Chemo in Sept 08
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Happy, Happy Birthday Lei!!!!
Par-tee! Thanks for the address list.I would be afraid that the mammogram machine could injure reconstructed breasts. Let us know what you find out.
Genia - make sure you have your flotation device at hand before you float away! All of my incisions are sore - not just the post site. They are not inflamed, infected, or oozing, just sore. My husband's opinion is that it's a change in weather (but this is his reply to all aches and pains - chemo related or otherwise....probably his way of coping). I know that you miss your sweet baby - it's so hard to lose a member of the family.
Sing, Iowagirl, Spring - my last tx of T/C is next Thursday - Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy
. No nail issues with me either...I do have a twitchy right eye that is driving me batty. Spring, are you having reconstruction at the same time? Let us know when you have a date.Priz - so glad that you are back! How is your son? My adopted mother passed away almost 3 yrs ago; my father was consumed with grief (they were married for 60 years and had known each other for 75). My dad's older brother lost his 6th wife last Feb; he moved in with my dad and they are a great comfort to each other (dad will be 90 in Dec and his brother 95 this month); they are a hoot. I hope that your dad will stay with you - family is such a comfort.
Juli - I got my scarves from Anokhi and they are stunning! Did you take a look at their website. My problem is that I want to order them all! You only have 1 AC to go & then 10 taxol? Is your mouth cleared up now?
Have a great weekend girlfriends!
XXOO
Donna
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Donna - The thrush has cleared up, but still a few mouth sores and metal mouth taste.
I'm beginning to wonder if my taste buds will ever come back. I have 1 more AC on the 21st. So much for tasting Thanksgiving food, eh? Then 12 taxol + Herceptin for 1 year. Guess I won't get my port out till Dec 2009. I'll have to check Anokhi again... I can't remember what I saw. 
LOLToday I am the photographer at the adoption of a 16 month old girl. My friend has been her foster mom since she was 4 days old.
Hope everyone has a great weekend!
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Tx 3 on Wednesday - all went well. My wbc was up to 28, so my doc cleared me not to have any more Neulasta - PARTY! Today I woke with metal mouth - strange how easy it is to forget how gross that is. I'm achy and tired, but have a fire in the fireplace and a couch (and dogs) begging me to nap a bit.
I ordered 3 scarves from Anokhi - love them all. I wear them more than anything else - comfy, easy, and pretty.
We finally bought a treadmill - delivered yesterday - which was perfect timing with the rain and time change. I dropped my gym membership after diagnosis because it was 30 miles away next to my office - which was fine until the time change. I'm so excited - I've been waiting years to get one, and finally it worked out.
Genia, I know what you mean about the water - with it raining, it makes it seem a bit worse. I may as well sit in the bathroom and just let it run through me...I think I should have just set up a bed in there.
Julie - enjoy the adoption. I am so glad that worked out for your friend and for the child. I can't imagine giving up a daughter I'd had since she was 4 days old - this is wonderful. Celebrations are such nice breaks from the reality of the tx plan too. Are you going to wear a special bow?
Have a great day all - the couch is calling....
Ruth
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Ruth & Donna - Which shape scarves did you order? rectangle or square? How did you learn to tie them? 0
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Juli - what a wonderful event. My parents took custody of me when I was 5 weeks old; but the adoption was not finalized until I was 16 months old. I wonder if this is standard? I read the adoption agreement between the adoption agency and my parents and it stipulated that I lived in the home for a year before adoption proceedings could begin. I'm doubly blessed to have wonderful parents who adopted me, and wonderful birthparents that I found almost 50 years later.
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Juli - I ordered the rectangular ones - they came with instructions on how to tie them.
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Julie, I ordered all square but one was came rectangular. They include a sheet on tying them. For me the square are my favorite because they are so easy to whip on - but I like having one rectangular just for a different look.
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OK, I have my surgery date - Nov 26 - day before Thanksgiving!
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Wow, a lot of news here.
Genia, glad you seem okay, hang in there. oozing port, for pete sakes, this adds insult to injury... I mean really!!! ENOUGH already!
BrandonMom, Surgery the day BEFORE T'giving!!! ahhhck!
Lei, Happy Happy B-day!!!
Julie, glad the thrush is gone! More insult to injury!!! But ONE MORE AC TO GO!! You GO GIRL!! That isa HUGE milestone!
