Anyone on just Taxotere and Cytoxan?
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Good luck with the head shaving, CHJ! Since you've been thru this already then you know what to expect. I know one thing - my head hurt alot less after we shaved my head.
Am feeling pretty good except for the mild thrush mouth - yucky - feel like my breath stinks bad! Sore throat is coming back and I feel like I'm trying to get a cold. I sure hope not since I am on my downward spiral for wbc's. And I'm going to visit my mom this weekend. That's already putting tons of stress on me and stress can't help at all!
I hope all is well with you ladies and welcome to the newcomers! We will help in any way we can. But sometimes it just helps for us to listen. I know these ladies have helped me immensely!!! Wouldn't have made it thru this without their support. Good luck to all. Say a prayer that I don't kill my mom this weekend!
Cheers.
Wendy
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Wendy -
I use a self tanner each morning to make my head a little less white and it moisturizes at the same time.
Sclark
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oh Wendy - you are being very brave.
Repeat after me "this is not about you, it's about me." repeat that every time she says something that makes you want to kill her. You can say it silently or scream it from the rooftops.
And then there's the old standby "I'm not feeling well, I have to lie down."
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Hi all,
Last night and today was a tough nausea-wise. Ick. Third treatment yesterday. I'm starting to feel better which I am SO thankfull for.
PA-Lady, I'm sorry to hear about your pain from neulasta coupled with nausea from the pain killer. I hope you can get some relief soon. I have been so lucky in not feeling side effects from neulasta. Oh, and I agree that waiting for surgery and the first chemo was awful. The anxiety I feel the 3 days following chemo slowly builds until I just want to cry like a baby. Tired of feeling flu-like, stiff and sore from not enough activity and pissed because my life has been changed so much. I used to run 3-5 miles per day religiously and so enjoyed the endorphin high. I also used to drink wine every night too (bad habit).
CHJ, thanks for the welcome. I remember the first days of losing my hair as being surreal. I would stand in from of the mirror and pull out strands not quite believing what was happening. I lost about 90% of my hair and did not shave the rest more out of curiosity than anything. Wondering if it was going to full out after the second treatment. I'm finding now that my hair is mostly gray! I haven't colored it since before thanksgiving. Now when I catch myself in the mirror without a hat, I almost do not recognize myself. I look 30 years older. My skin seems to have aged alot in the past month and a half also. Yes, I wish I was doing 4 treatments rather than 6. On days like today I don't know how I'll get through it. A few days from now though I'll spring back to life and not remember today, just like childbirth.
Susan, I hear you about the shopping! I have had alot of fun buying cozy hats & sweaters and after losing 15 lbs from surgery its fun buying jeans a size smaller.
Sunshine, Jeez I hear you about backspacing. I reread my posts before hitting submit and then STILL find spelling and grammatical errors later. I am back in school now, studying Pharmacy, and its been a real challenge trying to memorize info also. I feel like I'm at about 50% capacity right now.
guitargirl, Hope your first treament goes well. Thinking about you.
Time to crawl back in bed, Sweet dreams everyone.
Laurie
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Diane
If the chemo is making you sick, then think what it's doing to the BC. (My son kept telling me that after my 1st TC treatment and again when my hair started to fall out. He was also going thru chemo)
Ask your Onc if there is something you can take to prevent nail damage. I had my last chemo the day before CHristmas and since then my nails have been lifting off.
It may seem like you're going thru Hell, but as Harley said, "It is doable" And when you feel down, you can always come here for a pep-talk. We all here for each other. Good luck.0 -
I am finished with 4 rounds of TC! Each time has been the same for me--feeling fine until about day 5, and then very tired. Energy gradually increases after that. The oncology nurses gave me a little silver crown with purple feathers to celebrate the end. Next up for me is more expansions and then exchange surgery this spring. I also am going on Tamoxifen in a few weeks, which has me a bit concerned. But I figure if I got away with no complications from the mastectomy and chemo, I will be OK on this drug too. What hasn't been so positive, though, are the constant questions from well-meaning friends who ask "How will they know the chemo is working?" Considering that I had a mastectomy with clear margins and no lymph or vasular involvement, I have always thought of chemo as preventive and not as attacking "cancer." I need to talk to the oncologist about follow up care, obviously, but we have been taking this journey one step at a time. Still, it's depressing to hear that people view me as "risky" and not "cured." Has anyone had similar comment? Your response?
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Hi ladies!
