August 2010...anyone starting chemo besides me?!
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WOW--University is so expensive in the US. The price of post-secondary in Canada has increased since I went to University and people are constantly debating in government regarding the increasing costs but that being said--maybe you would spend about $15,000 per year and that includes residence and meal plan. When I went to University it was about $4000 for tuition and probably spent another $5000 on residence etc. You would think that the government would see the value in subsidizing college/university fees---build the future etc.
It is a long weekend here in Canada--family day on Monday. Have a great weekend!
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Lady - Congrats on the lakehouse!! I wish you years and years and years of happy times there!0
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Lady: I must have chemo eyes now!!!!! I don't know how I missed your wonderful news about the lake house but I did! In any case, the most incredible congratulations!!!!! You both really deserve it...it has been a tough year for you and with you just having gotten together, you need a nice place to go and enjoy spending time together and that which also does not remind you of this past year. Timing is everything and I think your DH got it just right on this one
One of the things I thought about while I have been considering leaving CT was leaving this house where I had bc...makes the move a bit easier. I hope you guys have a great summer on the lake and get a peddle boat..so much fun!Texas: I don't know how you do it with the kids and all but, as I have said before, you are some sort of wonder woman! An old friend of mine used to say busy people get more done and when I listen to you and what you get done, I have a tendency to believe my old friend! I am not the best at managing my time these days and I still space out a bit. I am just over 3 weeks post my last tx so perhaps I will get it together soon! Best of luck to you and I am sure you will do fine on the entrance exam. A lot of those exams are for placement purposes also and not to preclude you from the program. If something is weak they will usually accept you and place you in a remedial course for the weakness. Don't worry
Calamtykel: thinking of you and wondering how you are doing. Stop by and let us know you are ok.
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Good morning everyone!
Texas: I only had Taxotere and Cytoxan. The doctor's office called yesterday and said the x-rays were negative, so I guess that leaves nerve damage. I have an appointment with the neurologist in a couple of weeks, so I guess I will just deal with it until then.
Lady: Congrats on the house...it sounds wonderful!!
Question everyone...is anyone else on Vitamin D. When the doctor's office called yesterday they said my blood work showed my vitamin D level was low and he prescribed 2000 units per day. The bottle says it promotes breast health...I am going to research the link, but I was just wondering if anyone else was prescribed this. Anyway, I am now up to 4 pills a day (Tamoxifen, iron, and two vitamin D) and a shot of B12 every month.....I am beginning to feel old and infirmed...maybe I will need a pill dispenser soon...LOL!
My son has another OUTDOOR hockey game today and the weather has turned decidedly colder today...lovely. Going to head off now to HIIT class, more jumping and exercising! Everyone enjoy your weekend!
Debbi
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OK All pic posted with 2 months post TCH of hair. libraylil0
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lil--You look great!
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lil - Cute pic!! Love your smile!0
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Good morning chemosabes and radicals:
I hope everyone is having a nice weekend. I am actually getting some stuff done for a change and it feels really good! I feel like I am very slowly getting a grip on things again....very slowly.
Sptmm: a number of years ago someone I commuted with into Manhattan remarked that if you were in a battle with cancer, Vit D was essential to help your body with that battle. I never forgot those words and now I have 12 ozs of milk every morning when I take my vitamins. I take Centrum Ultra Women's, Calcium + D and the milk so I make sure my Vit D requirements, and then some, are met every day. I think it is really a good sign that your doctor is monitoring those levels and even if s/he does not believe Vit D is essential to a cancer battle, at the very least it is essential for your bones and no one wants Rickets! It sounds to me like you are in good hands
You might want to check this out: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/vitamin-d/NS_patient-vitamind
Rachel: university is indeed expensive in the states. Most 4 year private institutions are in the $45K range and the ivy leagues are all in the mid 60's. Again, you are LUCKY to live in Canada!
Libraylil: excellent photo! It looks great! That is a lot of hair, woman! 2 months?! I am just starting to get little sprouts and I am nearly 1 month since my last tx. I hope by May I have some hair again! Good for you.