Ruth, dogs and fireplace sound cozy to me!!!
Donna, sounds like a lot of "last chemo's" next week!!! whoopie!! All the rest of you, you are not far behind us!
My surgery date is Dec 2nd - bi-lateral and reconstruction starting at the same time. It is a big one, planned to be a stacked DIEP in New Orleans and the other side a "one step" implant with AlloDerm (Dr. DellaCroce for anybody who knows this group) . Unless when he sees me in person (vs. the naked pictures we had to send!!!) and determines I have either more or less fat on my than the photo's show - then what is done may be adjusted a bit. I have never thought I was "slender in the pelvis area" until now, I have fat in all the wrong places! Too high in the belly, too low in the butt! I'll be in Hospital for 4 days, 3 nights! I will bring my laptop and post as soon as I can to you ladies! But that is several weeks away...
I am really hoping the pathology comes out okay. We have to wait 7 days after surgery for the final pathology. I am hoping I don't have a lot of cancer left... EEE gads. I am not going to think about this now!!!
MY ***LAST*** TREATMENT ON MONDAY. Do I keep saying this?? I FEEL SO HAPPY!
Spring.
We leave the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
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Tanzie - Happy Birthday. Rest assured, next year will be better. I found my lump August 8, had mammo August 11, had biopsy August 13 and was told I had cancer on August 15. I met my surgeon on August 19 and scheduled myself for a mastectomy - all within 10 days. I turned 44 on August 22. What a hell of a present, I thought.
But now that I am over the initial shock, I've decided that next August I'm going to have one helluva party (you're all invited if you want to take a road trip!). I'm going to turn 45 and I will be a 1 year cancer survivor!
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I'm going to have my surgery at Hopkins. When I was in Hopkins with my son for Thanksgiving, they had an awesome Thanksgiving dinner! THey better do the same for surgery patients!!
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Tanzie, i hope you have a super birthday!
Brandonmom- I wish you the best of luck on your surgery..
Lets start praying now that our tastebuds recover for Thanksgiving..it would be such a shame to not be able to taste that dressing and gravy!
Hope all of you have a SUPER weekend!
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Good luck to all of you having surgery! And wishes for speedy recoveries!
I ordered 5 scarves from Anokhi ... 4 rectangle, 1 square. I have a feeling I'm never going to wear the wigs I bought. haha
Donna - what a wonderful adoption story of your own! The celebration continues tomorrow with a barbeque and moon bounce.
It's still summer weather here. 0 -
Evening,
I got home from my third AC tonight with one more AC and 4 Taxols to go,YEAH!, I like the scarf idea and may order one next week. I still can't tolerate the wig...my head sweats and it makes me want to take the wig off and scream with delight. Who knew my bald head would make me this miserable? :lol :lol
Some of my hair is growing in. I have my Neupogen in the frig and will administer it starting Sunday PM x 5 days.
I want, I need, to write, RITE now, but I am not able to really write what I'm thinking. Damned Chemo brain in IV Decadron 10mgm. arrrgh
Priz, my heart is with you. I inherited my mom's coop; I can't take her name off my door, or the mailbox, or her clothes out of the closet. I think I will eventually but I don't know when.
Good luck and God bless Brandon mom and Springtime having surgery. Happy Birthday Tanzie...my e-addy is below..
Jane, I love your party idea.:)
my e-addy is nycrnmina@gmail.com
Damn, I hate Decadron. I am coughing so much tonight, I hope I haven't triggered my asthma with all the 0.9 normal saline he gave me.
My next treatment is November 21, so my Thanksgiving taste buds are doomed this year, but next year, Watch OUT!
OT/PS
The Healthwell Foundation gave me a $3300.00 grant for one year to help with my co-pay of$160.00 per treatment. I deeded it over to my doc and my pharmacist and I'm doing a happy dance cause now I can do dose dense. and make my already purplish- blackened fingernails, get blacker faster. NO Complaints though. I've also lost sensations in the tips of my 1st, 2nd and 3rd fingers of my right hand; they are perfect Halloween scare the little and not so little kiddos to death.
love you all,
Mina
I forgot to mention I got
2 bags of IV fluid to prime my port and hydrate me...
then
10-11 mgm Decadron IVPB 50cc bag
Kytril 1 mgm IVPB 50cc bag
Cytoxan 1200 mgm in 250cc normal saline bag IVPB and
Doxorubicin 100?? IVPB in 250 cc NSS.
