Anyone on just Taxotere and Cytoxan?
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GolferGirl: I had the steroids in tablet form the day before, the day during and the day after. I also had steroids in the IV. This is why I did not really feel "bad" during the first 3 days. Also, I had Emend in capsule form the day of, the day after, and the 3rd day. Emend is also for nausea.
Jan: What hospital do you go to? I go to Sharp Memorial in Kearney Mesa. It's walking distance from my house.
Brenda
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GolferGirl: When did you say your chemo starts?
I ask because, yes, I, too, was prescribed steroids in tab form from day before, to day of, to day after.
Also, my onc told me specifically not to get any dental work done, including teeth cleaning, less than 2 weeks prior to chemo.
The mouth contains a lot of bacteria, and with teeth cleanings, bacteria can get into the bloodstream very easily.
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Michele/Ezscriibe - are you done chemo now? I think you are but I can't remember (chemo brain here)...
Sherri
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Golfer girl,
I had my steroids and benadryl in my infusion b4 they started the chemo.I did 6 sessions of T&C and all things considered i'm doing quite well.My biggest problem during the treatments was the diahrrea,no matter what they gave me for it,it didn't help.Just had to run it's course.I did lose 47 # during so it wasn't all bad,and i've kept all but 8 # of it off and i'm over a year out.
SV,
So sorry to hear what you went and are going thru,like someone else said,contact the media,that seems to get the ball rolling for a lot of things.In the meantime i'll add you to my thoughts and prayers.
It's a tough road and different for each of us,so hang in there everyone.Good luck and minimun SE'S for those still going thru this.
Kathi
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Hi Adnerb
I am at Scripps Green Cancer Center on N. Torrey Pines Road. That's where my insurance sends me... I have a great friend who is a VP at Sharp... GREAT hospital! I saw you are on the San Diego thread... Hope to meet you soon! 0 -
Sugar77, thanks for googling the info on "black hairy tongue" for me - the picture looked gross! I don't know if that's exactly what I had since, fortunately, mine was nothing compared to that picture.
Glad to report that whatever I had (probably fungal) on Sunday is now completely gone. I followed religiously a routine that I have laxed over last week, and it worked!! My routine: salt water rinse first thing in the morning, floss/brush/rise (Biotene) right after every meal, tongue floss after every meal and before going to bed. I also up'ed my water intake - which I thought wasn't possible. Good oral hygiene is truly the key and I've learned my lesson.
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faithfulc - I thought I had black hairy tongue a few years ago when I was on antibiotics so I knew Google had information about it. I ended up not having it either...whew! Would have preferred that to breast cancer, though, had I been given the choice!
Have a great day,
Sherri
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Sugar77! I'm excited to hear you went wigless! I am 5 weeks PFC and have some growing. Hubby and I are trying to plan a vacation for July and I'm really hoping that I won't look awful on the beach and swimming.
My eyebrows and lashed didn't totally fall out. Just random patches, I feel lucky for that.
Deb
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Kathimdgd: I had diahrrea with every chemo too. I'd be fine, then day 3 I'd start awful heartburn and day 4 I'd start running for the restroom. I figure my immune system was working and trying everything to get the chemo drugs out.
Faithfulc:I had bid mouth sores after my 1st TC, during my 2nd I was chatting with the women next to me and she told me about samples of mouthwash at the center..originally ordered for the Rads dept, but the rads patient didn't like....It was a mixture of clove oil, I gargled with it and water and I never got another mouth sore or extreme white tongue. I found out you can make your own (clove oil, water & zinc) or buy mouthrinse at the healthfood store or amazon.