I am finally feeling normal again. Seems like day 9 or 10 is when that happens for me.
chj - so did you get to wait till Sunday for the head shaving?
sunshine - what kind of recipes are you finding in the cookbook? Does it stress eating mostly veggies or what?
wrsmith - I hope your weekend with your mom went well. Hopefully you are feeling better too.
guggerty - haven't "seen" you on here lately. Hope you are doing ok.
sclarke - so has your hair started coming back in yet? I can't remember when your last treatment was, but just thinking ahead.
lpace - hope you are starting to feel a little better. I think today is day 3 for you, so maybe it will be the last of the bad days.
AnnB - congrats to you on being done. I don't think I have had anyone saying that to me. But, I think for the most part, people just don't have a clue. It is more of a matter of them wanting to say something but just not knowing what to say. I try to just educate them on what it's about.
ladylaw - Did you take any nail preventative? Does it hurt? It's weird that it is so delayed.
Has anyone noticed any eyebrow loss? I thought yesterday that my brows might be a bit thinner, but can't say for sure.
Hope everyone has a nice se free day!
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Good Morning:
PA - No Walgreens on every corner in your town? I didn't realize that was possible. Send me your address in a PM and I'll mail a bottle of Easy Lax to you. Glad you're feeling better......I actually start feeling better on the 3rd day after Neulasta. I haven't suffered any fatigue yet so perhaps???????????
Wendy: Hope you don't have to kill your mom - stay strong. Have you tried the salt water/baking soda mouthwash? If your thrush gets worse, call the onc and ask for some Diflucan. I had to use that after my first tx - I'm not sure why the nurse didn't just put 3 refills in case I have to fill another bottle.
CHJ: How was the head shaving? Interestingly enough I think my hair is STILL growing! Today is day 28 and while I have some true bald spots, most of my scalp is covered with peach fuzz. And none of the hair on the rest of my body has disappeared yet. We played cards with friends yesterday and after about an hour I asked if anyone minded that I remove the wig. My dh thinks I look younger with my bald head anyway!
Have a great day gals.....((hugs))).....Trina
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Hi everyone,
We just got done shaving. My hair was coming out by the fistfuls, but dh's beard trimmer still took a while to go over everything. I have more stubble left than I thought I would! It feels wild in the shower. Even then, whenever I rub my hands over it, the little tiny pieces are everywhere. I've got to play with my wig now, since she will be going with me to work tomorrow.
I'm also anxious to hear how Wendy's weekend with mom went. Wendy - let us know when you get back!
Hope everyone else is feeling good today!
CHJ
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PAlady - the cookbook (Eating Well Through Cancer) actually has quite a variety. My husband is vegetarian although I do eat chicken and some fish. It has recipe suggestions for day of chemo, recipes that can be easily frozen, stuff for constipation or diarrhea, sore mouth or throat, etc.
The recipes don't look to be too complicated. I do enjoy cooking, but when I'm feeling like the Mack truck has run over me, I just want things to be quick and easy.
Sunshine
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PAlady - don't know if it works, but the chemo room nurse said to use "tea tree oil" on my nails. I just bought a bottle, but since I don't start chemo till Friday, I'll wait till then to use it. The only place I could find it was in Whole Foods - if CVS had it, it was well hidden.
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I actually have a small bottle of the tea tree oil. Are you just supposed to put some on daily do you know?
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thats what she said - on you finger & toe nails. She said they have bottles of the stuff with little brushes just like nail polish, but I couldn't find any like that.
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PAlady
No one mentioned any thing being available to prevent this damage or the lifting Taxotere does to the nail. I wish I had used something...anything. My hands look terrible. (Skin was also lifting on my hands)
My fingers were very sore for about a week. What I fear, is the nails will continue to lift for a while. My nails had three deep lines across the nail, one for each of the TX, so I am assuming the same thing will be happening for the second round of chemo, but the nails have not grown enough to see those lines.
From what I've read and heard form others, this is not odd that it happened 4 months after the chemo, but normal.
TrinaI didn't lose my eyebrows until after I completed my chemo. The hair on myhead fell off around day #14. It's been a little over a month since my last chemo and I have no hair on my body...anywhere, not even an eyelash. This has been a blessing relative to the hair under my arms, as I am presently going thru the expander Hell. My armpitts are so swollen from the expanders it would be impossible to shave.
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Good Morning:
Ch: You look great. I have that peach fuzz also - gives me something to play with while watching tv.
I can feel the areas that are totally hairless but the hair on my body is still here.Lady: So sorry about your nails......did the lines appear after each tx or did they all appear at once right before they started lifting? Was there anything that forewarned you that it was going to happen while you were in tx?