One Kytril po was given me for the am.
I am fairing up much better under the 10-11 mgm of Decadronl. My first Onc gave me 4 mgmg IVP and I think I needed more...whjile he would lectured me about the unfairness of his Medicare compensation,he didn't adequately hydrate me and I did feel nauseous and awful for more than a week.
,mina
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I saw onc and bs today. Resumed my chemo with AC#3. I never thought I'd be happy to be having chemo, but being put on hold for the last 3 weeks scared the bejeegers out of me. All I could think about was those potential little cancer cells racing around my body like those little phlegm guys on the mucinex commercials. I asked the dr about the vision changes and he said that it was from the decadron and it should clear up about 2 months after I stop the chemo. I wish I didn't have to take the decadron. It is 2:46 am. I am exhausted and I can't sleep. I know that Tuesday will probably be my crash day. I go to my LGFB class from 10:30 - 12:30 that day, so that should be relaxing and then I can go home and go to bed early.
Good news from the bs, too. She said that my cellulitis is healing nicely. I don't have to have the visiting nurse anymore and the dressing can be changed once a day instead of 2. She also said that I can try to do it myself instead of having my daughter do it. She said I can go back to work on Wednesday, too.
I also got copies of my medical records while I was at the hospital today. The visiting nurse was right. Both Dr. Anderson's (bs) notes and Dr. Kruger's (onc) note specifically state that the infection was caused by the dentist. Dr. Anderson's note says, "She underwent a dental procedure 5 days ago and was not medicated with antibiotics." Dr. Kruger's note says, "...She had a part of a tooth that broke away. The dentist did not pull the tooth. He did not start antibiotics following her dental work." If the lawyer and I ever stop playing phone tag, I'm sure he'll have a field day with that kind of ammunition.
Well, I guess I'll sit here and watch the comedy channel and wait to get tired enough to fall asleep.
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Learned the HARD way tht Claritan works well for me. I took one on Thursday when I got my Neulesta shot, then did not have any more ( gave rest to my son) and did not take on Friday. Every bone and muscle HURT to be touched or moved! I moaned just changing position! I finally went in the hot tub last night and that helped. But it was a lesson learned!
D
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sorry girls but i have my irritated hat on today again..we just found out my cousins BC is back, friend of ours has 3yr old grandson dx'd with lymphoma and will start chemo ASAP...this cancer jut keeps taking people on and our "advanced" country can't do *&$# about it! I have a 21 yr old daughter and i don't know when to tell her to get screend. NOW is my thoughts. Then i read the article on the home page about women who have SE's from hormone therapy might fare better than women that don't...that sounds like a study straight from the halls of a pharmaceutical co who fear that suffering may cause us to not want to do tamoxifan???? Lord forbid...lets tell them their rates of success will improve and they won't DARE not buy our drug!!! ( am i synical or what????) I am just so tired of this disease and so frustrated that a cure is nowhere in sight and it is SOOOO not fair for a little three yr old to have to suffer through chemo and something they have no way of understanding what is going on!!!!
breath- got that off my chest! Sorry but i am soooo hormonal toady!! Also a little stressed. I am hoping this cold will go away one day!!!
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BettysGirl,
I hear you!!! My sister-in-law is 43 w/two young boys, and just got dx'd with BC. Had lupectomy and margins clear, but final pathology on the one sentinel node was not... I felt like I was punched in the stomach. They don't even know what that means, and my DH and I just didn't have the heart to tell them - they will get a call from Dr. on Monday.
It just makes me SICK! We have GOT to solve this. And the 3 yr old. Profoundly sad.
Spring.
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FYI - I tried the nair on my head and it worked great. I don't know if it would work for everybody, depending on allergies, but I didn't have a problem.
There was something else I was going to share, but I forgot...chemo brain, sorry.
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I am in the "transfusion room" getting my *LAST* treatment of Taxol!
They have wireless internet connections everywhere! LOL
Spring.
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Is anyone more exhausted than usual?? I am trying to clean house as my Dad arrives tomorrow. After an hour, I was short of breath and needed to sit down (which is why I am posting
). I cannot believe how little it takes for me to be tired!!! I need to strengthen up. Any suggestions for good exercise besides walking the dogs?D
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I can't believe you went a whole hour! I can't do much of anything for more than 15 minutes without resting. As you can imagine, not a lot is getting done around here.
