Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin
Comments
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vanlex ~ I have to say that my 5th seemed to be the nastiest...am 6 days out from my 6th and LAST treatment and while I have had the gastric issues and some diziness the 5th was still the beast for sure. Hoping your 6th goes easier on you as well!
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Just got back about an hour ago from my last TCH! YAY for me! I guess it should feel better...but I am still dreading the side effects this weekend. But I know there will be an end in sight. I talked to my MO about the burning muscle pain in my legs and arms and she recommended Co-Q10, so the DH is out getting me some right now!
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Yayyy Kelloggs!!!0
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Kelloggs I felt the same way when I finished tx 6. Congrates… but plan on celebrating in 5 weeks. You'll feel so much better (unless that Co-Q10 works).
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Congratulations Kelloggs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Yeah Kellogg's!!! Congratulations on finishing TCH!!
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vanlex - #5 was my worst, #6 was much better, less GI issues.
nmoss - EF was 61, better than the last one, thanks for the luck!
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yay kelloggs!
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#5 was my worst as well. #6 was so much better. i was all geared up for bad SE's and then they didn't come. Who knows why - maybe knowing it is the last one has something to do with it. I don't know. But now you have only one more.
And Kelloggs - I am cheering for you too. You DID IT!
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Kelloggs ~ So happy for you...as SpecialK said we will be new women in 5 weeks! Hooray!
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dancetrancer: "How sick are you? I mean are you bedridden and have to have someone waiting on you, or do you just feel really crappy but can manage to get to the bathroom, make your own meals (if you feel like eating), etc.? And for how long are you really sick and in pain? Do you start feeling better at all in between every 3 week infusions?" I have only had two treatments so far, but I certainly haven't been bedridden at any point. No problem getting to the bathroom, and making at least something simple to eat. So far days 4-8 after treatment are the hardest, and then it has gotten better. After day 9 or 10 of my first treatment I felt pretty close to "normal." This time around, the side effects aren't going away but they are mild, manageable. I have missed very little work; only called in one day, and have had to work short days several time (4-6 hours instead of 8-9). I feel better with my DH driving me to chemo, and he prefers it too. My chemo is only every three weeks, so that's all he is having to take off work. I have just herceptin treatments on the in-between weeks but I drive myself to those (and go to work afterwards). The first treatment, I felt fine afterwards. The second one, I had a mild reaction and they gave me Benedryl. I was definitely too zonkered to drive. So I would recommend you have someone drive you, just in case.
vanlex - hope you are feeling better. I can't help but be jealous that you are on treatment #5.
Kelloggs - that is awesome!!! Hope your SEs are mild.
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christina thank you so much for the details. Incredibly helpful to hear from all of you!!!! I have felt so much calmer today. I am just going to hope for the best and will deal if I have a bad reaction. Just knowing that not everyone has a terribly bad reaction helps ease my fears. Yet at the same time I am grateful to hear the worse reactions, b/c I am mentally prepared.
How long does the entire time at the infusion center usually last? Do your DH or friends stay with you the whole time? What about eating? Do you even feel like it? I thought I remembered somewher that some on chemo are sensitive to smells and the food that is brought in by some makes them feel ill. How is this handled typically?
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dance - my DH stayed the whole time, but downloaded a movie onto his ipad, so he sat next to me (if there was an open recliner). I was usually there at least 6-7 hours, I saw the MO each time, had bloodwork, vital signs, about 20 minutes of pre-meds, takes a little while to mix up the meds, then T, followed by C, then H was last. Some people brought snacks, but I always brought something like granola bars and fruit juice that had no smell. Some brought sandwiches. My center had a policy against perfume or scented lotion to try to keep strong smells to a minimum and people seemed to try to keep to the same rule with food. I think most people were not interested in eating something spicy or intensely flavored at that point anyway! They also advised to try to eat a relatively hearty breakfast before so that you weren't ravenously hungry when leaving.