Zenith: Where did you go? Hope you are doing well. Long time, no hear. Check in, give us an update.
Omaz: how are you doing with your LE? Thinking about you.
Texas: are you taking the TEAS practice exams? Just wondering. They are the standard so I can only imagine that is probably what you are taking but just wondering!
Lady: good info on the scholarship idea. I have been looking for a while and due to my age, about all I qualify for is the AARP (!!!) scholarship. Tex will qualify for a lot because of her age. A lot of the bc/c scholarships are for people under 30. I am a senior citizen at 40!!!
BTW, on the foods with naturally occurring high levels of estrogen, I was told by my onc's office everything in moderation. Clearly I am not going to follow this advice! Why would I want to eat a food that was high in naturally occurring estrogen when I have ER fed bc and am about to take some nasty pill that will shut down my estrogen making factory?! You really have to be your own advocate.
Well, I hope you all have a nice day. I am off to try to figure out how to eat now that I have both bc and hashimoto's thyroiditis!!! I think perhaps a steady diet of milk and dust will keep me healthy!!!
Good day all-
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Lizzy - What's up with the thyroiditis? Did I miss something??0
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Omaz: I have had it since 2005. I just never talked about it here. I am on synthroid but like flax was something good to eat for the thyroid but bad for bc etc... so now I have to try to figure out what I can eat for both situations. Personally, it has long been held thyroid complications contribute to the potential for bc and I do think, on some level, this is what caused my bc but I must give a big *whateva* to that! Can't control any of this so no need to travers the recrimination highway about things that are 100% out of my control!0
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lizzy - My best friend was diagnosed with it a couple years ago and it has taken a while for her to get her thyroid hormone levels sorted out.0
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Good evening all-
The American Cancer Society has a Cancer Action Network (ACSCAN) and I was alerted by a friend in the fight about this budget cut that would negate a good deal of the funds to fight cancer.
As follows:
The U.S. House of Representatives just passed a budget that is devastating to the fight against cancer. It will mean more lives lost and more suffering from this terrible disease.
Now, the Senate must pass its budget and its critical that we restore funding for lifesaving cancer prevention and early detection programs. But to succeed, we need more people to take action.
Will you take just 30 seconds to sign this online petition? We can't let Congress jeopardize all the advancements we've made.
Thank you!http://www.acscan.org/petition
I hope you all will look into this and sign the petition. The last thing we need is for critical funding in the fight against cancer to be negated.
Good night all-
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Signed and submitted http://www.acscan.org/petition
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Rachel Congrats on finishing rads! Hooray for you!
Debbi I'm glad to hear that things are working out for your daughter to play field hockey in college. Hopefully she will get a good athletic scholarship to go along with that academic scholarship!
Lady What great news about the lake house! I bet that will be a fun project getting it all set up and then it will be a wonderful place for you to relax and enjoy yourself!
Texas I get the MUGA every 3 months until I am done with the year of Herceptin. I see that you are HER2+ too so I presume you are also getting Herceptin. You may want to check with your onc about additional heart scans, my onc says that it is pretty standard to get some kind of heart testing done regularly during Herceptin. My onc prefers the MUGA over the EKG and he likes to do it every 3 months.
Lizzy and Debbi I also have a thyroid condition and I am on Synthroid. My endocrinologist recently recommended checking my Vitamin D levels and found I was low so she recommended 2000 units of Vit D daily. I decided to go ahead and start taking a multivitamin every day plus extra calcium so between the two of those I get 1000 units of Vit D and then I take an additional 1000 unit Vit D pill.