Guitar: thanks for the tip on the tea tree oil. I'll stop a the health food store and see what they have. This oil is good for lots of different things.
And I'm going to hit the library and see what cookbooks they have for cancer patients. I can bring a couple home, pick out some recipes and then have my hubby cook them for me for the day of and the few days after tx. I'd love something to assist with the bowel issues.
Have a great day! ((hugs)) Trina
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I'm back from visiting my mom and she is still alive. Thankfully, she was on her best behavior and she didn't say much about me or cancer all weekend. I was all ready to tell her that I just wanted to have a cancer-free weekend (as much as possible) but she only brought it up a couple of times and she didn't look at my bald head with pity either. I was glad. It sure makes things easier when she doesn't stir the pot!
So, I went this morning for my wbc's and they were WAAAYYYY LOW! So, guess what? You guessed it - another Neupogen shot! I was so upset! The doc and I had talked and he had promised me that if the counts were border-line then he would let me BE (let my body take of me). But they were 1.5 and the nurse said they should be 4.8! So she hit me again and I have to go back tomorrow morning for another one! For those of you who weren't around before......these shots are so painful! Not the shot itself but the way it stimulates bone marrow production.........makes my joints hurt so badly. I was down for 2 days last time. I am trying to keep a positive attitude but it seems like every time I start feeling good then something else makes me feel bad! I know! This too shall pass. Please let me wallow in my misery briefly! OK, I'm done now.
I really hate to hear about the nails. I am really scared about that. I will starts massaging tea tree oil on them now. I love that stuff anyway. Let me tell you - if you ever get poison ivy/oak use tea tree oil on it religiously and it will dry it up quick like!
So, I purposely let the hair on my legs grow (this time of year its warmer anyway) so I could laugh when it starts falling out! And it's NOT going anywhere! I'm so sad about that! The hair under my arms has stopped growing and my head is shaved. Why oh why can't the hair on my legs go away!?
Anyway, ladies, hope all is well with you. CHJ, you look fabulous! SClark - I still can't do the bald thing! I get so many pitiful looks when I wear baseball caps so I can only imagine the looks that I would get totally bald. Maybe the longer I am bald the more I won't care but I am so vain. I may try the tanner to see if it will help. My husband actually said last night that he had gotten used to my bald head and likes it. I just love him. He has been soooooo good to me thru all of this! He does NOT let me wallow or be lazy. If he knows that I am just being lazy so I won't have to get up he will look at me like "Don't try using that illness with me.......I KNOW how you are feeling and can tell when you are "using" the excuse to be lazy." He just has the best attitude about life and has taught me alot. I am so blessed to have someone like him with me during this time!
Hope all are doing OK and better days are to come!
Cheers!
Wendy
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Wendy - glad to have you back! And I'm glad to hear that your visit with mom went OK.
So where are people finding this tree tea oil? I heard one person say Whole Foods. Anywhere else? And in what department? How often would you use it?
Anyone besides me have tx this week? I go Thursday. I have felt so good in the past week, I'm not looking forward to getting knocked down again. Plus, I'm in for Neulasta this time too, which will be new for me. But (1) I just want to get done with all of this, and (2) I'm hoping the Neulasta keeps me from having the Day 10 relapse I had with the low wbc's I had the last time (mine were .2 - the doc said .4 was "dangerously low!) We'll see how the se's go with that.
But at least I have the rest of today & 2 more good days, I hope!
Later!
CHJ
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Wendy - glad your mom is still alive - you would have had problems posting here from jail!
CHJ - I go for my first treatment Friday so we can be miserable together. The section of Whole Foods the tea tree oil was in was so obscure that I couldn't find it and had to ask someone if they had it. It was where all the non-edible stuff is like lotions and oils, but in it's own weird little place. My guess is that any health food store will have it.0 -
Trina
No I didn't really notice the lines, until my first nail lifted off. It was stranged. Have you ever bumped a nail that has a number of coats of nail polish, and a large piece of the polish just falls off. That's what happened to me. I thought it was a bigh chink of nail polish, then I looked at where it came from and to my horror realized it was my actual NAIL. I took off my polish so I coudl look at all my nails, that's when I noitced the three very deep lines. My nails seem to lift at those lines. The nail seems to lift in large sections. However my toenails I think will come off all at once.
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Wendy: I'm happy that your weekend went well. Maybe she DID read your blog and took a hint? The hair on my legs is still there also and this is a week after my 2nd tx. Sorry you had to have the Neup shot - I thought those were easier s/e's than the Neulasta - that one does me in.
