August 2010...anyone starting chemo besides me?!
Comments
-
aw wher- is that your doggy's picture? My prayers are with you today for you and for him. I sort of feel when we are sick, our pets draw closer to us. I had a big shepherd mix and I was extremely EXTREMELY ill with my first pregnancy. I slept in a basement room alone at night for a while because I just couldn't be in the same bed as my husband - I was up all night throwing up every 15 minutes.
But I kept my doggy with me - she lay guard by the door. In the morning, my husband came in; opened the door to see how I was and she jumped up and nearly attacked him. She had never done that - not before or after -raised four kids with this dog and never in 14 years did she ever do anything like that again. I think she knew I was sick and needed "protection" in her mind. I think dogs know this kind of stuff. lisa: I'm hoping for a better day for you today! You shouldn't feel hesitant to post how you're really feeling on here, for fear that it will scare people. This is a support forum and you NEED and deserve support right now! I'm hoping things get better for you!
Off to some garage sales and then my two big scans this morning. I had a bad dream about them right before I woke up. Trying to drive that out of my mind!~
0 -
Today is day 3. Woke up and feel great. Have had the hiccups several times on day 2, very annoying. Got my shot and so far so good. Went for a short walk this morning and feel good about being able to get out. Not working today, although I know I could. Have 2 sick kids at home, one with a head cold and and one throwing up - Yuck. Being a mom never stops. My first chemo experience has been very uneventful and I am thrilled. Good luck to everyone.
0 -
Hi Y'all,
Wher-prayers for you and your dog.
Lisa-Hair looks great! Hope you are feeling better today.
Kathleen-Glad to hear your first treatment went well. Sorry your kids are sick! I hope they feel better soon.
I start my first chemo today. Needless to say, I'm nervous but glad to get the show on the road. I have my bag packed and have started drinking my water.
Have a great day!
0 -
wherria, The mouth sores can be really painful if you don't get them under control quickly. There are several really good things to do. First, when you have your tx's suck on ice chips it minimizes the damage to the soft tissue in our mouth. Another thing that helps is BIOTENE mouthwash and toothpaste. Most drugstores or Walmart have it. The BIOTENE is really good to use at night also for dry mouth which will help with sores. Moisten your lips with vasoline at bedtime and reapply as needed. There is also a nasal gel that will help with nasal dryness called AYR NASAL GEL and they also make a nasal mist spray. The gel has aloe vera in it and really soothes those dry passages. If all of this does not help with mouth issues call your onc and ask for something called MAGIC MOUTHWASH. It is a really cheap pharmacy mixture that will fix up those mouth issues if all else fails. I am finishing up fourth round of AC next week so I have been through a lot of the SE's already. The dehydration causes the constipation and I can tell you for me it got really bad once, so stay ahead of it by taking senna tablets(stool softeners) and try to hydrate with juices and water as much as you can. I also got some probiotic tablets that you keep in fridge called acidophilus that have helped the lining of my colon. I would go from really constipated to then having loose crampy stools. All of this has stabilized with the help of senna and acidophilus. My main problem now is the indigestion and heartburn. All liquids seem to stick in my throat especially water so I am now using warm chicken broth to get more fluids and frozen fruit bars. Hope all of this helps.
To those of you with more scans and testing and starting treatments I wish you easy days and good results. Keep thinking "You don't have to be brave, you just have to show up"!!! I can truly say chemo is the gift that just keeps on giving but the big gift I pray we all recieve is a return to a healthy cancer free body.
Aleve was recommended by my onc for the bone pain and headache caused by chemo and Neulasta. I did have to take it some but not a lot. I have been taking two tylenol just before bed to help me sleep and benadryl is also recommended if you don't want to take sleep aids.
As far as the chronic queasy stomach I have had that really bad and a woozy head. I find eating small amounts very frequently does help some. I am using antacids and acid control and prilosec OTC also recommended by my onc. If you are experiencing a lot of unsolved SE's make sure you notify your onc because they have seen and heard it all and usually have a suggestion or med that helps and you can get help here on the boards also. This is what they are there for, so don't feel as though you don't want to bother them. Without us, they would not have a job, so just think of it as job security for them.