I hope everyone had a great weekend! It was beautiful here, in the 70s and sunny and I ended up spending most of Saturday and Sunday outside helping out with a lacrosse tournament (my husband coaches lacrosse). It was so nice to be outside enjoying the sun and fresh air! And I did finally hear back from my surgeon's office on Friday afternoon and I am scheduled for surgery on Wednesday. My surgeon is at a major hospital 2.5 hours away so DH and I will drive down tomorrow morning so I can see the surgeon and do pre-op stuff in the afternoon. We'll stay the night and then I'll have my surgery Wednesday morning and I should be discharged and able to head home in the afternoon. I actually had one re-excision already about 2 weeks after my original lumpectomy so I know exactly what to expect!
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I am done with rads!! Yay
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JSW--Sending you hugs for speedy recovery tomorrow. Take care.
I actually started back at gym today--walked for 45min--ran for about 2 min before lungs were going to explode--guess I will be building back up to running!! I have signed on for a 5km run on May 14th. I have gained weight through chemo so need to get my a** in gear!
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rachel - I have been doing weight watchers online. Very nice program and I have lost a couple pounds the first week. Very encouraged.0
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IowaSue - How is the bone pain?0
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Hi Omaz--I did WW for about two years and it was great. I gained some weight back after my hysterectomy last year and gained more via chemo. I am hoping that by using the things that I learned via WW and starting to exercise--will help me to get back in shape. Pre-cancer--I was at my healthiest ever --- with the exception of course of the cancer that was obviously growing inside me! (go figure).
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Congrats Omaz on finishing Rads!!
Rachel: Good job on getting back to the gym. The doctors keep telling me that exercise is the key to getting back to feeling like myself. So far haven't noticed a difference, but I have only been exercising at the gym for three weeks. I do, however, feel good about myself after exercising, kind of like I am doing something to help. Good luck with the 5K!
Lizzy: YUCK... SNOW AGAIN!!! I must be slipping because this one caught me completely off guard. Oh well, everything is white again!
Debbi
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Omaz: Congrats on finishing rads!
All: How do you post a picture here? When you do "insert image" it wants a URL, but my pics are just on my computer, not at a URL. I guess they have to be online somewhere to be able to post here? I was going to post a pic of the lakehouse and of the boat, although neither of them are much to look at
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Thanks Lady and sptmm62! Glad to be done and have my mornings back. Hopefully if there were any leftover cancer cells they are dead or dying as I type!
I would like to know how to post a pic from the computer too.
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Omaz- the bone pain was less when we had warmer weather for a week, now back to colder and bone pain. So I guess more weather related and partly herceptin. I did have an mri on my neck because of the shock like feeling below my knees when I bend my head down and it came back that I have 2 budging disc c4 and c5. I guess thats good news in most ways. Dam I'm just falling apart.
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Omaz congrats on finishing rads.
JSW check in with us after your re re excision. Fingers crossed for good margins.
All well I went today after work to have the "fluid" drained that had formed after the lumpectomy to make the RO happy. Since I am relatively small, could not figure out how a coke can size amount of fluid was hidden in there. I do remember that right after the re excision the breast was slightly smaller. Somehow it became as big as the right one, so that must have been fluid. The BS's fellowship person drained 2 and 1/2 fat boy syringes. A dent appeared on top so I immediately went home and started cranking up the pity party. It already is rounded out better. She showed me the fluid on the ultrasound so it was definitely there.. Really nice fellow ship female that drained it. No pain. However, there was a new Nurse practitioner observing. When I asked the Dr. about the nipple returning to working mode the Nurse practitioner said "Well you can just tell you husband you want new boobs." I wanted to say and I can just punch you in the throat. This was during the procedure. She is on my list. Before I left I told the BS's nurse that this comment made by the NP was inappropriate and had she never worked with BC patients before. The BS's nurse agreed.
