Calling all TNs
Comments
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lrr4993 - it isn't the Avastin my doctor is worried about, it's all the chemo as you said. I've done 4 kinds so far, and will likely do another two. If it works, she's a bit concerned about down the road. But I'm willing to take that risk.
Titan - I'm getting a "break" while doing radiation I guess you could say. I'm really looking forward to the end of summer, when all of this treatment ends hopefully.
Heidi - enjoy the wedding and picture taking!
MBJ - I have - well, had - extremely dense breasts, to the point that my mammogram report last April commented that self exams needed to be emphasized. I never saw THAT report, just a "you're fine" letter, and no one mentioned my dense breasts. 5 months later, two large tumors. Push for it definitely.
I plan on setting aside money for my daughter that she can specifically use for MRIs down the road should insurance still be denying them. It sounds a little silly, but I will do whatever I can to give her the resources to prevent being where I am right now.
I appreciate the good thoughts. I didn't want to do it, but I upped my Ativan a little and that has helped. I'm reminding myself that no one knows what this crazy crap will do, and my doctor thinks it is a positive sign that my PET showed no mets even though the nodes lit up. I told her I want five years, and she said she's still shooting for 30, lol. I don't think she's used to having a patient be this aggressive, I tend to be pushy. But being the squeaky wheel has gotten me lots of oil!
We are hanging out at home today - I still have a drain in, yuck - but my boys went to the library with grandma to see a snake show. They were in heaven! Now I'm going to have to keep them out of our pond and away from the snakes, lol. We always have a few because we have a ton of frogs and snappers. In fact, last year a snapping turtle laid eggs in my flower bed, and when they hatched, I had 30 babies all over our driveway! We live right next to a preserve area, and it s pretty cool - we have two beaver families right behind our house, and I'm always avoiding the "herds" of turkeys. And last summer we had a black bear family spotted 1/4 mile from us. I'm a Miami girl - all of this wildlife is crazy!!
Ok, I'm just babbling now. Have a good day everyone!0 -
Suze--- I'm one of those people that *do* the snake shows in local libraries. Love the kids' reactions!
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Suze and Heidi..you guys have alot in common..love the critters...me..maybe not so much..there was a freaking worm in our garage this am and I screamed until my DH removed it (he said he put it in one of my shoes)...at our old house..and I mean old..we actually had a ground hog come into the house..I'm very serious....we thought it was our cat eating her food..nope..
I volunteer for a local school for troubled/abused boys and at their graduation this May we are going to hire a Jungle type of guy..He is going to bring snakes and skunks..I think the boys will like them...me maybe not so much...I think I will stay at the dessert table..
Heidi..hope you are feeling better...was the weather better for you 2-day than in Ohio..I hope so..for the wedding...
Suze..I hope that rads are a little bit of a break for you and you handle them well..I think you probably will....end of summer you will be done! it will be here before you know it...
Teka..I have yet to see a post of yours that you babble..bring it on!
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I like critters too! Count me in!! Five years ago, I operated a rescue. I had to close the doors only because my mother was killed and I ended up having to "rescue" my grandma and care for her. But we took everything (except spiders). We literally had an average of 20 cats/kittens and 15 dogs and pups every day, in addition to everything else. And by everything else I literally mean... squirrels, baby coons (only until a rehabber was located), potbellied pigs, snakes, mice, gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits (someone once even brought us meat rabbits from the fair), chinchillas, ferrets, and even rats (which, btw, make wonderful pets). We didn't take birds or other reptiles, mainly because I knew another rescuer friend who was more capable of providing their specific needs.
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Titan-- another thing we have in common! I, too, had a groundhog get into my house. Came back from shopping one day and the house looked like a tornado had gone through it.
Appears an air duct was loose in our crawl space and he came up through the heating vents. My terrier had a *field day* with that. By the time I got home it had managed to escape back down the vent, but the dog was locked and tracking on the (slightly askew) heater vent.
So... not wanting to hurt whatever it was that was apparently down there, I took some hairspray (used it on horses, not me) and sprayed the opening. BIG sneezes and lots of grumbles, so I knew *something* was down there.
Several hours later, after placing a humane trap baited with apples and sardines over the vent, this big ol' groundhog waddled out.
Called Animal Control and supposedly he was shipped overseas for animal research. Not sure I believed that, and never called control again.... took care of my own interlopers after that.
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This is Deputy DAwg. He lived with us... 0 -
Heidi & Titan: I have never seen a groundhog before, however, I had an entire possum family come into our house one night (I left the door open for the cats back then). Here I was at 2 am trying to usher them out of the house with a broom my cats hissing at them, they were hissing at my cats. Crazy night.
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Heidi - that is awesome that you do that! I had a snake as a pet in my 20s, but then it bit me and I got too agitated to care for it properly. But I still love them! And that groundhog picture is fantastic! I'll have to post my turtle pics.