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Everett78 - you just made my day. That extreme white tongue has been driving me crazy. I was using a tongue scraper every day trying to get rid of it - but basically I just had to wait till it went away on it's own - which took several days. I'll definitely look for the mouth rinse. Is there a certain brand?0
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arubajan,
I didn't know we had a san diego thread,unless with my chemo brain i forgot it.LOL
I'm up in oceanside.so i'll have to try and find that thread to see if there are any other oceansiders there.
kathi
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kathimdgd - I heard back from my onc that he plans to do the steriods/benadryl in the pre-meds like you got, so that makes me feel better. I hope I don't get the diarrhea, though, that doesn't sound fun! But it's good to know getting the steriods/benadryl in the pre-meds works. Thanks for the info! Beth
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Golfergirl/Beth:
Did you ask him about your recent mouth cleaning? I had a teeth cleaning scheduled for the week before my chemo started, and he made me change it, or I would have to push the chemo date back. I worry. . . .
Yes, Sherri, had my last chemo last week! Woohoo! Starting on radiation next week I think.
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EZscriiibe - No, I didn't ask about the teeth cleaning. I had left the message about the meds and just got a message back about those. I will definitely tell him about it when I go in on Friday. In the chemo book I got it just said to have teeth cleaning and any necessary dental work done before starting, with no cut off noted, so hopefully it will be ok. My onc didn't say anything about it before, either. Fortunately, I have a couple of weeks if I need them, though I would rather start sooner than later. My bigger concern is that my ear is feeling stuffy, I hope just from allergies, and not an ear infection. I know that would definitely be a problem. I hope that clears up soon!
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GolferGirl,
I had my annual physicals (including pap smear) and my dental work (cleaning) done a couple of weeks before chemo started. This is important as chemo may change the results of some of these tests. Good luck!
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About the "hairy tongue" and clove oil... I wonder if lavender oil or green tea oil aren't good - considering they're strong anti-bacterial and anti-fungal.
I know I had white tongue once from Keflex - and went away in a few hours, after eating a few yogurts and lots of mouth rinses of 1/2 hidrogene peroxide solution.
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Good Morning Ladies,
Just checking in and letting you know I had my exchange surgery with skingrafting for areolas/nipples yesterday morning. It went very well...I went into surgery at 8:00 am and was in recovery until about 4:00 I also had a hernia repair and my port removed at the same time.
I did get to come home and was pleased about that. I usually get no rest in hospitals. After my bilateral mastectomy I was in a room right next to the hospitals helicopter landing pad lol...I was amazed at how often that thing came and went in the 3 days I was there...felt like it was going to come in my room each time and I could literally see it hover outside my window when landing...so home is a much better place for me to rest and heal.
There is really no pain this time....of course I am sure the pain meds are to credit for that but, I do not have the stiffness and soreness as I did last time.Much easier to get up and down. I am thrilled to get rid of the tissue expanders as they got worse the longer I had them ( 7 months....ughhh) So aside from the ugly sportsbra, the bandages and 3 drainage tubes...all is well lol. Now if I could just grow hair quicker lol. I can not wait till my f/u appt so I can see the reveal...so curious as to what they will look like.
Well I just want to encourage any of you awaiting this part of the surgeries...it really is MUCH MUCH easier than the mastectomy and little pain...something to ease your mind. A little light at the end of the tunnel. It does get better.
Peace and Blessings to all of you~
Stay Strong
Catori
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cbranner: I don't know the brand of the mouthrinse. I tossed it after my chemo! The bottle was green and white and it was thick and a very strong clove oil taste. I used a capfull of the rinse and a capful of water to gargle 2x a day. I was pretty happy not to have the mouth sores and yucky mouth.
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Hi Girls! I am a week out of my last (4) T/C. This week just feel tired ... My vision is really blurry... The eye twitching isn't bad... I feel that my optic nerve moves and my vision becomes blurry... Does that make sense to anyone.?
Hair is gray and sparse. Sides are bald...Eyebrows and lashes just thinned.
What so we need to put on hair anyway?
I noticed that every time after I eat,( I really have not had a problem eating gained 10 lbs since Dec.) I have to go to the bathroom... My digestion has changed... I can go 4 to 5 times a day. Anyone relate to this?
I was told that I needed to cancel my dental appointment for I need my blood work first to make sure that levels were good... One week or two won 't matter if I wait for my dental cleaning.
Catori- I wish you well with your exchange.. hope you feel great...
