Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin
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Thank you i hope it goes away too since i still need it...
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Omaz wins
It is my left shoulder . It is the side my breast cancer was on. My girlfriend got a tribute one for me on her calf, 7 weeks before I got mine, so she is sporting a Rhino and ribbon, but hers is a different design.0 -
Zumba Girl, nice tatto, did the you have it done in Coquille, hear they're really good. I've considered, but.... My LE therapist and a friends LE therapist (one in cB, one in Eugene) have said not to get a tattoo on the same quadrant that you had surgery on, either front or back, my friend had one on her BC side not long after her treatment and her LE flipped and said don't get another one without talking to me. Just a little heads up for you. I just had two little punch biopsy's on BC side checking for skin mets (turned out to be radiation recall dermatitis, who knew
) and it made me LE really act up, more than ever - truncal and arm all the way to my fingers, my LE therapist now says I need a one piece sleeve w/glove - yuck. Anyway, just a heads up, and Zumba, keep an eye on any issues! I do love it though!0 -
Jane64 I got a an infection in my port once. Antibiotics took care of it and has not bothered me since!
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Hello Sistahs:
Just dropped by to say today is my four year anniversary.It is an amazing thing that we can kick cancers ass. I pray for you all and not a day goes by that I am not grateful for the camaraderie and support of this thread. Rock on!!
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BOLD! So good to hear from you. Thanks for checking in. My 4 year will be in March. Can't wait. Another year, another victory.
Stay strong everyone!
Love,Amy
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It is nice to hear from "veterans" who have successfully completed this regimen and are doing great!!
I'm halfway done (tomorrow will mark week 9 out of 18) and I can't wait for this to be over!!!
Thanks for posting and reminding us that there is life after this seemingly endless series of infusions!
Take care,
Cheryl
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Mt4ever thanks for letting me know. It is getting better slowly on the antibiotics. If its not one thing. Its something else. Hope everyone has a great day.
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just found this thread..I have my second to last herceptin infusion today! I am looking forward to the end of this chemical dance i do every 3 weeks. herceptin is a lot better thatn the Carboplatin/Taxoter cocktail i was getting. i am getting stronger every day I had a lot of side effects from the chemo. I still have joint pain in my hip and shoulders, I am also on Tamoxifen now as well so we'll see what side effects are left when i finish herceptin. I started chemo last December and am looking forward to a better December this year
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Jittersmom - congrats on the end of herceptin!
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To those of you that have finished, how did you get over the mid-treatment "this seems like it will never end" blues?
I'm usually very upbeat, but lately this has started to feel depressingly long.
Any tricks to recommend to make this seem shorter (and doable??)
Thanks,
PS. Congrats, Jittersmom on reaching the finish line!! Meet you there in 9 weeks!0 -
cgesq 2 weeks after TX4 I got cranky and "didn't want to play anymore." But I got through it. Herceptin alone was no big deal for me though.
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Well, I went in for #5 today, and just like #4, I have been put off a week due to low platelets. It showed, too, when the nurse took the needle out of my port. BLOOD EVERYWHERE !!!! Ruined my under-and over-shirt. My echo came out good, though. I was hoping to be finished with chemo by Thanksgiving, but it looks like it will be sometime in December. If I can stay on track, my last one will be 12/5. If not, 12/12. Rather than scheduling them 3 weeks apart, they may as well go ahead for 4 weeks, because it seems to happen that way. Oh well. It is what it is.
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Rickysgirl, late tx is better than no tx. Hang in there.
Cg,the only thing I could do was count down, like only two to go, then only one to go. It helped a little. Good luck. Much love.0 -
Something interesting to add re slogging through treatment ... I had read about people having fear of ENDING treatment, being on their own without meds every few weeks. I was SURE that wouldn't happen to me. I had the floor-to-ceiling hanging calendar where I could check off every treatment, was counting down, etc etc etc.
But...sure enough, as Herceptin drew to a close, instead of being thrilled, I was terrified. It felt really scary to let my body be back on its own again (even tho I would continue on Tamoxifen). In fact, I was SO scared, I found a clinical trial which would give me ANOTHER year of meds. I got all the way to the consult with the Onc who oversaw the trial. She discouraged me from doing it - she said that if my main motivation was my fear of facing the end of treatment, i was only going to delay it by a year and would have to face it then, so I might as well face it now. She said that I had had a lot of treatment (surgery, TCH, rads, tamox) and that the overwhelming odds were that I would be fine, and that I needed to trust in the treatment that I had had, and let my body heal.I couldn't BELIEVE I felt that way - me, with the countdown calendar and everything. But I did. So I bit the bullet and let treatment end, and while it felt really strange to not go for H every 3weeks, I did get used to it - and started to LOVE being done. But it took a few months. I made a number of lifestyle modifications and kept on Tamox as well, and gradually became more confident that my life could go on and that the whole BC thing was going to fade away in the rear view mirror and eventually drop below the horizon, which, mostly, it has.
But your question, cgesq, made me remember how I couldn't wait to be done, but then I didn't WANT to be done. This cancer journey is CRAZY, you know?
The good news is - it DOES end. And life DOES go on, and it is really wonderful and every day is really sweet, to feel good again, and have the whole nightmare fade. Stay strong, take it one day at a time, and you WILL get there.
