they could make things better, and how we felt things had gone.  We really didn't have a bad word to say.  If we ever end up in the business of recommending these things, the PSI would certainly get our vote.  We also had a closing meeting with the doctors who re-iterated what some of the long term effects might be and also how the short term effects should reduce over time.  They seemed grateful for our present, and were happy to chat more freely about Toby's future.

Despite us having written a thankyou letter, we wanted to put something in the guest book.  We now need to get a photo printed out to stick in, think of something to write and get Toby to 'help' all before we leave on Friday.  Mmmm we'll see. 

After leaving the PSI we went straight to the Kinderspital for the usual chemo appointment.  Thank goodness Toby's bloods are better than last week (Neutrophils 1.4).  The reduced dose of Vinorelbine may have helped.  So, we continue with the oral cyclophosphamide, and they advise us to drop the Vinorelbine, in line with the protocol.  That saves us an extra half hour, so we made a quick exit, head for a sandwich in the cafe and then hit the road south to the Alps.  An hour or two later we are surrounded by the most spectacular scenery.  We stay the night in a 60's throwback 'motel' which we hurriedly booked last night.  It had felt like Interlaken and the whole Jungfrau region was full when we looked on the internet, but this place had availability.  Easy to see why!!  Spotlessly clean, fantastically friendly staff but wow - like stepping back in time!  A great way to try to start to relax and focus on oursleves as a family.