Stillvertical-- Hang in there----
To everyone- who is going through treatment or just came off. Prayers are with you for NO SE ....
Hugs,
Donna
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Hi all! Just finished 2nd round of TC yesterday. 5mins into the Tax had an allergic reaction, chest tightness, flushing ,hot, low back pain and shortness of breath. They gave me steriods and benydryl. I was able to fininsh the infusion at a slower rate. Anyone else have this issue? Were you able to continue w/ later rounds? Prior to reaction Dr. was saying 4x w/ TC, then got conflicting test results Oncotype 0, but a Ki67 of 85%. (My DX is stage2a,IDC, grade 3, 2cm, 1/2 nodes micromet) Now Dr says maybe 6x TC. What do you think? I can't seem to get a feel for what most Oncs. are doing with TC. maybe with the reaction Dr. will feel differently now. Also had terrible bone pain from Neulasta last time, how much Claritin do you all take, does it have to be ClaritinD? Thanks for all the info. This is so helpfull. Love to you all!
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Gofish - sorry to hear of yur reaction. I did TC x4 and there was never any talk of me doing six. I took regular Claritin and not the Claritin D (I think D is for decongenstant, which you don't need). I also took one extra strenth Tylenol right after getting my shot to stay ahead of the pain. It worked fine for me. Good luck!
Sherri
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Hi Gofish~ I too am on 4 x TC, 3 weeks apart. My nurse in the chemo room warned me of the possible side effect that you experienced before she gave me the infusion and said it is very common for many women to experience it; she said if I did start feeling funny or flush to call her over, they would stop the infusion, give me Benedryl and then restart it and I should be fine; I only felt a little warm but never got that full-blown experience. But I think it unfortunately must be common. I hope your next one goes better... maybe they will give you the Benedryl first every time now..
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gofish, I had the same reaction and a hard time breathing too. They slowed down my treatment, so my infusion for both drugs took 5 hours. I had no problems after that.
I hope your bone pain doesn't last long.
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Gofish: I had a reaction to my first tx of 4 TC. Part of my problem was the benadryl, so they slowed down my tx and didn't give me benadryl after that. Rest of the tx's went without a hitch. I asked my onc why 4 rounds vs 6, and he said the size of my tumor indicated 4 was ok. As for claritin, I started the day of my shot and continued for 4 days, along with aleve.
Donna: It has taken awhile for my vision to clear. There have been days when I couldn't focus well with my left eye (that's the one that twitched the most, too). I'm a month out from my last tx, and my eye has settled down. Sorry to hear you're having digestive issues, too.
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Gofish- I had 4 T/C treatments. The first 2 were disaster. I had the same reaction. The gave me Benadryl and steroids... On treatment 2 my blood pressure was very high... I thought I was having a heart attack. They ended up giving me the infusions on a much slower pace. I finished all 4 T/C with the last 2 NO SE. Thank God I am done.....
Good Luck to you... Slow......Is the trick.... I hope your SE are minimal.
Donna
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I just had my first treatment. Had a bad reaction a few seconds into the Taxotere dripping into my veins. Very hot upper chest - from below the collar bone, up to my throat, tight throat, coudn't breathe. They stopped it immediately, brought a bp/heart monitor, bp was 148/67, which is high for me (normally 100 to 110 over 62-72), oxigen levels 96-97, heart rate 118. They gave me steroids and benadryl IV, I started being able to breathe normally about 5 minutes after that. They waited half an hour and took my bp, oxigen and heart rate again, this time 116/68, 100 oxigen, 96 hr. So they went ahead with a slow drip (the whole thing instead of lasting 2 hours lasted 3). Next time I am supposed to get the steroid + benadryl first then start the treatment.
I can tell you it was scary. I had the same feeling I had back in 2005 when they gave me adenosine shorts to stop my heart so they can re-start it normally (I had sinus tachicardia, 2004 bpm due to thyroid storm). It was the exact same feeling, I told to myself "that is it, I am having a heart attack and I will die right now and right here".
