Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin
Comments
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I only noticed a thinning with my nails. Also if your really concerned I've seen ice/cold gloves. Or you could soak your hands in ice water? I wonder if that would work? Has anyone tried or heard of that. Again cold cap like.
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marred, thanks for the heads up. Never heard of ice/cold gloves
. Did a lot of ice packs on my feet with xeloda and it helped a ton !0 -
Susan - I know I read somewhere about using gloves with frozen socks over them, or ice packs with socks to hold them on, or something like that. Let me see if I can find it again.
Blownaway - Aloxi was the anti-nausea they gave me in my IV pre-meds and it worked well for me. Just another suggestion for you to add to your list if ya need it!
And to everyone talking about hair - I will pretend hat I'm not jealous of all your hair. Special - chin length in one year??? I'm still having to trim the back so it doesn't look like a mullet, but the top is barely 4" long in most places.
But as my husband (whose hair is thinning) always says, "at least you've got hair".
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I iced my hands and feet with bags of frozen peas during the Taxotere portion of my treatments. I only had issues with one nail but it had been damaged when my acrylics were removed prior to starting chemo. I had no color changes, ridges, or lines.
McK - my hair grows fast and Herceptin didn't slow it down, but before you have any hair envy I now have fast growing thin lifeless hair thanks to hormonal therapy. I am not one who got thick or curly hair after chemo. It had actually reached my elbow just recently but I had to cut it to the shoulder because it was too thin.
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Hi susan, I am only 4 treatments in with taxotere but I have no nail issues so far. I do ice my hands during the taxotere, which specialK told me about before I started - I start about 15 minutes before they start the infusion, so during the pre meds, and continue until about 15 minutes after. I use frozen bags of peas - the large size - I have 4 of them so that when one starts thawing too much I can pull the other out of the cooler to use - I keep my finger squished into the bag and i can refreeze them every week. I do let them warm up a bit here and there to prevent frost bite on them. I also keep my finger nails short and I use a nail hardner on them. So far I have no lines, no lifting and no pain on my finger nails. I do the same with my toenails and they are still good. I also ice my mouth with crushed ice during infusion and have had no mouth sores or any other mouth issues - although my taste buds are still wonky. Good luck to you!! Edited to see that specialk and others already posted about this! lol - i guess I should read first.
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thanks soooooo much you guys. Sounds like a good plan and excited there is a way to help nails. Not ready to take time off of work yet !!!! You girls r great to get back to me so quickly
. Also heard hard to sleep with all the steroids. 4 days worth.....sleeping aides r hit or miss with me. I figured I would take those days off work every treatment week. Don't need to be stressed about sleeping tor overtired doing hair. Thanks again. Have a great Sunday 0 -
susan don't assume that the steroids will keep you up at night. I was all prepared for little to no sleep when I was on them and they didn't affect my sleep at all. Just like with all the other SE's, not everyone gets every side effect. It's a wait and see game to find out how each drug will affect you.
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Susan I did not have nail issues until after number 6. I am 9 weeks out and it looks like I a couple of nails are lifting. I thought they would hang in there, but no luck.
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Susan. Took about 7-8 weeks. All my nails lifted and have fallen off at about the half way point. I could not use ice due to another condition. And I have very severe reaction in my hands from taxotere. Bleeding under my nails. Finger tips swollen. Neuropathy. I only took 4 cycles of TCH.
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Thank you Specialk for recommending this thread. After reading through these posts I feel so much better knowing what SE I may or may not have.
I'm scheduled to start chemo on 7/24. I'm due to return to work next month and I would really like to be able to. Feeling as "normal" as possible is important to me but unsure of what I should do. Any feedback from those who worked while going through chemo would be greatly appreciated.
Cathy
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I worked through my first two treatments. I missed a week each time and when I was there I was tired. Luckily co-workers where very kind and covered for me. Happily I have the summer off, I would have a hard time doing my job most days, I get easily fatigued and nap on and off throughout the day. But thats me. Everyone is different and I hear that many do work.Good luck to you!
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Has anyone ever seen the phrase "Active chemo othere BMO"? My appointment schedule has this for my 11:00 time slot which up until yesterday was an appointment with my onco.
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Hi Cathy,
I had my first treatment on Thursday...was doing ok till today. My s/e's hit, but trying to manage them. I feel like I have the flu...took Zofran for the stomach and Tylenol for the aches and pains.
I'm not sure how I'm going to feel tmrw...but hoping to make it to work.