Love to all my TCH sisters
Amy
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Now that you mention it, I told my onc that I was considering getting my other breast removed after treatment, to ward off the possibility of getting it in the other. She told me to hold off and said by the time I got through with my treatments I would be so sick and tired of going to doctors that I might change my mind. So far, I think she's right. I'm counting down my chemos AND herceptin and I can't wait to be done.
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I was told by my nurse navigator, that I should not be surprised to feel upset at being cut loose from tx. She said s lot of people have trouble adjusting to not having experts available all the time, and not being sick. Guess its pretty common.
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amylsStrong....... the timing of what your wrote is perfect i just was told by my MO that I am done with my herceptin. I had been doing the countdown....surgery, Chemo( i had countdown bracelets!) radiation, herceptin! I am also on Tamoxefin, but am very nervous about having any other treatment after over a year of doing this. it so weird. Also its hard to explain to people who have not gone through treatment, Most people think your done...your better...but i feel so changed. What a roller coaster ride!
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Wow everyone has so echoed my emotions these last couple of weeks. I am still on Herceptin so cannot imagine how I will handle that hurdle of being done because I am freaking out now after surgery, chemo, and rads. I am glad I have some people who understand because if you have not been through it I don't think you could begin to understand that strong emotion that so overtakes you at times it is crazy!!
Hugs to all my BC sisters!!
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Jittersmom, I have arthritis and it bothered me so much during this. I just figured out eating nightshade vegetables may have caused it, and stopping them has made it nearly go away. I was eating LOT of potatoes, tomatoes and peppers. It's an easy fix. I hope it helps you.
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To all my knowledgeable sisters, have any of you experienced eye tearing during TCH, and if so, what worked for you?
During part of my 3 week cycle, my eyes tear (one more than the other) and I am constantly patting them dry. At first my MO said it was ordinary allergies, but I've had allergies, and this isn't it. Now one eye is all red, and I am afraid of getting an eye infection from touching my eyes so much!
Thanks for your advice!!
PS I don't know if its related, but I was also getting randon nose bleeds. I was told that was due to low platelets.0 -
cgesq - The eye troubles seem to be due to taxotere. It is actually a dry eye problem and can sometimes be treated with natural tears. That is what I was told to use. If that doesn't help it is a good idea to see an ophthamologist just to be sure that the tear ducts are not clogged, that can happen too. Try the tears or another lubricating solution and see if that helps.
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Thanks Omaz,
It seems counter-intuitive to add natural tear drops to eyes that are already tearing, but I'll try. This is making me crazy!!!
PS You are up very early in AZ. I hope everything is ok with you!
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cgesq - I LOVE mornings, with coffee and all the potential of the day. Today is really our first day of fall. Just two days ago it was over 90 and today it is supposed to be in the 60's. I am heading out for a walk soon. It is counter intuitive about the dry eyes. I also would use a warm cloth over my eyes and just rest them a lot. That helped but I remember being at the computer and tears running down my cheeks. Do you also get the twitches? Especially around my left eye I got a lot of twitches. That is also from the taxotere!
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cgesq I too had terrible tearing. I was told the same thing by my opthalmologist about the artificial tears but don't use the stuff that says "gets the red out" to be honest, on chemo nothing really helped. I would have tears dripping down my cheeks.
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Omaz, I do get occasional twitches but not as often as my eyes are tearing. I put in lubricating drops already. Hope it helps! I hope you can get out and do something fun today with the great weather. We are still recovering from the hurricane and then freak snowstorm this week. Thankfully, we suffered no permanent damage.
Lago, Yesterday, I put in the "gets the red out" drops because my eyes were getting all red, and I thought maybe....it was allergy related. However, all they did was burn my eyes.
This morning, as per Omaz's suggestion, i put in the regular artificial tears drops. At least, it didn't burn. Did some quick research, and learned that the long lasting genteal drops also help. Off the the drug store later today!
Thank goodness I have this blog as a resource. Thanks!!!
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cgesq - you may experience the tears for qute some time after chemo ends - 6-8 weeks for many of us. Then one day you will notice they just diasappear.
For those who are concerned about the end of treatment and feeling adrift - I participated in a research study through the U of S. Florida School of Nursing and Moffitt Cancer Center that involved Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction and it was targeted at BC patients at just this point. It was a 6-week quantified aimed at reducing stress and teaching meditation. I found it helpful - they drew blood and obtained saliva samples measuring the stress hormone before and after meditation. The techniques I learned have been very helpful and I have also used them in managing pain from surgery, rather than taking more meds. I think there are CDs you can buy that can guide you through it.
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On another subject.....not counting the premeds, what order did you get your TCH infusions in? I recently read that Dr. Mark Pegram, one of the developers of herceptin, said at a medical conference that the herceptin should be given before the taxotere. I've always gotten the TCH in that order, with the herceptin being given last.
I have my 4th TCH infusion scheduled for this Weds., and I'm going to raise this with my MO prior to my infusion. I hope they are receptive, but depending upon what most of you say, I plan on being rather insistent that the herceptin be given first.
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If I remember correctly I got the taxotere, carboplatin and herceptin in that order. What does getting the herceptin first help with?
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got TCH in that order. My onc was the one that worked with Dr. Salmon and was lead on the trials for metastatic so I'm confident she knows what she's doing… granted that was 2 years ago so things could have changed.
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