CMF Question
Comments
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CONGRATULATIONS Jane,
!All the best Carol. Soon the worst part, "the unknown" will be over with.
Take care Lisa!
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Wow, I just looked back at the last few days of postings. There is no place else you could ever get this type of support. I am so thankful for all of you, your stories, advice, and encouragement. I got to thinking about people who do not have this type of support. My books were all good but this is unbelievable!!!!
I say "lets get this party started" ...
Carol
My cold is better tonight, atleast compared to yesterday, I'm having a lite dinner, and to bed early.
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Good luck tomorrow Carol. You can do it. The actual treatment is really not as bad as we anticipate. Let us know how it goes. We'll be looking for a report!!!
Rita
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Carol,
Hi, just wondering how it went for you today. Hugs.
Candie
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Jane CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
Carol...Thinking about you!
-melanie
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Thanks for all the congrats and good thoughts ladies!! What a wonderful feeling to have chemo over with!!
I was very emotional leaving--mixed emotions--hard to explain--delighted to be done, but I will truly miss the wonderful people who were having chemo with me on my days--we got to know each other well, we had some wonderful shared laughter, shared stories of our families and pets, shared photographs, shared support, etc. I will miss them, and I will miss the wonderful nurses, who were always smiling and supportive and just the best.
So, now I have PET and CAT scans scheduled for next Friday and will meet with the onc the following Wednesday to go over the results (hopefully clear) and discuss starting hormonal therapy.
Carol, how did you do today? Been thinking about you all day and sending "easy, comfortable" chemo vibes out to you--hope it went well--just keep thinking "ONE DOWN!" That was always my thought when I finished each one. I found breaking it into parts and just dealing with them one at a time helped.
Jill, sending "easy, comforable" chemo vibes your way also for next week!
Thanks all for your kind thoughts and support.
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Hi CMF GIRLS XXX
I am due to start CMF in Feb ...I have my last red devil next week.
I am having 2 week on 2 week off with Cmf .....over 16 weeks...so thats 8 treatments in all....
Can anyone tell me if the s/e are to be as bad as this freaking red devil thing....and in general was it quite easy...also did your hair start growing back...xxx
I will re read the whole of the thread when I feel well enough ....
Much Love to all of you xxx
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Hi Sweet Sue! Its Jane and Betsy here--we have been keeping up with you on the other thread but not having time to post there much--
ONE MORE RED DEVIL TO GO!! You go girl--continue on that Yellow Brick Road!!!
From my experiene with friends, CMF is truly a walk in hte part compared to the Red Devil!! If you could deal with that Sweet Sue, CMF will be a breeze!!!
Hugs and love and sloppy cocker kisses from Ms. Betsy!
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OMG xxx Jane xxx How wonderful to see you !!! and Betsy ...gosh I love her...what a beautiful picture!!
Thankyou so much for your support and encouragement...it means the world to me xxx And thank goodness the CMF may be easier xxx
Jane when I am better which will be the other side of June ...I would truly love to meet in Hyde Park at some point in the future....I may bring Ulla too...she lives in Sweden and is ultimately courageous xxx
Well I better get to bed...I feel so much happier for your post...it is gone midnight and I have work tomorrow xxx
Much Love xxx
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Sue we are definitely planning a trip to London this summer, and believe me, we will meet up!!
If you cannot get down to London, we will travel up to Manchester--we have never been up there and would love to visit--
Please bring Ulla--she sounds like she has gone through such a frightful time in her life, in addition to the BC.
Get a great nights sleep Sue!!
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Hellooooo ladies, happy to report "so far so good"... woke up at about 3:00am layed there for about a half hour and decided to take a little anxiety med. Hubby had to wake me at 7:45, I was snoozing good. My appt was for 9:15, so I showered, put the EMLA cream on my port (gotta love that stuff), ate a touch of breakfast, tea, lots of water and we we're off. At about 9:00 I took a Zofran pill, met with the onc at 9:15, had a good chat and I said, "I'm ready, lets do it". I continued to drink water, in fact I had to pee twice before they even started.