For whoever ask about more than 8 treatments I ask my onc about that and he said they have done many studies about all of this and he thinks 8 is the right number. Some of the other tx's are lower dosage weekly treatments that are more numerous but add up to the same amount. Hope that helps with that question.
Anyone is free to send me a private message if they would like to talk further.
Praying for us all and sending good thoughts out. LOL,gin2ca
0 -
Wherria: My dogs are my babies too, so I'll certainly keep you in my thoughts and hope for a good outcome.
Good luck to all who are having scans today. I pray for all of us ladies daily.
I'm off for a Muga scan (the heart thing) to make sure I'm fit for chemo.
Regina
0 -
Wherria - I'm so sorry to hear that your dog is going through this, in addition to you. I do understand how dogs become like children, and you want to do anything for them. I wish I could have a dog, but the building I live in doesn't allow them.
My husband is out of town for work most of the time too. I really wanted him to stay the entire week this past week, but he is on his way home now. It is hard to be alone.
As far as the constipation goes. I generally have a real problem with it, and I took Senna (a "natural" stool softener) as soon as I started the anti-nausea medication. It worked like a charm - I pooped every day, until today (Day 5) when I had diarrhea. You win some, you lose some, I guess.
I hope your pain from the Neulasta shot is going away. I took Advil throughout, but it didn't seem to help much until yesterday afternoon. I may ask for something stronger, too. Even though I really don't want to take any more really strong drugs - I just think about what I'm putting my poor body through with all of the medications I'm pumping through it!
ALL - I live in California and all my friends want me to look into medical marajuana. Has anyone here ever tried it? You can PM me if you don't feel comfortable writing about it in a more open forum.
Hope today is a successful and feeling-good day for everyone!!!
0 -
Hi Lisa,
I have a friend who went through chemo for stage 3 colo-rectal cancer 3 years ago. I don't think medical marijuana is available here in TX but, I know she used the real stuff and it really helped her with the SE's.
In my opinion, it can't be any worse than the other stuff we are putting into our bodies. If it helps and is available to you then by all means take it.
Take care,
0 -
Wherria- For me I have found prune juice works just as well. 4-6 oz taken at bedtime and by morning things are a movin. I like that it is something that is natural, moves through the whole GI tract and not just and insert. I also sometimes add blueberries which help things along - and they are very good for you. Hope you can avoid constipation altogether.
Sorry to hear about your beloved dog Bixby. He sounds like a first born child and thus very close to you. I will keep him in my prayers.
Feeling ok this morning. Chasing after my 1 yr old so am not focusing so much on all the aches pains that are probably there. A little lightheaded, but hopeing that is just rememdied with some food. Took some Norco for pain management from dbl max and sleept through the nite. I still have one drain in so Tylenol is just doesn't cut it right now. I get the Nuelasta shot today so will probably take another Norco to help for tonite as well.
Hope everyone is holding their own today.
Michelle
0 -
I haven't even started chemo yet and am having trouble keeping up with all the different 'standard ' treatments! I have to agree with those of you who said it just gives us a place to make our own decisions from--since no one knows. But it sure would be nice if they knew!
Regarding the scans, one criteria I used to pick my onc was that he has his own machine. I think if you own a machine like that, you are going to need to keep it working, therefore you are going to send people for every scan you possibly can get paid for. And though I normally avoid doctors like the plauge and I hate every single thing associated with the medical profession......I want to be scanned from now on ... and on a regular basis. The whole thing is such a disorganized mess....I heard three different sizes under which the scan won't show anything anyway.
The terrorist hotel, OMG ROTFL Although I did keep one, it was mostly cause my BS will not do a double in one surgery. So I got the lift/reduction, they are supposed to test what they take out, so-another back up to the mammo/sono/mri/pet that all said all clear for that one.
Those resliant kids.....the girls went out and got breast cancer related tattoos, as did the whole group of their friends.......some of them are not exactly of age, but I don't think I am going to inquire. Some other time, sigh. At least no other Moms called me about their girls.. The boys and their friend have all ordered t-shirts that say 'breast' on them, f/i 'I am a breast man' etc and are making plans about wearing them to school, I don't know where they got money/credit cards, but again, I will think about this later. So they are coping, right?