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HEY CATORI, I AM SO GLAD THINGS WENT WELL AND MOST IMPORTANT ARE YOU HAPPY WITH IT OR CAN YOU TELL YET? MY PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU.
YES , AIRES, I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE DESCRIBING! my eyes still get very blurry and TWITCH-visine is always near-wind gets me and sun too-and my digestive system really changed. i cannot eat meat or heavy sugars like cake-lordy the stomach cramping is awful. i am still on a really bland diet and i gained 25 pounds of water and i am eating nothing. my big mistake was gatorade which i find out is full of sugar and i am not a sugar person.
AND DAY AND GOFISH, OH SWEETIES AND ALL OF YOU HAVING BAD REACTIONS TO TAXOTERE-I AM TOLD THAT 60% OF US HAVE SOME REACTION TO THE DRUG-SOME IMMEDIATE AND SOME DELAYED. I CANNOT MAKE TREATMENT DECISION FOR ANYONE, BUT MY EXPERIENCE WITH THIS DRUG TELLS ME IT IS NOT SOMETHING TO TAKE LIGHTLY. I AM FOUR MONTHS OUT AND THE DAMAGE DONE TO ME IS PERMANENT-NOW THE DOCS WANT ME TO GO BACK ON A DIFF CHEMO COCKTAIL AND TO DO RADIATION-I WAS TOO ILL TO DO ANYTHING PAST FOUR MONTHS AND NOT SURE I WILL CONTINUE WITH ANY CHEMICAL TREATMENT. SOMETIMES-VERY FEW-I HAVE TO SAY 'IT IS UP TO THE GOD OF MY UNDERSTANDING.' MY PRAYERS ARE WITH YOU ALL AND I KNOW HOW SCARY IT IS TO HAVE SUCH AN AWFUL REACTION. I COULD NOT TAKE STEROIDS BECAUSE I WAS ON DYFLUCAN FOR CANDIDA SKIN INFECTIONS SO FELT I WAS DOUBLE WHACKED OUT OF THE GATE.
AND SUGAR, MAN FORGET THE OTC PAIN MEDS-GIVE ME VICODEN!!! I DON'T WANT TO FEEL ANYTHIG OR REMEMBER ANYTHING!! I AM FOUR MONTHS OUT OF TREATMENT (ONLY ONE CT COMBO) AND i AM HAVING TERRIBLE BONE PAIN AND LOWER BACK PAIN-LIKE CRIPPLING-ANYBODY HAVING OR KNOW ABOUT THIS?
AND TO ALL OF YOU MOMMIES, HAPPY MOM'S DAY AND BASKETS OF WILDFLOWERS AND HEARTS FOR ALL OF YOU!!! I'D POST WONDERFUL PIX BUT GHOST WHISPERER IS ON AND PIX WILL HAVE TO WAIT! XXOOOO SV
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Day where are you having your treatments in OKC? I had mine at a place close to Baptist Hospital. I had a port put in which helped with the blood draws and the chemo. I had the low blood count the next day so had to go back in for the shot each time. Good luck with the next round, they will know what to expect with your body and it will be easier than the first.
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Gofish, I had terrible pain from Neulasta as well, talked to my nurse about it, and she wants me to take claritin d (starting the day before) plus prophelactic pain meds (Ibuprophen rotating with vicodin) starting 2 days after the neulasta shot. If it gets bad again, I'm calling in and demanding something stronger--on Monday night it had settled in my lower back and I felt like I was giving birth!
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kat43, I have it at Cancer Specialists of Oklahoma, it's on NW 56th from Portland, near Deaconess, close to where I-44 crosses NW Expressway. My onc is Dr. Gregory Parker, a charming Southern style gentleman. I don't have a port, as for just 4 treatments I didn't want to go through more surgeries (still have at least 2 more to come). I have no idea how I will react. As for right now, my nausea is disappeared (I took one of thse every-four-hours pills, I ate quite good, but I have a terribly runny nse all of a sudden. Not tired yet (guess the steroid is still working). I'll have to start a diary.
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