I could not feel anything when she accessed my port. For any of you who don't care even for a pin prick, the EMLA cream is the way to go. She had me take orally my (3) cytoxan pills, and they started with the drip of some more anti nausea drug, then brought me ice chips to crunch on during the chemo portion which only took about 30 minutes. I continued to drink water the whole time as well, and munched a few pretzels.
Anyway, left the appt, told the dh, "lets stop for a bite to eat", I think he was surprised at that request, but happy to oblige. Had a small lunch, then to Costco.
I'm continuing to drink my fluids tonight, had a little of my leftover lunch, and will have a small bite of dinner in a bit. They told me to take another Zofran tonight. Hoping my next dose of pills in the morning goes as well.
Although most of you didn't need my daily synopsis, I figure some others who may be going on CMF may get something positive from my experience as well.
Thanks gals again for everything, you had me prepared as best I could be, I'll be chatting again tomorrow, Carol
PS, Jane, 1 down 11 to go!!!!! You go gal!!!!!
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Yeah Carol! One down.....Hopefully all will go well tomorrow. I'll be thinking about you. Funny, but I always ate too when the treatment was over. Usually one of my friends took me to chemo and I always took them to lunch after.
Glad you've got the first one under your belt. You go get um!
Rita
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Carol,
I was thinking about you all day today. Glad your first txt went well!! Thanks for the info on the ELMA cream, I do need to get my script filled for this as accessing my port is a major concern. It's still VERY sensative from my surgery.
One txt down, 10 more pokes(including blood draws) to go!!
Jill
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Jill, thanks for thinking of me, I was telling my dh at txt's about all the gals online who personnally wish each other well.
In re to the EMLA, they suggested putting it on at home, kinda thick over the port, put a piece of saran wrap over it, I taped it in place.
I actually put it on at about 8:30am and did not get my poke until about 10:30/11:00. The nurse commented to me that it was noted in my chart that I was a little needle shy. I laughed, but she said it is good for the RN's to know that as they will accomodate in the very best way possible. I was a little concerned that maybe the EMLA had worn off, being it had been over 3 hours, but it worked like a charm, I had to ask if the port had been accessed.
Glad your getting the scrip too, who needs any extra anxiety??!!
Thinking of you as well, Carol
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Carol,
So glad all went well for you yesterday. I was thinking about you all day. 1 down....great!!! Hope all is well today.
Jill, we are right with you,too.
Jane, I know about the mixed feelings when it is your last tx. I knew I would miss all the great nurses and techs.
Hugs and prayers,
Candie
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I am at work just reading and crying.
I finished my 6 months of CMF in Sept. and already it seems like a dream.
Time really does move along and we all really do get through this.
Prayers, hugs and kisses to all.
-Melanie
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Melanie,
Hi... I have been reading some of these posts, too, and I guess I am now glad that I didn't have CMF, since I am not sure I could have gotten through SIX months of tx!! As it was, the last one was a real doozy! I am so glad to be finished with the tx!!
Hugs, and prayers to all who are now going through CMF tx! YOU CAN DO IT!!!
Harley
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Melanie,
It has been 13 months since I finished CMF. You are so right...it does seem like a dream. We do get through it, we do move on and we can be proof for the new ones that they will get through this!!! That's why I keep returning here...to keep in touch with those I have met, to encourage those beginning and going thru it now and to be here for those who are yet to begin...as others were for me. Love ya all!!
Hugs and prayers,
Candie
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Bump
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Fellow CMF'ers, I might need my memory refreshed but i believe it was Cathy that had done the whole 6 months on oral cytoxan. Question, does your body hit a point during the 14 days that it kinda peaks as far as feeling good or bad, having se's etc?
Today is only day three for me and I definitely feel yuckier today than yesterday, not that I'm too surprised, I figure the system is getting more meds in it daily, but I'm wondering if say after 4,5,6,7 days, you kinda hit a plateau?
Any words of wisdom, all and all I'm feeling pretty lucky to be feeling as good as I do.
Go Seahawks,
Carol
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Hi Carol--
I did my entire CMF IV, so I cannot add too much wisdom.