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dance - My experience was very similar to SpecialK. My husband stayed and read. I ate - I liked grapes and cottage cheese and maybe something sweet. I drank a lot of water and usually took a chair near the bathroom. They hung my bags on a pole so I could walk around. I saw the onc PA first and they drew blood to check my counts before I started. I used the frozen peas for my fingers and toes and elastogel caps during the taxotere. I got pretty cold and would be shivering by the end but a cup of coffee warmed me up. I usually did stuff on my computer, watch a movie or play a game or read/write.0
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You guys should see my front yard right now! There is a huge backhoe and klieg lights, and about 6 workers from the City of Tampa - a water main broke under my front lawn! I came home from my final echocardiogram (EF is 61 yay!) and there was a lot of water in the gutter by my mailbox. I thought it was the neighbor's hose but then I relaized water was coming from the cracks in the street! All of the sidewalk and half my front lawn is gone! There is a MASSIVE hole in front of my house. The funny thing is that I don't care - once you have dealt with BC all the rest is no biggie! The only bad part is that we have no water
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Omaz - did the elastogel caps work? I'm looking at doing the Penguin Cold Caps if my onc approves them.
Thanks so much for the tips!
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eeks SpecialK!!! Love your perspective. And congrats on the EF!!!
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My DH went to every one except the last one (he landed a job). The process took 5 hours plus or minus an hour. Sometimes the pharmacy was backed up. Sometimes the blood work took longer to come back. The first infusion is the longest because they infuse you slowly just to be sure you don't get any SE. They will start to speed it up if you are doing OK. The actual first visit is faster because they don't have to do bloodwork and you don't have to see the onc. All the other visits then check to make sure the chemo hasn't messed with your counts.
Typically after I saw the onc it would take about an hour to make the chemo. (They won't make it unless your onc has cleared you). My husband and I would leave and eat at the cafe in the hospital then come back. I did everything from read to play video games.
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SpecialK - Nice EF! I think I ended at 55. Wow, take a picture of your front yard!
Dance - I only did the caps during the tax - I didn't do during the carbo. Also, the first treatment was longer than we expected and I wasn't able to keep my head cold. I had 2 caps. My opinion is that using the caps I lost a lot of hair but was never bald, I had a thin covering at the end but the big thing was that my hair came back in fast. I believe that the cold caps were responsible for that. I also washed and combed my hair regularly. It came out when I tugged on it, bits at a time. I never lost clumps. I think the cold caps helped. I think if I had done it during carbo as well and had more caps it would have worked great. Also, I could tell where that I lost the least amount of hair was where the caps fit the tightest - it was noticable.
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This EF of 61 is actually an improvement from my third quarter one which was 55. I ended Herceptin in January so I have had a few months to make a comeback. I wanted to wait to have it done after exchange because they had a hell of a time trying to do one with fully expanded TE's. This was definitely much easier today.
omaz - DD has taken a plethora of pix, I am a little afraid of my garage ( and the boat and cars!)collapsing into the giant hole! They have said it won't, but one never knows. She is photographing because I need that documentation if it happens. My poor neighbors don't have water either and we will be on a boil water order for several days. Never a dull moment!
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Dance- My DH goes with me to the beginning of each treatment, all of the herceptin ones cause they are usually only an hour or so. My days where I get all 3 usually run about 4- 4 1/2 hrs. Labs then meet with my dr, then start on the saline and anti-nausea meds and by that time the order is in for the Taxotere. My husband usually leaves only because of work and I have a friend who comes in not because I need for her to but just because to chat. she usually brings me a sandwich although honestly I rarely feel like eating. I do pack lots of drinks and some snacks but again rarely hungry. I also pack a book, my ipad with movies and facebook
It wasnt nearly as bad as i thought.. i can even relax some too and take a nap!I have been very lucky that I havent had too bad SE. Usually day 3 i am pretty tired and not a huge appetite. Day 4 and 5 I am exhausted. I sleep and rest a lot and have little appetite. also nothing tastes good! I start feeling better with my energy and slowly the appetite but not a whole lot. I usually have 2 good weeks in between my 3 weeks where I dont feel too bad I just have to take it a little slower but still can do everything I used to. I havent been so sick yet where I cant get out of bed or do things but I am so blessed to have my husband help take care of the kids and things around the house. I hope that helps a little
Feel free to ask questions any time!Kellogs- YAY!!! grats!