You ladies who are sparing with the pills, that is pretty brave. I figure they gave them for some reason. It says 'as needed' on the label, it does not say for breast or for place breast used to be......... I am takin' the pills! (and I am not a pill taker either, well---WASN'T, but hey, change is inevitable, right!)
I also have a friend who was diagnosed about 6 weeks before I was and so is about half way through her chemo now, so I swear we are all going to make it.
Anyone want to plan a virtual party for New Years Eve? Will everyone be done with treatment by then? (place picture of confetti and party hats here)
0 -
I would like to have a virtual party for New Years Eve! I think that sounds like a great idea!
I will bring the party blowers and pointed paper hats!
0 -
I'm home - I'm radioactive via injection. Go back in an hour or so for my bone scan then onto the ct scan. Had a minor panic attack at registration....for some reason it all hit me again. There DEFINITELY are the "what the heck am I doing here" moments, aren't there?? Just praying these scans show nothing!0
-
Hello all!!!!!! Your fearless leader is checking in!!!!!!
We have such a nice sandbox and we are all getting along so well and helping each other....I love it!!!!!!!
Welcome to all our new members and I am going to do the update this weekend.
This week has been kind of busy for me so I apologize that I have not been participating more. I do, however, see my onc next week and all of my tests will be starting etc... . It is somewhat of a paradox that the person who started the thread may be the last to start chemo but I will be joining you all and am looking forward to it!
BTW, do not discount the value of metamucil, cranberry and some water! That will help with the regularity business!
Keep smiling...it works!
Liz0 -
Lisasinglem: You look ADORABLE in your new avatar!!!!!!!! Bald looks fantastic on you! What a nice look!!!!!!! Girls, I think this baldness might be more fun than we ever thought!
Liz0 -
catching up- about SSD- i am going to apply at least temp. for $ to pay for all my treatments. my dr told me "a problem halved is a prob solved!" i have been 1/600th it lol! my 1st tx is going on right now so everything is good so far. wherria- i will shave this weekend and ADVICE AWAY GIRL! i also had a panic attack, but i think it was the vicodin that caused it!
0 -
catching up- about SSD- i am going to apply at least temp. for $ to pay for all my treatments. my dr told me "a problem halved is a prob solved!" i have been 1/600th it lol! my 1st tx is going on right now so everything is good so far. wherria- i will shave this weekend and ADVICE AWAY GIRL! i also had a panic attack, but i think it was the vicodin that caused it!
0 -
Ok, Omaz! So far, you and me!
SSD? I thought you could not get that 'till your disbility lasted at least 6 months? My state has a short term disability plan that every one who works is part of. I am working now, I actually was only off the day I had surgery and the next day. Was wondering about during chemo though. Also I know I am not having hardly the amount of treatment that so many of you are having....
0 -
Ladies: I just heard from a friend of mine who was diagnosed in April; she had a large tumor and 1 positive lymph node, an aggressive cancer, so they decided to do chemo first on her and whatever surgery they decide on later. She went for a scan the other day and they said her tumor is completely gone! She was doing the chemo they call the Red Devil, adricymin or whatever. Just thought I'd share this good news. Knowing that chemo actually works should help us get through it when we feel like hell.
Regina
0 -
gin2ca, I love the quote "You don't have to be brave, you just have to show up". Showing up I can do. I think I'm obsessing right now, reading so many posts here. But the unknown terrifies me so I keep reading.
I hope everyone's scans went well today. My oncologist didn't mention that I needed any scans. I did have the Pet scan before surgery.
I love the virtual New Years Eve party idea
I'll be done with chemo by then and hopefully also radiation. It depends on if there is a wait period between the two.Focusing on a completion date helps me. As soon as I got the start date I got out the calendar to have an idea of when all will be over.
Calamtykel, I know what you mean about the "what the heck am I doing here" moments. Sometimes I think I'm still in denial.
I went wig shopping today with a friend, my Mom, and my two daughters. I let my daughters, 7 and 9, choose, although they liked the one I liked best also. It is important to them that I look as much like myself as possible. I think I'll end up wearing a hat or scarf more often than the wig.
I work from home and am planning on working through treatment. I'm a little nervous about that, but I do have quite a bit of sick leave accumulated so I can take the days as I need them. I start back at work on the 16th (my birthday), one week and one day before I start on chemo.