Angelisa - what an amazing thing you did. And you're right about rats, I had a few growing up. I also had this great mouse in college, it would sit in my robe pocket and come out to get a little scratching. I loved that little critter!
Titan - that is too funny about the worm lol. We get a lot of baby snakes is our garage, the boys love to relocate them.
Nothing in our house - yet! We had a couple of moles under the snow this winter and regularly house a few chipmunks under our steps. I can never grow sunflowers, those stinkers find the seeds in 10 minutes flat. I love to talk about our neighborhood - we live in a "green" community. We can't use chemicals on the lawn, no pools allowed, we have solar panels that provide about 75% of our energy needs, and gardening (organic of course) is strongly encouraged. The builder still lives here, and 2/3s of his yard is garden. I get my organic, free range eggs from his wife, they are so yummy. And I have been expanding my garden every year. Just put in a semi dwarf apple and two semi dwarf pear trees last year. I may have grown up rolling around on toxic chemicals and eating them, but at least my kids won't nearly as much!0 -
Suze: Your home sounds lovely and I envy you your garden and wildlife. I live in a very congested area of Los Angeles and the only wild life are the street people and late night party goers.
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MBJ - thank you! You know, I still envy those living in a big city - I grew up in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami, and while I don't miss the traffic and "wildlife" (lol), it was great always having something to do. DH and I used to talk about moving to Boston when we retire (which I still hope we can do), and the kids adore NYC. I guess the grass IS always greener
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Deputy Dawg was a prairie dog. At one time I had an entire baseball team of them. They can make an adorable pet, but some are real meanies....especially during breeding season.
Currently I have a Common Loon swimming in my bathtub. Loons often get disoriented at night during bad rain storms and mistake macadam for water. Once down, they can not take off again due to their body weight and the fact that their legs are set *very* far back on their bodies. (This is why they nest on islands or peninsulas at the edge of water where walking is not a requirement).
One of the local scout leaders found the bird stranded in the road and remembered that I do wildlife rescue. They are *really* cool birds and luckily, this one does not seem too worse for wear. Some rubbed areas on his sensitive little webbed feet that will require a bit of TLC for a few days.
Then off to a local pond/lake. Lucky for me I have several bathtubs!
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Hi all, sorry havent been posting much, having a hard time keeping up with working full time, taking care of family, have had DD birthday party this weekend it went really well, had her spring concert last week sheeesh it never ends lol. Had a real hard go chemo number 2 , one more round of FEC then on to D. I really need to mentally prepare for this round, not until the 28th unless blood counts are too low, doc warned me they might be as they were touch and go for round number 2. Seems soooo long till the finish but I know I will look back soon and think wow I did all that.
Hope your all having a great sunday
Hugs Kymn
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OMG..MGB! Now that I'm off the floor from laughing about your opposum story! We also had opossums at our old house along with the g-hogs..My DH would live trap them and take them to the garbage bins at his place of work..They in turn would take them to a landfill...I'm sure they are happy there..He would never kill them...
Kymn..are you having the neulasta shot to keep your white blood cell count up?
I'm watching the Wizard of Oz right now..hope I don't have nightmares...Yikes..that Witch is a **itch!
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Hi everyone,
I'm new to this forum. My mom was recently diagnosed at TN.
Tumour is <2cm; Stage 1; Grade 3 0/3 nodes, ER-/PR-, HER2-.
She got a mastectomy done and starting chemo this Thursday.
Just scanning through posts. It looks like different chemo meds are provided each time. - is this the case?
Oncologist recommended only 4 chemo treatments; every 3 weeks. Is this normal? Should I press for more?
Also - my mom is really concerned about her diet. What do you recommend for meals?
Thanks in advance for all the advice.
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karebear: I had 4 treatments of TC, every 3 weeks. It seems pretty standard, but my advice would be to get a second opinion if you have any doubt as to treatment. Many of us here get second opinions.. and some get a third. I got 2 opinions and even had the tissue retested, so encourage your mom to do that if she feels the need. As for diet, several of us here are very careful what we eat. A diet low in fat seems to be recommended. If you do the research, you'll likely find many people going toward a more organic diet, high in raw fruit/vegies. You may also find recommendations against foods white in nature, such as rice, sugar, bread, flour. Many also stay away from chocolate, especially milk chocolate. However, going into chemo, your mom won't be able to eat some of these things, especially raw fruit/vegies. Diet can make a difference, but it can be expensive and it's hard to pinpoint what works and what doesn't. I would advise her to eat the things she feels like eating during chemo, because it does affect what you are able to eat. Exercise is also important. So is staying hydrated and sleep. It's not just one facet, but many. For now, just encourage her to take one step at a time. She's on a roller coaster of emotions. Get another opinion on chemo. So sorry to see you here, but these women are awesome and you've stumbled onto a wealth of information here!0
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Suze: Hugs and more hugs. Relax and release before the next round starts. Do your reasearch and never be afraid of getting a second opinion. And when you feel stress walk, or snack on some fruits and watch a good lifetime movie.