So hopefully no major fluid will reappear. I'll see the RO Next Tuesday to CT again and maybe get some new tatts.
libraylil
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I am supposed to be on vitimin D, my dr told me about it on my last visit but when they phone in the script they only did the tamox- i think he wants me to do the over the counter vitiman d- also calcium that i never got either. i see him tomorrow so i am gonna clear that up lol
libraylil- def see the hair! Awesome! About the NP- i love your witty comeback (even if it never left your mouth) you think like i think!- Speaking of which- i went to that horrible place ppl call "Walmart" and needed to get an oil change i chose them cuz they are cheap and fast... i bought my kids ice cream while we waited in the food court (yes our walmart has a food court lol) any how after they finished that we still hadnt been paged so i went back to automotive- i saw my car was the ONLY car in the bay and 3 "mechanics" were chit chatting and not doing their J_O_B, the door that leads out was locked (turns out they have to buzz you through) and there was no one at the registar. i waited 10 freakin minutes for them to come in, another car pulled up and they start working on her car (after being in the store over 40 minutes total) finally someone showed up from inside the store and i asked "is my car ready?" they said "oh they arent going to do the oil change because your dip stick is broken" i said "thats nice- why didnt y'all page me!?" she replied "they must have just found out that problem" i said "NO they didnt just find out, i have been sitting here for 10 minutes watching them dick around until the next car pulled in!" totally not proud that i said that but i did! (they were getting on my last nerve) The mechanic walks in and says the same thing that the cashier said. I said "i know she just told me" when we left they were gonna show me it was broken- like i freakin needed to see that! i take their word for it and i will NEVER go back to walmart again. i am so sick and tired of their lack of common sense! (sorry got off on a tangent here LOL)
Lizzy yes it is the teas- i take my practice tests on this site: http://www.testprepreview.com/teas_practice.htm there is another one too that they gave me but i am still working my way through these
Petition is signed!
jsw19- it looks like i am due for the ECG then lol i did have it 3 mo after starting herceptin and its been 3 months since then... prob cuz i had my mx my dr is waiting for me to heal????
Whoop whoop Omaz! whats the next step in your tx?
Rachel- i also signed up for a run/ well walk lol the Komen 60 mile thing so def gonna be a walk not run! i am working myself up to that level of fitness again
Sue- it does feel that way! Like we're all just comming apart- if it isnt this its that!
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Texas You sound so "up" and a rowdy girl to boot. You are the only person I've heard use the expression "d--king around" other than myself. libraylil0
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LOL that isnt the worst expression i use! I really have to watch myself around my kids tho LOL
i say being politically correct has made a lot of people whinny LOL
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Thanks Texas - I continue on with the herceptin till Aug and start some kind of anti-estrogen soon but I haven't talked to my onc about it yet. Will probably at next herceptin in two weeks. Joy!0
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Good evening chemosabes and radicals:
I have not been feeling so well as I keep getting dizzy and lightheaded when I stand up and sometimes when I am in mid-stride. I am going to give it 2 months post-chemo before I ring the alarm. I am also having stomach pains, pinching in my lower left quadrant and pain in my non-bc side rib cage. I feel totally like I am falling right the heck apart!
Ginger: thank you for signing the petition. It benefits all of us. If cancer research and prevention funding hits the cutting room floor, we are all totally affected. I hope to benefit from that research going forward if I have mets or a recurrence as I am sure we all do. I don't want that funding cut so thank you for supporting us both!
JSW: ah, yes, good ol' synthroid! I have been on it for years. I think the vitamin D is very helpful. I get about 200% of RDA. Good luck on Wednesday! I will be thinking of you and sending good thoughts your way. I hope all goes well. Re-excision should be fine. I look forward to hearing your report of how well it all went later this week!
OMAZ!!!!! DONE WITH RADS!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!! Good for you...what a milestone! You must feel so good to finally be getting beyond down this long road. I personally am tired of the whole thing and I see my onc tomorrow to get my tamox rx.... I am a little concerned about starting tamoxifen...oh well. I must try it and see what happens. Perhaps I will be lucky?! I guess you will be on the anti-estrogen train with me soon! I hope we are happy travelers!
Rachel: good for you on the gym. When I started to run again on the treadmill I did 2 min walking and 2 jogging and kept on like that for the duration of my session. Even walking 3 and jogging 1 and eventually you will be running again! Good luck.