Janice
0 -
Hi Y'all,
I just got in from my first chemo tx. This is really strange I got there and they changed my tx to FAC from FEC stating that they aren't making epirubicin (Ellence) anymore. So they switched it to Adriamycin which I had to come home with a pump and chemo at home until 9am. I was a little put off that my Dr didn't call me to discuss the difference. I will talk with him on Thursday about it. Other than that I am feeling good so far.
Hope everyone is doing well.
Take care,
Mary
0 -
Calamtykel, Finished my scans today also, sending positve vibes to all. The technician that scanned me was so positive it really calmed me. Like you I decided to come home while I became nuclear. I know that all will be fine for both of us and we can get this party started. I feel like someone is going to jump out from behind a bush and tell me this "c" diagnosis was a mistake. Guess not...oh well. Beth
0 -
Hi all,
I'm due for 2nd dose chemo 8-10. First one was 7/27. 3rd & 4th day were the worst for me, however I never vomitted or even had nausea, just TIRED & no appetite, some reflux. Of course I took all the antiemetics as instructed as a precaution. Three days of Emend supplemented with compazine & zofran. These medicines made me very constipated. I'm ready this time, will have stool softeners during & after reading many of the posts today, will drink more water. I'm usually like a camel. How things change...never wore hats either. Getting AC regimen for 4 , then taxol for 4, then radiation. When I was able to eat I experienced Dumpning Syndrome, shortness of breath,palpitations, almost fainting, had to stop eating to lie down. It was really weird, but as the days went on that occurred less & less. The smell of foods never bothered me, even when I had no appetite, in fact they smelled good. I love to eat!!! I lost 6 lbs in one week. Now I'm feeling like I could work but I have neutropenia & they told me to wear a mask. I'm a nurse & am going to play it safe & stay home. Mentally, I am having trust issues with my Drs. I know it's in my best interest to get over this mistrust. They say nurses make the worst patients, but is it because we don't just go with the flow?? We know what questions to ask.
Any way, all these blogs are fantastic. I laughed & cried reading them. It just sucks to have to go throught this. I wish everyone a safe chemo journey.
0 -
hi everyone. I am just back from a few stolen days in Florida with the family. I was able to almost forget all that is going on in my life staring at white beaches and blue water. Came home for Doctor's appointment today with oncologist. Had lab work and discussed upcoming chemo. I will have Muga and Bone scan early Monday morning and Port placement around 11:00. The following Monday (16th) I will have first chemo. I still do not know if I have been accepted into clinical trial for Tykerb but know I will get Herceptin at the minimum, in addition to Taxotere and Carboplatin. I can understand your near panic attack, calamtykel. I am just praying I don't turn into one of those poor Kiddie types who have to be dragged into school the first day. My "run/flee" reaction is really trying to kick in. I have a great doc here in Nashville and he spends lots of time explaining and talking. I have a little cold probably due to going out in the heat and inside to the cool so frequently in Florida. Doctor R says he can take care of my cancer but unfortunately can't do anything for my cold! We all think after fluids and resting up this weekend all will be fine. I am so grateful for this topic. I have so many great friends and family but no one really can understand like you gals. I took a minute and explained to my grandsons (6 and 11) who live about two hours away that the next time they see me I probably will not have hair because of the strong medicine the doctors are going to give me. The 6 year old promised not to laugh. And I got big hugs and lots of kisses afterwards. I feel like I get hugs here too. Thanks so much
0 -
Hi Lizzymack and Everyone- I will join the August group too, maybe around the 23rd, after port placement, etc. I also have to decide which of two options to go with - one is more standard, the other is a month shorter.
I'm happy for Jet! I had the OncotypeDX test and got 21 - that feels sort of like a B- or C+. I guess I'd rather go through chemo now than regret skipping it later.
Best wishes to all of you!
0 -
My day turned into a SUPER long one! The CT scan took forever waiting! But I met a really nice lady about my age in the waiting room, drinking her "orange shake" too. She went through chemo already and will have surgery soon - brca positive. Same doctor and oncologlist as me. It was fun to sit and talk to someone who'd been through the whole wig thing, etc. She had on only a baseball cap with no wig and i thought she looked so cute!