Lady: Rats - I was hoping there'd be some way to tell if you were going to lose your nails. One lady yesterday told me her daughter's nails turned black but didn't fall off.
Have a great day....Love Trina
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Hi Ladies! I've been checking out your thread for a while and finally decided to say hi. I usually post on the Jan 2008- Ain't it great thread. I know some of you from there. But I like this one, too since it's all TC girls. I'm doing TC for 4 rounds and herceptin with each of them, but continuing then for a year total of herceptin. I started TCH on Jan.16 and round one went ok for me until my WBC/ANC bottomed out and I ended up in the hospital for 3 days. My WBCs were 1 (should be 4s) and my ANC was 0 (should be >500/0.5 I think for chemo pts.)! Not good at all. I also had a lot of problems with constipation. I've felt pretty good the past 2 days finally-- I do round 2 tomorrow though. So anyway, hope it's ok if I join you here too. I like the specific TC stuff you share. Oh, the tea tree oil-- I found it an GNC (health food store in our mall). I started using it from day one-- twice a day. I put it on my fingernails and cuticles. I also use OPI nail strengthener (can get at any nail salon) 1-2 times a week. I've done nothing to my toes (kinda forgot about them!)-- guess I should start oiling them too after reading your posts! And I got neupogen 3 times while I was in the hospital-- no problems at all, but it burned going in. Shot my ANC from 0 to 7.1, and WBCs from 1 to 11! I get Neulasta after each round of chemo now-- yay. Not looking forward to that at all. But I guess I'll take it vs. the hospital again.
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Good morning, ladies!
KathyL - welcome to over here!
You and I are SO on the same path - TC, practically the same schedule; buzzed off our hair the same day; problems with red/white blood cell counts; starting Neulasta this time around. Thanks for the info about GNC for the tree tea oil. For those who lost nails (or know people who did) - how soon did that happen? If I am ready for my next tx on Thursday, is it too late to start?I'm definitely having a problem with the "stubble" - it's everywhere!! I'm thinking that after GNC, I'll have to stop at CVS for some shaving cream with lotion or something gentle, so I can just remove the rest of this mess.
Guitargirl - we're with you this Friday! Hope it goes well for you, with minimal se's. Don't forget to drink, drink, drink. I wish someone had pounded that into my head before my first tx. I stocked up on Gatorade (it was on sale at the store this week).
Wendy - sorry to hear about your low counts. Take care of you - this is temporary!!
Laurie from Missoula, are you still there? Hope you are feeling better by now.
I hope everyone has a great day!
CHJ
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Good morning ladies! (barely)
guggerty - Thank you for the offer! I went online and found it and it looks like the ingredients are the same as the colace that I was taking. The Easy Lax Plus looks like the colace + senokot. I was better this time around than the first, but I think next time I am going to start the day before tx and take it morning and night. It is hard to believe we don't have a Walgreens yet, but they are building one that is supposed to open in about a month - so I am looking forward to that.
chj - I found my tea tree oil at a health food store too.
wrsmith - Glad your weekend with your mom went well. Do you know how many of the neupogen shots you have to get? Do they do your blood counts daily to check it then to see when you are built back up?
Hi KathyL! I agree as much as I don't like the Neulasta shots, I feel like it is keeping me healther. I am going to try taking the clairitin next round to see if that really helps with the bone pain or not. I find it hard to believe, but it is worth a try I guess.
I went for my blood work yesterday and actually had the opposite problem. My wbc was 51.8. The lady that did the testing said they would do further testing on it because it was so high, but I couldn't wait for that info. My rbc was just under the low range so who knows what is going on. I feel fine. I thought they might call me today, but I haven't heard anything.
I still have my leg hair too, although it doesn't feel like it is growing. I swear it feels like the hair on my hair might be growing, but only seems to be the gray ones!
As far as my nails, I have't seen any lines, but a few of them feel like they ache. I started using the tea tree oil, but wonder if that really works either. I can't stand the smell of it.
I hope everyone has a great day!
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Another Neupogen shot this morning (2nd in 2 days) and then blood will be drawn tomorrow and they will check wbc's again. Last time wbc's were fine after two shots but last time the counts were not as low as this time either. Who knows? Sometimes I feel like I will just have to plan for the worst and hope for the best when I go see the doc. Not really much under my control anyway. It was hard to believe that wbc's were low because I felt so good. Oh well.
Am able to work this time and I didn't get the achy bones like last time. I feel more like I am getting the flu - achy all over but doable.