Are you keeping up with your fluids and water drinking? The Cytoxan can be very irritating to the bladder if you don't keep flushing fluids through it. At one point after tx 1, I was sure I had a UTI I had such burning, had a urinalysis (negative) and increased the fluids and it passed and did not come back. And the onc nurse said if I could not keep up with enough fluids, I could come in for IV hydration to help--so, I kept up the fluids after that and never needed to go in for hydration.
All I can add is that my friend who did CMF IV also usually felt fine until day 4 or 5, and then felt much worse for a few days. My experience was I felt tired and nauseated the first four or five days, and then felt much better.
I think we are all different.
BUT, any questions or concerns you have, call your onc nurse immediately--these ladies are angels from heaven and are a great source of information and support.
Thanks Candie for your returning to help new CMF ladies! While six months seems like forever, it does pass, and dealing with it one treatment at a time makes it much easier.
Great to keep bumping this up for new CMF folks--it took me forever to find this thread when I started.
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Carol...I did the whole six months of oral cytoxan..I don't think my side effects came from just that...but everyone is different..
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Carol, I did the whole 6 months of oral cytoxan too. Each treatment was different for me. I did find tho, that is was cumulative.
Hugs and prayers,
Candie
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Thanks again for your comments ... actually having a much better day today than yesterday. Just got back from a nice long walk with dh and the two wiener dogs, it was good for all of us.
I've been lucky (I think) and have only been taking a Zofran for nausea about a half hour before I take the cytoxan in the morning and making it the rest of day okay. I have been drinking a ton of water, layed in bed last night counting the bottles of water I had, I think it was over 90 ounces, along with a ginger ale while watching football and a little juice too. Sticking to the small meals, and passed on the chili a friend brought over!!!!
Just hoping a stool softener kicks in soon ... boy would have never thought I'd be typing on-line to my new found b/c friends about stool softeners!!
Hoping that I will be able to make it through the work day tomorrow, my job is pretty physical (truck driver) but my boss has me on lite duty, just the small trucks, no semi's until the arm is a little more mobile. Anyway, I just know I want to be near a restroom!!!
So far, "IT'S DOABLE", thanks ladies, Carol
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Glad to hear you are hanging in there Carol and feeling a little better today than yesterday.
Yup, "IT'S DOABLE" and you are doing it. Rock on, dear lady.
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Carol,
Glad to hear that all is going good so far. As far as good days or bad days. I can not really say that there was any consistency. There were many tx cycles that I really never had any bad days and some cycles that I had queasy days. My pharmacist recommended to take the pill in the am and not to eat one hour before or two hours after taking it. I followed this rule and it seemed to work well for me. I also found that there where certian foods and liquids that made me feel queasier, that I learned to avoid. You really need to monitor and find what works for you. I took me about 1 1/2 months but when I did all seemed to go well. Thinking of you through the remainder of this tx. Before you know it you will be on your chemo holiday. Which is much enjoyed,
Cathy
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Hi gals!
It looks like I need to get caught up on the posts. I've spent the weekend in Kentucky.........just spoiling those grandsons and enjoying every minute of it!
Carol...so glad that you are feeling better. Although everyone is different, the third day was always my worst. Then I began to regroup and feel better. You can do it! This first round will give you clues about how your body is responding and you'll have a better idea about what you need to do for next time.
I'll be back tomorrow when I have more time to read those posts that I missed. Hope everyone had a good weekend.
Rita
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Thanks to all for the kind words, doing well this evening, and happy to report that the stool softeners did more than there job ... TMI !!!! I might need to fine tune that strategy a bit.
Jill, just wanted you to know that so far this first txt is tolerable. I'm very careful to keep a little bland food on the tummy and I have my water bottle at my side 24/7. Your going to be just fine!!!!
Yak at ya all tomorrow after a full day of work (hopefully).
Carol
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That is funny...I had the opposite problem..I should have bought alot of shares in the company that makes Immodium AD !!!
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Carol, so glad you are doing good. Yep. we talk about anything here...the beauty of these friendships. Have a great day today.
Hugs and prayers,
Candie
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