So as I'm talking, the tech from nuclear medicine comes down with my scans and gives them to me. Tells me my doctor will get the report but to take these to her, or something like that. So then I get home later, and I start to panic. Like why..did she give me my films? Seems sort of odd that I'd take bone scans to an oncologlist if there's nothing wrong! But I don't know - does the tech read the films? Or a doctor?? Not sure how nuclear medicine works! So now I'm thinking about that. Strike that: now I'm "worrying" about that.
Then with all the dye and crap my stomach has just been icky. I'm trying to drink a lot to flush it all out. That dye they inject during the ct scan is weird! My commerade in the waiting room warned me that it will feel like I'm peeing myself - that it gets all hot down there. She was right! Bizarre!
0 -
I'm so happy to see that we have gotten through this first week of August and it looks like we are all doing reasonably well. Congrats to those ladies who started their chemo this week, I am sending you positive thoughts for a relaxing and side-effect free weekend! My chemo starts next Friday and I am suddenly finding myself thinking "this is my last weekend and week before chemo, better get as much as I can done now!". I know that everyone says chemo is very "doable" but I am feeling a bit freaked out about not knowing yet which days will be good and which days I will feel bad. I like to be able to plan ahead so this uncertainty about the next few weeks has me feeling anxious.
Calamtykel - Try not to be freaked out about the tech giving you your scans (easier said than done I know). Scans are typically read by a doctor (usually radiologist) but sometimes other doctors like to see the scan images themselves. When I got my PET scan, they told me that my doctor would be able to see the images right away over the computer system and that he would get the radiologist's official report within a couple of days. So for them it was just set up through the computer system for my onc to see the scans. Your place I guess doesn't have that setup so they just gave you the scans. It may be that normally they send all scans to the requesting doctor by courier or something and the tech just decided to save a step and give them to you because you were still there.
Wherria - I totally sympathize about your dog being sick and I hope he gets well soon! Our animals are very attuned to us and I know what you mean about feeling like his illness is linked with yours. About a month ago my cat started limping and meowing in pain. After two weeks of repeated vet visits including x-rays and medications, we were finally referred to another vet who realized that somehow the blood flow had been cut off partway down her leg and the bottom part of her leg had died. The vet still has no idea how it happened (she is an indoor cat so can't get into too much trouble) but she ended up having to have her leg amputated last week. Fortunately she is doing really well and moving surprisingly well for only having 3 legs. So I hope that things get resolved soon for you and your dog.
0 -
Jsw: So sorry to hear about your poor cat. It's so hard when our pets get sick. They are helpless and depend on us, and it can't help but break your heart!
The good news from yesterday was that I took Bixby (my dog) to the vet first thing in the morning, and his blood counts were still below the normal range, but they had improved from the last time. He is still weak and starving all the time from all the steroids he's on (60 mg of Prednisone for a 54-il dog!), but at least he's moving in the right direction!
I want to thank all of your who have responded so sympathetically about my dog. It has meant a lot to me that you all have understood what a big deal this is to me. I know that many of your are having to figure out how to handle br ca with your children, and I can only imagine how hard that must be, but I don't have children, can't, and I know it's not near the same, but my dogs are like my babies. And especially Bixby. We got him as our tenth anniversary present (we get a new dog every fifth anniversary), and he and I have always had a really special bond. I don't go anywhere without him, and he isn't nearly as attached to anyone as he is to me.
Anyway, that was good news, and a relief, but the day got worse from there.