Ground Hogs, Snakes and Possums I would be on top of the table screaming. I am scared of EVERYTHING. I make sure the basement door is locked at all times. You guys are truly nature women.
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Fighter--- not to worry... 20 minutes in my house would have you totally de-sensitized 0
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Morning ladies,
Titan, no I havent gotten a neulasta shot, it hasnt even been brought up to me at this point. I wonder if this is not something they give to us here in Canada?
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Kymn: I seem to recal that you have to pay extra for the shot in Canada--they don't automatically provide it like here in the states. This would really make a difference for you.
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Kymn - I'm sorry this has been so rough on you, I agree with MBJ, maybe ask about Neulasta or Neupogen. Neupogen is cheaper, but you need multiple shots. I hope you are good to go for the next round.
Fighter - thank you for the encouragement. I'm doing my best to take things one step at a time. I won't have any more scans (except planning CT Friday) for 5 months, so I'm going to enjoy the time as best I can.
We are going to NYC tonight for a few days. DH got a nice 1 bedroom at the Ritz on Central Park, snazzy. Im going to eat, walk, enjoy the kids, and try and forget for a little while anyway.
Got my drain out today, and new path report. The extra nodes she took out weren't huge - about 1 cm each, but there was still a little extranodal extension, sigh. I'll ask my RO on Friday to pay attention to the collarbone on the CT Friday. It hasn't grown and is still soft, but I'm still thinking cancer given everything. Well, that's what rads is for.
Have a great day everyone! Heidi, enjoy your housemate.0 -
Suze: Getting away for a few days and staying at the Ritz-how wonderful! Enjoy your time there and tell us all about it when you get back. I am hoping your CT comes back clean but like you said, radiation is there to clean up the rest. Big hugs!!
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Kymn- I'm from Quebec and my doctor prescribed me Neupogen (same as Neulasta) from the get go for my AC chemo and I didn't have to pay for it. But I didn't need any Neupogen shots while on Taxol.
Suze- Aaaahhh... doesn't it feel good when the drains come out........ Sending you big hugs. Hang in there.
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Kymn: Neulasta and neupogen have side effects, and doctors in Canada do not routinely prescribe them if you are on a 3-week cycle, because most women's blood counts have enough time to come up by themselves. That said, if your WBCs are low and risk putting you off your chemo schedule, it is definitely worth asking your doc about it.
I was put on neulasta because I was on a dose dense cycle (every 2 weeks) for AC and the cost (about $2500/round) was covered through a combination of my husband's private insurance and the drug company's Victory program.
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Suze - sounds like a wonderful trip you have coming up. Enjoy!
Kymn - sorry you're to hear about your counts. I'm in Ontario and I had Neulasta after each of my treatments ot Taxotere/Cytoxan. It was covered 100% by my extended health benefits through work. I recall each shot was about $3,000. I know it wasn't covered under OHIP because it was administered outside of the hospital. You might want to check with your Oncologist to see whether he/she recommends Neulasta or Neupogen. I think the latter is a series of shots.
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Suze- NYC-- what a wonderful distraction. Enjoy!
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OMG Suze..you will have so much fun! ..Still haven't been to NYC...
Ok.since the DC trip didn't work out what about NYC? Not now..I still can't afford this because of my DD's wedding in October but maybe next spring? I want to stay on Central Park..I want to go shopping..I want to eat a NY hot dog..I want I want I want
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cc4npg - thanks for all the advice! how long has it been since you stopped chemo?
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To my tiple negative sisters, I am confused! 8 years ago I was diagnosed as triple negative. Now I have a new cancer in my opposite breast. Path report back today, er 3%-positive pr 1%-negative her2-neg (or what ever it is called). So am I positive or negative? 3% seems so low? I don't know much about this, I will also check the postive thread for info.
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Hi BK...So sorry to hear this....Five years ago I was dx as triple negative even though I was 5% er positive (pr neg, Her2-neg)....I hear that standards have changed a bit and some Drs offer hormone therapy for very low expressions of er...most seem to adhere to fact that it would not do much good so why suffer thru all the potential rough side effects....I have always considered myself triple negative...I find there are so many long term survivors of triple neg and really feel you will still be one after treatment. This must be so brutal for you and my heart goes out to you BK....Hang tough dear sister...best to you, P
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Yippee! I just got an all clear, normal mammogram at MSK on my one year anniversary. I also met with the surgeon who did my lumpectomy and all looked good. He said "come back in one year." The only other follow up will be blood work with the oncologist back home.
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