TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP
Comments
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Correction: The Dexamethasone is 4 mgs twice a day, the day before and day 2- day 3 and day 4, they give me some in my chemo cocktail also (day 1) I wonder if that is why my symptoms were worse starting day 5? hmmmm. something to ask my MO on Wed.
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Bucky: The nutritionist at our center told me to try prunes so I start eating 3-4 per day the week before chemo and the week after and that seems to be working for me. We have the same steroid amounts.
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Bucky: BTW, good luck Wednesday. #2 was the easiest for me so far.
Sounds like you had a great afternoon with the kids.
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bucky317 I always took a probiotic that works as a stool softener (still do) and ate dried apricots daily. I started taking Metamucil starting at night the day of chemo and stopped 5 days when things started to move at a normal speed. At least that's what worked for me.0
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500mg of magnesium oxide will keep things moving Arlene...start the day before TX and go a few days....you can get a whole bottle of pills for like $4..worked like a charm for me.
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Arlene A and Lago: Thanks so much for your BM advise. I have a big container of prunes in my pantry, will pick up some dried apricots too for variety. Nice to hear that # 2 was the easiest for you Arlene, hope mine is easy too!!!
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To those of you talking about how bad 3 and 4 hit you and are afraid of 5 and 6. For me, #4 was the absolute worst one. I dreaded #5 and thought it would be even worse as the docs all tell you chemo is cumulative, so I braced for it being just awful. Crazy thing, #5 and #6 were nowhere near as bad as #4. I had read that on many boards, but it took it happening for me to believe it. We are all different, but many before me and then me had it happen that way.
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Oh great Michcon. I'll prepare myself for next Monday (#4). Since I'll have the Herceptin back too, guess I'll notice it more as I did with #1. Oh well, what 'cha gonna do!
I'm as ready as ever! Hoping since I had an extra 3 days this cycle, it MIGHT be better.
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Opinions needed. Finished one year of herceptin, 33rads, 12weekly taxols w/herceptin, 4dd A/C every two weeks, lumpectomy. While I am triple positive, my ER/PR is only 10%. Trying to decide if tamoxifen will be worth it, given the known side effects. It's only 10%. Anyone else been faced with this dilemma?
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grammytotheboys I'm not sure what I would do but remember if the SE are that bad you can always quit. There are plenty of women that get minimal to almost no discernible SEs.0
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Bucky - good luck when you shave your head, it's not that bad. I went with a no 2 Buzz. When my DH came home that day his face broke out into a big smile - I'll never forget that day. I just loved his reaction.
My Nov-09 chemo girls all thought that no4 TCH would be the worst but it didn't turn out that way for me.
Now 12 months on - it's all a distant bad memory - so take heart, you will get through it and move beyond. I actually smile when I see my full head of hair in the mirror every morning - even though I don't like the curls. It's so nice to be me again.
((((((HUGS))))))))
Sue
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grammytotheboys - I am only 12% ER+, and my onc put it this way - positive is positive. I am taking Tamox, and I have NO side effects. I agree with lago - maybe give it a try and see if it affects you negatively, and then think about stopping.
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Thanks for the encouragement Lago and Saralmom. I seem to hear about SE's everywhere I read and hear about Tamox. I still have residual neuropathy in left arm from taxol, and I also have RA, so very cautious about extra problems . Positive support is good to hear!
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Lago I agree on the smoking being a bad addiction.. My girlfriend just quit using the Chantix for 1 month. Her DH was a smoker and got a huge neck tumor that spread to his tonsils, so she had a plenty of motivation, but I tell her all the time how proud I am of her. She is my walking buddy and we are both challenging ourselves toget healthy. I had a friend that I only see in the summer, felllow boaters, and she was telling me how great i look, and I always assume its the wig, mine has great highlights that you would never get in a salon, but I also have to remember that I have had half of my front removed, diep with reduction on unaffected side, so really looks like I have lost a lot of weight.
I loved the steroids as they made my skin look like porcelin! On the other hand the herceptin makes me break out. UGH
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susieq58--so nice to hear that #4 wasn't bad for you. I have just started feeling somewhat normal again and tomorrow I will get #2, but I hope I am more prepared this time! At least I know pretty much what to expect. (I hope)
I am kind of looking forward to the #2 Buzz, my hair is very thin now ( in a ponytail) and I am tired of picking up my hair all over the house. Although my boys r quite amazed when they can pull some of my hair out. I have two wigs already (one human hair and one synthetic with a baseball cap.) My boys had them on last night and OMG did we laugh!!! My eight year old looked like a troll doll!! I want the chemo curl!!! LOL
Thank you for the encouragement, it is always nice to hear from someone who is finished with their treatment and feels well again.
(((HUGS)))
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grammytotheboys I too was very worried about SE from reading this forum Remember people here are going to come to complain more than post that they are having no problems… and that is for all postings on the internet. I actually do know people that are having no SE from tamoxifen and technically I don't think I'm having any SE from Anastrozole. Yes I do believe my night flashes have stopped.
This forum is really helpful but don't let it get you in a panic. I was also scared to death of getting LE. Well I got LE and you know what, it's just mild LE. I can live with this. Having LE is much better than cancer.