After the vet, I had an appt. with my therapist, but I couldn't get there in time, so I just talked to her on the phone, and it was kind of intense. Then I just went home to rest, as I was starting to feel pretty bad. The bone pain from the Neulasta shot has really stayed with me, all my long bones, femurs, shins, and all my ribs, front and back. And I was developing a major headache, which is rare for me. As I was on my way home, I started having more trouble swallowing because my mouth sores started to get really bad. I'd had them since Wed., but yesterday for some reason, they started getting much worse, and started moving down into my esophagus. I had to pull over at two different stores on the way home to use their bathrooms (diarrhea), was getting nauseous, and the muscles in my back which have been hurting from the taxotere, started really cramping up. I don't know why it all seemed to get worse on day 5 five around the same time (an infection maybe?), but by the time I got home, I was in so much pain I was almost vomiting. So I took some anti-nausea meds and some Tylenol and lay down for a while. It helped a little, so I went out again, can't remember where, but it all started coming back. So I went home again, called my onc's office and told them what was going on, especially about the leper's colony that was growing in my mouth by that point. I was told a nurse would call me back "shortly." Almost two hours later, she called. I described everything. She wanted to know if I had a fever and I said no, but that I had been taking two extra strength Tylenol every four hours, so who knows if I would have had a fever or not. She asked if I could come in at 2:30 for the nurse practitioner to look at my mouth. So I did. Turned out, at the doc's office, I did have a fever, despite just taking my last dose of Tylenol about an hour before. She said my mouth was severe, but didn't look infected. She did a blood count, and said my WBC's and platelets were low, but not alarmingly so, even though it was a little bit early for them to have dropped even as much as they did. So a little leukopenic, but she didn't seem worried. She gave me a scrip for Miracle Mouthwash and a relatively mild pain reliever (Tramadol), or at least a low dose of is, for my muscle and back pain. And she said that my onc. is on call this weekend and if the Miracle Mouthwash wasn't enough to page her, and that there are other things they can give me -- I wondered why she didn't just do that then because she said my mouth looked so severe!
So I had to drive back to the pharmacy to get the scripts filled, which made me kind of cranky, because I really didn't feel up for doing it, but, my husband is working is Chicago on a movie set, and my best friend who would have bee happy to help was also in the city. We have a lot of friends, but very few of them are local, so that just left me. I was miserable driving to and from the pharmacy, and think I even got a little weepy while I was waiting for my scripts.
Well since pain meds always make me nauseous, I went home and took a Kytril, waited a few minutes the took the Tramadol, rinsed my mouth out (I don't know about others who have tried the Miracle Mouthwash, but it didn't do much more for me than the baking soda/saltwater rinse they recommend. But I did it a few times. She had told me to swallow it since the sores were growing down into my throat, which I did once, but it didn't help a lot, and I didn't want to be zonked out by the Benadryl that's in the mouthwash, so mostly I just swished. I should have eaten something, but my mouth hurt too badly to open it wide enough to get food in there, so I sipped on an Ensure after it got to be room temperature (easier on the sores that way). It felt like a very lonely day. The sores didn't get much better, but I kept swishing with the two rinses )I had also tried Biotene -- that's what I've been using for years due to dry mouth from other meds -- but it the nurse had told me the baking soda/saltwater rinse would do a better job neutralizing the ph balance in my mouth, and I agree that it helped more yesterday at least than the Biotene.
Fortunately, my husaband got home not long after I did (a rare occurrence, as most of the time when he is working -- he is a free-lance Art Director and Production Designer in Chicago's film industry -- he usually gets home around the time I go to bed), so that was good. He brought flowers with him too. He says a fresh bouquet each week or every several days throughout chemo!
But by the time he got home, I could tell the Tramadol wasn't working. It may have helped with the bone pain, but I couldn't see straight my back was hurting so bad. I've always been an athlete, and someone who is very physically active, not afraid to lift, carry, or anything else really, but I have never experienced muscle pain like this before. It brought tears to my eyes. Had to take another anti-nausea pill (Compazine), and just lie still. I managed to get down a little bit of mashed potatoes (a good, though not protein-rich food, soft, easy to tolerate food I recommend for those times when you just can't figure out what to eat.) I was starting to feel a little better, mostly from lying absolutely flat in my bed, but I still had aches all over and started feeling around them. That when I discovered about a nickel-sized, palpable lump under my right arm, (the good side). I have felt soreness there before , but have never been able to feel it, until last night. It's strange, since this whole CA Dx started, I have not really felt scared. Just about a few possible side effect, but never about the cancer actually having the potential to kill me, even when my docs were cautioning me that my cancer has some ominous features. I still haven't really been scared about the disease itself. But I felt this lump, and my dh was lying next to me messing around on his computer, and I just started to cry (first time that's happened except when I've cried fro him or for my parents). All the sudden, it struck me, "I know this CA's in my lymph system; I know my onc has told me she's not seeking for a cure, and that I will always carry a risk of recurrence or mets, above and beyond the general population; I know that she's told me we're aiming for remission here, and I've handled all that news fine, but this time ladies, I got scared.