I will be doing my treatments on wed's...just did this one on thurs b/c I had my port put in on wed. I do think you feel ok with all the pre-meds/steroids till the 4th day. I hear that days 4-8 are the hardest...so will be a tough week.
Not everyone has the same s/e's...try to stay ahead of them. Oh and if you are getting Neulasta which I suggest if you are going to work....take Claritin with it and for 3-5 days after (I am!).
-Jennifer
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Debiann - My first TCH was on a Thursday evening. I was flat on my back, could not even raise my head all day/night Friday & Saturday. By Sunday I was able to get up and do some things around the house but was mostly in and out of bed. On Monday, I went to work but by noon, I had to lay down for a while to summon the strength to drive myself home. Finally on Tuesday I made the whole day at work but had to take snooze breaks Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday. I was dealing with just about every side effect they could throw at me. It was rough but luckily work was very slow that week. If I could have, I would have stayed home also but we are a small office and I had to be there.
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McKatherine - thanks for the tip on Aloxi, I've added it to my list.
All - when I asked about cold caps , etc, my onco said "No, you are not to protect any part of your body from the meds by icing your feet, head, hands or mouth. HER2 does not just affect the breast." Am I the only one whose doctor feels this way?
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blownaway - my Onc didn't recommend it either, but I went against her after I did my research. My Onc did not say I couldn't ice my feet/hands/mouth....just didn't want to be on the hook for possible scalp mets from CC. I read the studies and the reports in Europe where CC's have been used for many many years. In a study of about 3000 cases of BC there were 2 instances of Scalp mets. I decided that there is way more risk from the chemo drugs to my health than the less than 1% chance of scalp mets.
MO's are not the end all be all....and half the time they are just protecting their rep and don't really care about how it all affects you.
Ultimately you have to do what is right for you... I don't think I would do CC's if I had a more advanced stage...but there are plenty who do...personal choice.
If there is one thing I have learned, is that we have to advocate for ourselves....not just trust what is being told to us. I now want to know why I haven't been offered Perjeta. I know it is has more s/e'a...but I hope to only go through this once...and want to throw all I can at it.. I thought it was for more advanced stages of HER2+ cancer...but seeing other stage 1a ppl getting it. Will be on my list to discuss!!'
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jennliza - Perjeta is only FDA approved for early stage BC when used neoadjuvently, so if you have had surgery prior to chemo if your MO tried to use it he/she would be prescribing it without FDA sanction. There are some MOs who have been successful getting insurance to cover it adjuvently, but I think right now it is few and far between. It might require a peer-to-peer review, and a very flexible insurance company.
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My infusions were on Wed and I was fine until Friday afternoon when the aches and pains kicked in. Didn't do much over the weekend, but usually managed to go back to work on Monday. I had fairly moderate SEs - stomach issues and some fatigue - so I could keep working and take days off as I needed to. I'm in the throes of round 5 now and the cumulative soreness and fatigue is bothersome.
I stopped taking the Neulasta shot after round 3 because of the horrible bone pain. I've been lucky to not have any nasty infections or debilitating fatigue as a result.
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Princessrn, and all those who are concern about neuropathy, do google Goshajinkigan.. it's great to minimise/prevent neuropathy while on taxotere. I felt numbness and strange sensations the night of my first chemo infusion and was beside myself with anxiety. Having permanent neuropathy isn't what i signed up for when i decided on adjuvant chemotherapy!!! When the second cycle came, i had gotten myself packs of goshajinkigan to boil and drink daily and now, i've done my third infusion, and am fine. I got the go ahead from my oncologist to take it after showing him the research.. unfortunately, i just can't figure out how to cut and paste things here! but photos of the herbs and even dosages are all available online when you google..
wishing all speedy recovery, minimal side effects and seeing the many blessings that are still present in this journey!
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Hi Yensmiles,
Some help is available here if you wish to add links or images
How to add an image, How to add a link
The mods.
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Thanks mods!
Worked! For those interested to know about Goshajinkigan for prevention/management of neuropathy, here's an abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24377531
Also, it might be difficult to get the tablets, so here's a link for pictorial reference and also dosage. What i did was print out the photo, took it to Chinese Medical Halls and showed it to them.. if they've the herbs, they would know how to pack it for you. While Goshajinkigan is what the Japanese calls it, the original recipe is Chinese, and the Chinese have a name for the formula too, so established/well-stocked medical halls in chinatown would know. The pictorial link here has the Chinese name as well: http://kampo.ca/herbs-formulas/formulas/goshajinkigan-saiseijinkigan/
Hope this helps! I personally feel very strongly about even the remotest possibility of permanent side effects for an adjuvant treatment, so hope this information helps you as much as it is helping me.
