Feeling Bionic

This whole thing about having a port-a-cath installed makes me feel rather bionic. I'm waiting for the bionic parts to kick in and make my left arm and shoulder really, really strong. If anyone sees me lift a car with my left arm, you know that it's started working.

All kidding aside, I still feel very good. My upper left chest (a little under my shoulder) is really bruised up and pretty sore still. It is kind of funny to know that there's an extra part in there. I guess it makes up for having less of my sigmoid colon (one part lost plus one part gained equals the same number of parts).

I woke up this morning curiously wondering what stage 4 colon cancer costs for the first 2 months. I know that it can't be cheap. Due to health insurance, disability insurance, a great job with lots of sick days, and a supply of gift cards that have come in the mail, I've gotten off pretty cheap and have had no major change in our lifestyle. However, I was thinking of some of the things that I would have had to pay for or have had to pay for and thought that I would compile a list. I'd love to find prices for some of these things:

• Nearly 2 months off of work. Thank goodness for my disability insurance and my sick days. Also, teachers--look for my catastrophic leave papers soon. I just need to have my doctor sign the forms and then turn them in to the district for approval. Also, I'm hoping to be back to work part time, but any donated sick days will come in very handy for the days that I'm not working.
  
• Colonoscopy and blood tests.
  
• 2 CT scans.
  
• Hospital stay for a week, including having part of my sigmoid colon removed.
  
• Being stubborn and wanting to change the oil in your own car after a hospital stay. Then scratching the heck out of the car by driving it into the jeep project in your garage.
  
• Meetings with 4 different oncologists.
  
• Meeting with a geneticist.
  
• Cryo-storage just in case we want to have another baby. I figure we did pretty good with the first one! I wonder what a second one would be like.
  
• PICC line installation, including an x-ray to be sure of it's correct placement.
  
• PICC line removal.
  
• Port-A-Cath installation surgery and necessary doctor meetings (2 before the surgery and 1 after).
  
• Chemotherapy. I believe that my first course is 12 two-week treatments. This can't be cheap.
  

If anyone has hospital prices on these things I'd love to see--just for curiosity. I wonder if I'm up to $50,000? More? Wow--I'll say it again--thank goodness for health insurance and disability insurance (and gift cards too!).