I know a swollen lymph node can mean a multitude of things, and given how badly I felt yesterday, it could just be my body dealing with whatever is going on inside it, but I'm scared anyway. One of the things that has been an issue for me is weight loss. I've lost a fair amount of weight since this all started, and just the other day, my surgeon told me that a recurrence or a new CA site would be easy for me to feel because of my thinness, so part of me is wondering, has this lump been there all along and is now palpable because I've lost more weight?
I had a PET scan, but I don't know how reliable that is since it didn't pick up the lymph involvement on the original brca side. No one ever did an ultrasound of the right side. So, I could go on, but the bottom line is I'm alarmed. My dh wants to page my onc this weekend, but I told him that nothing would happen until Mon. anyway when she would have a chance to examine me.
This morning, my mouth is ever so slightly better, but the back pain came back once I started getting up and moving around. I've just taken an anti-nausea pill and pain pill. I hope they work.
On the up side, if I can get out and about, I'm getting my head shaved today. A little nervous, but mostly feeling pretty darn good about it.
0 -
It's funny, most of the accounts you read from people going through chemo today emphasize how it's almost always easier than people expect. I went into this expecting it not to be so bad, at least not this early, but my week since Day 2 (Tues.) has been a lot harder than I thought it would be. Anybody else having that experience?
0 -
Wherria,
You are in my thoughts and prayers...
Mmahle46
You will do fine at your appointment this morning...
Thanks everyone for your spiritual and mental support... Keep messaging me, and I will you...
I have been home since Wednesday by myself... Someone checked in on me yesterday for a half hour...
Today is day five... I am not totally myself, by no means... However, I am not feeling as bad as I thought... Diarrhea and vomiting is Nonexistent... God is merciful... One down...
I am hydrating, hydrating... I am using Biotene for precaution measures... My hyperactive self is resting ( the body is demanding it) ... I am taking Tums when I experience heartburn... I have not had any consistent muscle aches...With so many meds, it is hard to decipher which side effect is from what med or shot...
Yesterday, food start smelling and tasting different...
I need to get some clinical notes written... So, I pray I can sit up all day tommorow...
0 -
Mmahle: I'm glad you're not feeling as bad as you thought you would. I hope you can get out today and do something pleasurable, even if it's only for a little while. Despite how badly I have felt all week, it has helped to get out and go about at least some of my usual activities. Too much time at home, especially alone, makes me sink into depression. And, even when I'm not feeling well, getting out and doing something reassures me that CA is not going to disable me or run my life. Now, I have to make time in between things to go home and rest and try to get ahead of the se's a little. I may have done too much this week and paid a price, but I don't really think that's why I've been feeling so poorly. I think the se's would be happening anyway, but I need to be careful not to overdo it.
Thanks for your prayers. You are in mine as well.
Did I ask this already? I don't remember (I'm having trouble remembering things, concentrating, and coming up with words that I'm about to say, but then fly right out of my head before I say what I was going to say) but is anyone else doing OT or PT during chemo? Thurs. I had to cancel my OT appt. and the OT therapist sounded kind of put out. I explained that I'd had my first infusion this week and was not feeling well. You'd think she would understand this. After all she works with Lymphedema/cancer patients all the time. I had another OT therapist who was wonderful and very understanding, but now she is on medical leave herself for elbow surgery.
I'm sorry for her, but I'm sorry for me too because she was so much better than the person who's taking her patients for her. Oh well, small stuff, right?I'm glad it's Saturday, because it means I will have my dh with me all day, but I wish I didn't have to wait until Monday to get this lump under my other arm checked out.
Good luck today everyone!
0 -
HI all---I have been in a holding pattern for a couple of weeks waiting for my Surgeon to confirm if any additional surgery required. Well, no more surgery--wooo hooo. Seems he took out all "Level 1" nodes and no more required. I called Oncologist office and have appt with Oncologist on Monday morning and should start chemo (FEC-T) next week. I'm not sure if I am "mentally prepared" for this--thought I would be waiting until possibly the end of August--but at least things are moving. I have bone scan/US and genetic testing (because of 2 cancer diagnosis this year) in two weeks. I feel like I am constantly at the doctor as it is--I can only imagine once chemo starts. I am scanning through previous posting to look for those suggestions against SE--I will do a little shopping this weekend to get everything I need.
0