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you guys are sooo great with info.....thanks....I am starting Wednesday . We will see
only once I had to get, I think it was nueprogin .....felt like back labor pains again...but no cute baby after I think I have to have that again...luckily, I do well on 1 Vicodin a day if I have pain...My onc says that the ice works for some and not for others. But try whatever you can....he always tells me if I figure something out...let him know so he can pass it on. He is a great patient advocate..all about feeling good and buying time for me...and so far so good
Hope everyone has a good week
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susan - have you tried Claritin prior to the Neulasta/Neupogen? It works by combatting the inflammatory reaction in the bone marrow generated by the white blood cell production. It is regular Claritin (not Claritin D) taken at least an hour prior to the injection, then continued for several days or a week. Here is a link to the study, and some additional info. I forgot to take it on tx #3 and noticed the difference:
http://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT01311336
http://www.theonc.org/author.asp?section_id=2368&doc_id=264569
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So finding Goshajinkogan in the US maybe very difficult because it is not just an herb...it's an herbal preparation that can contain up to 10 different herbs. An alternative for us is Glutamine. Again, with anything....consult you MO...but Glutamine is also supposed to help with mouth sores as well.
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Hi Ladies,
I will be starting my treatment soon and in preparation of possible side effects that I may encounter I am hoping to at least get some over the counter meds ahead of time. Would love to hear from all of you regarding your goto meds to assist with nausea, heartburn, dry mouth, etc. I know each person. Is different but I am just trying to prepare myself. Thanks in advance!
Karina
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Wizard 50 - I worked the entire time I was receiving chemo. I worked remotely the day of chemo, which was a Friday. I found the drugs to combat nausea made me feel almost as bad as the chemo. A couple of the rounds I took off the Monday after chemo. But I traveled (for business) the Monday after chemo during rounds 3 & 4. It was a little tough, more emotionally than from the SEs. By #6 I was really fatigued and had a hard time walking without being breathless. But for me it was doable and it allowed me to focus on something other than chemo.
Had a round of H Friday. My MO wanders through the infusion center during the day. So I stop him and ask him about the residual SEs I am still having (9 weeks PFC), water retention and neuropathy. He smiles at me, I say I know be patient right? He says yes. My issues are not severe and hopefully will go away soon.
Hope everyone has a good day with few SEs.
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I worked straight through chemo, but I work from home. It made a big difference to me to have my own kitchen and bathroom nearby (esp the bathroom). I work on the phone, and occasionally go to meetings. I wore my wig to meetings and nobody knew. (I told very few people about my situation.)
I would consider sometimes, if I had had to get up early, shower/dress/makeup/drive to work - would I be there or take the day off? And the answer definitely was 'I would have stayed home' on some days. I had chemo Thurs, and Mon/Tues could be a little rocky.
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EverForward - hang in there! Round 5 was the toughest for me. Hopefully it will be sunny skies from here!!
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Hi Wizard, re. working through chemo, several people told me is
to think of your energy as a fuel tank, you have limited supply. If you
use it all up the first couple of days you're likely to feel exhausted
more quickly. I.e. pace yourself. I was set up to work from home but personally had a hard time the first 7-10 days
after an infusion, especially for tasks that required concentration or
"diplomacy." Meanwhile other advice is to take the nausea meds before you get nauseous, and the anti-constipation meds before...And if
you can work through chemo all the more power to you. People also said is that those who stay engaged in other (non-cancer) parts
of life tend to do better. I also think that's so true. Sometimes it's hard to focus elsewhere but when I could I found it very therapeutic.Blownaway
- Jennliza is right on about cold caps and scalp mets, my MO
specifically told me that scalp mets are extremely rare, and she was
supportive of my using cold caps. The MO opinions seem to be all over
the map, but at my center they got a cold
cap freezer from the Rapunzel project, making it so, so much easier. I
am so glad I did them even though it was expensive and and complicated.
Keeping a good percentage of my hair is one of the few things that helped to make me feel "normal."Jennliza
- I'm one of those ladies who got adjuvant Perjeta during chemo. But I
know another well-respected MO who sincerely thought it was overkill for
my stage 1b tumor, especially since it does add to the digestive side effects (he's a friend of the family & in another state so I'm not under his care). I
don't know what sorts of hoops my MO had to go through w/my insurance.
I'm seeing her in about a week so I'll ask her then. Stay tuned!0 -
coastal...love the diplomacy comment....so true. Lol
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