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Thanks for the feedback on the caps Omaz! If I do the Penguin kind, I'll have 8 caps and a big process to go through. I've heard lots of women say it works.
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Jen that helps a lot - gosh, by the time I pack up my chemo bag, it's gonna be so big they will think I'm moving in! LOL I called my center; they don't have wi-fi or cell phone reception (it's in the basement...how blah is that?). Guess I need to make sure movies will play on my lap top!
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dance - the first tx I brought every possible thing I might need - I ended up reading a magazine. Later tx I only brought my Nook and just read, and brought my frozen peas for icing and a snack/drink. I also used my Blackberry, and a lot of friends texted me from across the country - they had calendered my treatment so they knew when I was there, I thought that was pretty sweet.
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specialK, i'm so happy about your EF!! such excellent news.
dance, be prepared BEFORE you start TCH. there's a list on this website that lists lots of suggestions for different side effects of chemo. i didn't use all of them, but the ones i used, worked. could someone direct dance to that post? be sure you have nausea meds at home and take them even if you don't feel nauseated. it's best to stay ahead of the nausea if you can. also, as lago likes to say, there's no reason for you to suffer. there are wonderful meds now that can take lots of side effects away even though sometimes you have to ask for them. i had previcid at home, tums, anti-diarrheal meds, constipation meds (never had to use those!), the anti-nausea meds that the onc prescribed before chemo, the claritin for neulasta, lemon drops for dry mouth, and biotine that i used every day more than once to prevent mouth sores (and i never had mouth sores), and a few other things .... and i had them here BEFORE my first chemo. i was armed and most of the items i listed came from suggestions of the ladies here. i did the icing, too, and never had nail problems. my onco thought it was the dumbest thing he'd ever heard of, but i did it anyway because of the ladies here. after the first treatment, i drove myself to and from chemo. there was some family drama with my cancer and i was happy to do what i could on my own. i live alone and never had anyone here with me for long periods of time. by day 5 i started feeling not that great, but mostly because of being tired, having a bad taste in my mouth, just feeling yucky. by the third week, i was out and about, catching up on things before i started back on the next treatment. people here say chemo is doable and they are absolutely right. it's doable, not pleasant, but doable, and it's seriously over before you know it. i'm sorry i've written so much and also, my 'return' doesn't work for some reason so it's one long paragraph. sorry. good luck to you! (i always had someone with me during chemo, but i would have been happy to go alone. i could have rested and slept which is what i wanted to do.)0 -
YaYa - thank you!!! I have indeed found those lists - they are stickies at the top of the chemo forum. I'm taking it all in, taking notes, then I'm going to get a list organized for myself of what I need to shop for this weekend. Feels like all the prep I did for my BMX. Steep learning curve, but I'm getting there!
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dance - you will make adjustments as you go along, and find out what is working and what is not. Your SE's may not remain consistent as you go along either, you may stop having some, and start having new ones. It kind of feels like once you have it all figured out it is over! I think that is part of the reason a lot of us continue to post - we can offer the wisdom of experience to newbies and pass on all that hard-earned knowledge! You will do fine - you have done your homework and I am sure you will be fully prepared!
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Thanks for all the congrats ladies! I am so glad that this weekend will be the last time I have to deal with the SE's, although I have been lucky in that respect. I hope knowing it was the last will mentally help make them easier (wishful thinking?) I feel pretty good today but am still on my steroid high. It usually hits me on Sunday and Monday and then I'm on the upswing. I'll still have Herceptin until December but after TCH I say bring it on!
SpecialK - UGH! Water main breaks suck! I'll be praying for the safety of your cars and boat....hope they stay put!
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
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How is the front yard today SpecialK?0
