Snewl

Roxy, from the replies, I see that I am definitely in the minority. I had my port put in Jan.'06 and I still have it!  The times that I have mentioned having it removed, he (my onc) just tells me that I am high risk and he wants to keep it in 'just in case'. I've given up asking. My surgeon was even wondering why on my last visit. The weird thing is, after all this time I'm starting to believe him and I'm worried that if I demand it out, the cancer will come back and he will be like 'well I told you so.'  I just keep going for my monthly cleanings and pray it doesn't come back ever. Anybody know how long you can keep these things in ( I heard about 5 years or so.)

Shirley

Hi all,

Need some opinions on a job offer I have received. I had an axillary node dissection in 1/06 and had to have follow up radiation to the axillary (I think they did boosts also). Right now I work in an office part time and haven't had any (thank God) problems with my right arm. However, I was offered a job working in a large retail store doing merchandising which would involve some lifting during the day. I would only be 2-3 days a week. The man who did the interview said the lifting would involve cases weighing up to 30 lbs, but they could be broken down to weight less. I am concerned about this because I know how easy it is for lymphodema to come on. I woman I know got it just by pulling weeds in her garden this spring. So, as much as I am interested in the job and it seems like a great company, I don't want to do it if it is a risk and I don't want to take the job and then change my mind and put this company in a bind. Thanks for any advice.

 Shirley

Hi,

I had my dd A/C and taxol back in '06 and have to say Taxol was easier. No nausea, just some pain that started a few days later and lasted for a few days. Wasn't too bad, I just needed to take Aleve. my blood work tho, thru chemo was a shambles, I needed neulasta (that hurt more than taxol) and aricept (?) for anemia. Good luck with your treatment and God Bless.

Shirley.  

Hi Alaska Deb,

One thing that helped for me during chemo was temporary tatoos. If you don't want to take the plunge for permanent tatoos, check out headcovers.com. They have a section with eyebrow products and one of them is temp tatoos. They work just like the kind that kids get at carnivals (just put a wet washcloth or sponge on them for a minute or so) and last up to several days. I got a few different pairs (1 pkg includes 3 pairs) and then found 1 I like and ordered some more. Don't know if I would have spent much time out of the house without them. My attempts at drawing them in were pretty lame. If you do get them, make sure you take time to apply them carefully - I didn't one day and realized, about half way to work, that one brow was about 1/2" higher than the other! BTW, I finished chemo in July 06 and my brows never came back in fully - I got what looks like a 1/2 brow. Oh well.

Take care

Shirley 

Hi all -

I wonder why they downplay this (brain fog) side effect. When I talked to my onc, he said it wasn't femara, it was from chemo (finished 7/06). To me, the femara causing it just makes sense. One of the biggest complaints in menopause (besides hot flashes) is brain fog and memory. Well, aren't we in a sense in kind of a super menopause, I mean AI's work by removing almost ALL the estrogen and it is this loss of estrogen which causes menopausal problems. Give you an example how goofy I get sometimes. Yesterday, I went to wash my delicates and was going to leave them soak in the sink a bit. So, I put them in and turned on the water. Then the phone rang - I went to answer it (it was a telemarketer) said no thanks, hung up and then totally FORGOT the water was running. A bit later I went into the bathroom and there was a mini lake in there -spent hours cleaning it up. Oh well, my undies are clean and so is the rest of the bathroom now.  

Hi Carole,

Yes, Yes and Yes! The fatigue, brain fog and plain bad mood are horrible. Worse than the pain. I finished tx 9/06 and started on Arimidex and then switched to femara several months later and am still taking it. I HATE IT! I continue taking it because I'm afraid not to. I am at high risk of reoccurrence and the Femara helps lower it (doesn't make it go away though.) The doc said I may continue this for 10 years - that over 8 to go. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it feeling lousy when it could come back anyway.

Shirley 

I have been taking Femara for 1.5 years and I kind of think of it as my blessing and my curse. It's a blessing because it reduces risk of reoccurence (which is quite high for me) and a curse because of the SE's. Mine are mainly aches and stiffness, tiredness, occasional charley horses, oh and a new one, night sweats. I have recently started raising my Vit D but am not sure by how much. I think altogether I am taking about 2,000 IU's (?) a day. I think I may acually be hurting a bit less - thank God.

Take care

Shirley 

I have been a reach to recovery volunteer for several months and have mixed feelings about it. Our contact is about 100% phone and feels impersonal, we aren't supposed to give out our phone number (although I usually do) for privacy reasons. I only volunteer occasionally but feel I have helped on occasion. I believe the requirements by jellydonuts are all true and wonder why stage IV people aren't allowed to volunteer. I know we don't want to discourage but what about women facing a reoccurrence? Who is there for them?

Shirley 

Thanks for the link, Bren

Shirley