Welcome to the newbies! Sorry you have to be here but glad you decided to join us.
Tried the tea tree last night and will do it every night. Hopefully it will help. Nails don't really look or feel any different so maybe that se will pass me by. One can always hope!
Hair on my head is growing also - a very small amount and in patches. I will just run over it with a razor from time to time to keep it down to manageable peach fuzz. Hair no where else is going anywhere still. Aren't we all so different? Isn't it amazing?
Cheers to you all. Better days ahead!
Wendy
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Wendy, I have had that darn Neupogen so many times now!! About 10 days after each tx, I needed it, twice. the week of my last tx, I had it on Tuesday, wednesday and then Thursday. Thought I would be fine, and the very next Thursday they called and said my counts were way low again! I had my blood tested yesterday and have been waiting for the call but have not gotten it, so I am hoping that it is ok now! I understand how you feel.
This last Chemo did me in ladies, my legs just don't seem to want to feel normal. They are heavy and feel swollen at times. I get winded very easily and can't stand for too long. Any body else with this issue? I just can't wait to feel like me again!
Well, all you newbies, sorry you joined the club, but this group is wonderful.
Lou
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so just how often do they test your blood?
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Loopyloulee: I had some swelling of my eyelids about day 16-19, and my ankles were swollen from day 17-19. My onc said it's a SE of Taxotere. Just what I wanted -- to be a fat, swollen, bald chemo patient! Tomorrow I do round #2 and the swelling's all gone. Ineresting how your onc does neupogen. Mine told me if I chose to do it, it would be one shot a day for 10 days after chemo, starting the day after. I opted to do one Neulasta after this round as I HATE needles and don't think I could stick myself for 10 days. I'll see how the Nasty-lasta goes... My onc also only checks blood levels if I'm symptomatic (fever), and also the day before each round.
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Hi Everyone,
I have been away from the board for a few days. This past Sunday (3 days after my 3rd TC tx) I had a searing headache. It was the migraine type that made me scared to breathe, for any movement made my head pulse and hurt more. I take Zofran for nausea and headache is one of the side effects. I had taken Zofran for the first two treatments and had different SE's (a sensation of floating above my body and spots in my eyes).
My husband thinks that perhaps I had migraine headaches then also but perhaps steroids affected my pain perception. With the 3rd treatment I did not take steroid pre-meds, only the 20mg IV.
On the good side, my anxiety was much reduced without the heavy dose of steroid. I can feel that the chemo is accumulating in my body though because the nausea, stomach tenderness, metallic taste and fatigue SE's are more pronounced.
I got a call from my chemo nurse with results from some tests which I wrote about in a blog that I started yesterday. If you are interested, its available here.... http://howidealwithwhatiwasdealt.blogspot.com/ I also write alot about the fears that we have all dealt with and how my battle with cancer has affected my family and myself.
I don't have any signs yet of nail trouble. Also still have eyebrows and eyelashes.
I hope you have nice dreams tonight. I feel so fortunate to be among you.
Laurie from Missoula
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I just finished round 2 of 4 last week. I felt fine after my first treatment, and with the exception of slight nausea on day 4, had very few side effects. This second treatment has been more difficult. I have been more tired, and have had more abdominal cramping/pain. Does anyone know if the side effects get progressively worse with each treatment? Is anyone else having abdominal pain?
In regards to the pre-medication regime, I receive Benedryl IV, Decadron IV, Tagamet IV, and Aloxi IV right before my treatment. Then I receive Taxotere over 90 minutes, followed by Cytoxan over 30 minutes.
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CHJ - Talk to me.......I had myself a little pity party last night and then I thought of you and all the others who are either going thru this AGAIN (which I cannot imagine) or who are going thru something much worse than I. My girlfriend tells me to "feel the feelings and then move on" and I agree. But I wallowed last night. The pain from the Neupogen shot started up on me and here I am 5 Darvocets later, wondering if I should go to work, and feeling very blue. Everytime I look in the mirror I am sad. So, CHJ, talk to me. Tell me how you feel, emotionally, going thru this again. And if I remember correctly it had been 13 years? What goes thru your mind? Where do you get strength? I have been very positive throughout this entire process. When people look at me when I have a baseball cap on (and they can see that I don't have hair) and ask me, "How are you doing?" I always reply "Life is good." And I believe that. But last night.......I don't know.........something made me snap........I actually cried......it is so hard to be positive when you feel bad. Give me strength ladies. Help me get thru this pain and sorrow. I am feeling my feelings and now need to move on. I know this. I am trying.
Thank you so much.
Wendy
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