Chris
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ditto priz and Chris. I am just finally starting to feel a little better, just in time for tx 4 next Monday. I can't believe how tough tx 3 has been for me. I am sooooo ready for this to be done.
Susan
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Hello Ladies.
my mom will start chemo on 11/17 - TAC every 3 weeks. Can you share any tips/suggestions??? I also have few questions:
Did you all have a port or picc line put in??? Is it absolutely necessary?? which is better - easier to manage???
where did you buy the scarves from?
Thank you all in advance.
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I've been wiped out all weekend.
It wasn't as bad as last time.....but still bad enough!!! I've discovered as long as I'm asleep.......I'm not sick........so I just kept myself knocked out all weekend. Even taking the Zofran.......I still felt like I was gonna hurl any minute! I never did.....but sure felt like I could!
God I hate this.......
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np312 - I had a PICC line and for me it worked great. It is a quick procedure to have it put it. No more painful to me that having an IV started. The bandage does have to be changed weekly. Also, you have to use care when showering not to get it wet. The upside is that you do not have to stuck at all for IVs. I didn't really choose it. I went with it because I could start chemo quicker (didn't have to wait for the surgery to put in a port). All in all I was very happy with it, but a lot of people love their port and do not have to worry about bandage changes and being careful when showering.
If I had to do it over again, I would still do the PICC (I hate any kind of surgery
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np312 - I also had a picc line. It wasn't my favorite thing, but much more preferable than having surgery and adding another scar to growing collection! Also, removing it was a breeze! It was out before I knew she had pulled it. Alot easier than having the drains from my double mast pulled.
I ordered a few scarves from Anokhi. I just couldn't resist after hearing you girls rave! I also ordered a Buff from: www.planetbuff.com/index.html I was looking for something soft and seemless to sleep in. My hairless head as been getting chilly at night!
Thanks so much for the b-day wishes. Hubby and I went out on a 'date'. We haven't done that since I was dx'd back in May...
Springtime - Last taxol! Sweetness!
priz - It's been several weeks out for me and I still find myself getting tired more easily than what I think I should. But what has been bothering me the most is my eyes! Now they get 'tired' super easy.
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Ladies,
LAST TREATMENT DONE!!
HOORAY!!!!
<<-- this is me having it made in the shade, LOLAll of you who are wiped out, are you on AC? AC 3-4 were the HARDEST for me. That was a bad month. I found I was breathless too. If you are moving on to Taxol, you will find it passes. Everything gets better when you get off AC.
And remember - toxic stuff is coursing through you, strong enough to killing cancer, whip your bone marrow, make your hair fall out, and mess with your stomach lining. OF COURSE you are wiped out! It is WORKING!
I had a portacath and the thing drives me crazy, but I think it is like a love/hate thing - some people are driven nutz by these, and others have no issues. It may be same for PICC.Surgery is in 3 weeks and the port comes OUT! However, it is a good thing to have, with all the prods and pokes you get!
Take care...
Happy B-day to Tanzie, Happy B-day to Tanzie, Happy B-day dear Tanzie, Happy B-day to Youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu....
Springtime
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Oh yeah! Springtime, my exchange surgery is Dec 1st. The day before yours.
You'll be undergoing a way more indepth surgery than I will, (I had my double mast and expander placement on July 28th.) but maybe it'll help to know that I'll be recooping too. 0 -
Hi Tanzi! (Our bithday girl!)
It helps that we will be recouping from surgery together! It just helps to know there are other women out there, and we're not alone in this.
Thank God for this board!!!
Love you girls!NP312: Hint for Mom, When the do the A "push" (this is red stuff in a tube and does not drip down into you like the others, but a nurse "pushes" it into the IV line) make sure she is eating Ice chips/cubes, before, during and after this. For me, this WAY WAY WAY cut down on mouth sores. As in 2x I did not know to do it, and got mouth sores. Last 2x I did it, NO mouth sores.
Sue, Tx 3 was my hardest. Maybe 4 won't be so bad for you. I found it amazing, that no matter how SICK I was, at the end of 2 weeks, I was starting to really feel myself again. Our bodies are AMAZING.... how the bounce back!
Spring. (Genia hang in there girl!)
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