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grammytotheboys - I have been on tamoxifen for about 2 months now and the only thing I notice is increased apetite so far and that may have nothing to do with the tamoxifen! I also was worried about LE, I also got LE and have learned how to manage it. As lago said, having LE is much better than cancer!0
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Carberry-Read your post this a.m., went to take a shower, and thought "Oh my God, I so don't look good. I have no breasts, a huge scar, a port, and no hair...oh let's throw overweight onto that". But the more I thought about it, I realize, people do think I look good, because when most people hear that someone has cancer, I think they expect that person to be laying in bed sick, or at the very least looking sick. When they see me out and about, smiling and making the most of the situation I'm in, they do think I look good. I guess I'd rather have them hug me and tell me I look good rather than avoiding me because they don't know what to say. My brother came home from TN, and my niece is coming home on leave from HA because I think they need to physically see me to know I'm really okay, and if that's what they need to help them through my diagnosis then I will happily welcome their visits.
Honestly though, there have been times I've wanted to grab the stick you mentioned and poke a few people
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bucky - my DH buzzed my thinnish hair after tx#2 with a 1/2 inch guage on the clipper. Be careful not to run the clipper directly on your scalp because it may actually hurt. Some more fell out over the next several days but none after that. What was left has now started to grow and I am growing some new hair as well between tx#4 and #5. I am on to #6 and final on Thurs. I put a little tiny butterfly barrette in it the other day and made my DH and DD laugh so hard they were crying!
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SpecialK-I too had my hair cut short after #2 because it was coming out in handfulls, and then some more fell out after the cut, but now I'm not losing any. I'm wondering if I should have cut it in a pixie cut instead of so short. I was just so tired of finding hair all over the place. I have very short on the sides and spikey on top. It is very thin, but definitiely there. Hind sight is 20/20 right? At least I'll be cool this summer. It sure takes less time to get ready in the a.m. WOW!
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kqteaches--I hear ya! I've been second-guessing the buzz cut too. I still have a very thin, but full covering of hair. I don't think it would have been lovely, but maybe it would have been enough. Or it could have looked really sad.
I have to get off my own back and remember that I would have hated the hair raining all over the house. I could have easily ended up with bald patches anyway. It's done and I haven't spent any time since the buzz worrying about how much hair is left.0 -
Ah Iago, you have such great colour in your hair. No one would have to know exactly why your hair was that short. Mine, at about that length, stands straight up! And I lost anything that had any colour to it so it adds nothing but a sense of fluff. I remind myself of an albino baby orangutan.
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Pansmith I colored it. My hair came in with lots and lots of gray on the sides (Paulie Walnuts). also my hair was dark brown. The part that wasn't gray came in black. My eyebrows came in black too. I might be crazy but I think my eyebrows are starting to get my old color back.0
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lago-You look beautiful at all stages!
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Happy Tuesday everyone:
Bucky: Good luck with your shave and #2 tomorrow.
Special K: The barrett makes me smile too. Congrats on #6 this week. You must be so excited.
Lago: You are so right in that most come to the blogs to vent so you are going to hear all the horror stories rather than the good stories. I have two friends one who took Tamoxifen and no side effects and one on Anastrozole and no side effects.
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I am beyond excited - kind of a weird feeling because I know I have to endure the yucky period before I start feeling better, but excited nonetheless!!! Also - my hair seems to be growing and it won't be long before I have my left TE back in place so I can stop wearing this @#$& prosthesis!
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Special K-- Thanks for clipper advice,I def will make sure my DH is soft with the clippers. Although the way some of you did not lose all your hair, geez do I hold out for awhile and do the Donald Trump come over. (don't think so) I shall see ,my DH has been out of town till tonight will let you all know!! Also CONGRATULATIONS on your 6th and final session!!! Yahoo!!! and your hair growing back already!!! I thought it didn't start growing back till about 4 weeks after last tx? Kudos to you !!! you are so lucky!!!
pasmithx2: albino baby orangutan? too cute and funny!!!! that will probably be me too!!!
Lago: you look beautiful with or with out hair!! and love the color!!! Your hair came in fantastic!!
Arlene: Thanks for the luck! I just took my 1st dose of steroids a few hours ago and will take the second dose before bed. No sleep for me tonight. Maybe I will rearrange my closet. ha ha ha
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Bucky - I got my hair buzzed a couple of weeks after the 1st tx. I didn't wait as some strands were already coming out. My hairdresser did it for me for free and gave me a glass of wine to drink while they did it. They turned my back to the mirror so I couldn't watch. They were so sweet - complimenting me on the shape of my head and saying how nice it looked. It was certainly a nice experience considering what they were doing. They continued to give me touch up buzzes for free during the months of treatment.
Sue
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I forgot to add - I had my hairdresser cut my hair short before it fell. My hair was rather long so I had an "underhair" made by the lady at www.hatswithhair.com. I had all the hair cut off in 8" ponytails and sent it in and had the piece made. I can wear it under hats of all kinds, or scarves. It is much cooler for summer (it is hot here in Florida!) and I look like myself when I wear it - as opposed to my wig. I did not need to buzz my hair off until day 24 - I made it through 2 chemo sessions before I had to. My DH manned the clippers - after asking for weeks if he could, and smiling like a maniac!. He spent 28 years in the Air Force and I had cut his hair with those clippers many times. When he finally did shave it, he became very quiet. He had to run errands later and came back with an armful of flowers. It was much harder for him than either of us thought it would be. Thanks for the congrats on my final tx! I don't know why the rest of the hair never fell out, I def didn't have enough to get away with leaving my head uncovered. Also, I am one of the few that has had to shave my legs through chemo, and I never lost the menopause mustache either! Weird, huh?0