Texas: alas I am NOT eligible for the AARP scholarship because I guess you have to be OLD and BROKE to qualify. I am so aggravated...it is just like when I went to school in my late teens. You had to be living in a refrigerator box to be eligible for financial aid or scholarships. Few are truly *just* merit based. I found out for the AARP scholarship you can not have earned more than $16500 last year!!!!!!! Sure...would you like to come to my refrigerator box?!!! I live in Connecticut...you can't even get a refrigerator box for $16K!!!! I hope you had better luck with the criteria for some of those. I was not able to apply for AARP b/c the site was down yesterday so I was just able to start the app today...woe is me!
On the Komen walk, 60 miles?! Geez, Tex...that is quite a journey! I could walk from Stamford, CT to Wall St in New York for 2/3rds the amount of mileage you will put back with the Komen walk!!Thanks for signing the petition. We need all the help we can get!
Broken dipstick and jokers at Walmart?! Just go to AutoZone.com and order one. They cost like $15! Then go get your oil changed. I don't blame you for laying into them. You have 3 kids eating ice cream...obviously you want to get a move on! OMG...I don't know if I ever told you but I have a spare car that I needed a spoiler for (guy backed into me with a truck at a rest area and took it off with the liftgate on the back of his truck!) so I called this place in Texas to order it. I asked him why y'all (!) have so many UFO sightings in Texas and he said "don't you know everyone wants to come to Texas!!" I was hysterical! Maybe they are looking to get to that Walmart with the food court and fool-service auto center!!
Sptmm: I was talking to my sister this morning about how tired I am of snow and being cold. My brother has lived in FL and TX for the past 20 years and my sister lived in FL for a few years. She is looking to go back and I may hitch a ride!!!!! I am so tired of this weather. We only got 2-3" so I was able to use my small snowblower and did not have to call the plow for the 12th time this season! Seeing as you missed this last one, a reminder that we are in for another storm on Friday and again the potential exists on Sunday....so ready for Spring.
Lady: hit "browse" button next to where it is asking for a URL and it will bring you to another window where you can search your computer. Go to your picture folder and highlight the photo you want and hit "open" or "save" or whatever the non-cancel option is in that window and you will be able to post a different pic. My problem is none of them are saved in the right format, this computer won't talk to my blackberry, when I email photos to gmail they are not in the correct form for this system to open, I turned off my 2 netbooks as I am not traveling anymore and my other desktop has the same issues this one does. This avatar business is tricky but not on the top of my priority list so I will get to it when I do! Right now algebra and trig studying is more important!
Libraylil: that was a ridiculous remark by the NP. First, new "boobs" are not going to help your nipples get back to working order. In fact, you will just end up with the "headlights on" look all the time and I have to explore the dubious world of pasties! In addition, your question was germane and not requiring flighty responses. If s/he works at a hospital, I would wait a little bit and then contact patient relations. You should not have to tolerate such chicanery.
In any case, I am glad they got the fluid out and hopefully you are feeling more comfortable with your situation.
Does anyone know if tamox increases our potential for LE? I am wicked tired of going through all the permutations and traversing medically spooky highway speculating about what might be around the corner for me.
Also, I find the further from chemo I get, the more I am in tune with every ache and pain etc... overly concerned it might be mets/further problems. This bc also causes paranoia and perhaps hypochondria!!!!
Meanwhile I suspect the government with their false "things are getting better" chant are causing people to have a false sense of security in the economy and this is, in the end, going to cause inflation. I knew this for a while in looking at consumer spending rising but jobs are not increasing and raises are, for the most part, off the menu nationwide so where is all this money coming from? Savings....bad news!
Ok...I am through with my tangent! I am going to watch Chelsea Lately now!
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I was going to post about how excited I am that the trees here have that hazy green veil over them that announces that spring is here! Having lived all my life in Northern Illinois this is a big deal, spring in February! YeeHaw! However I am not going to write about my short lived joy. My husband just came in with the dog and said there is snow on the ground. Ooooohhhh
20 out of 35!
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