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Radiation recovery

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  • RunFree16
    RunFree16 Member Posts: 649
    edited July 2013

    GiGiL, that is so hard to take about Cole.  Poor little guy, my goodness.  I hope the specialist knows what to do, and if it's surgery, I hope that makes it right.

    Kate, big congratulations on being done with half your chemos!  You have a whole posse waiting breathlessly to hear what the urologist says.  That's really wonderful news about your skinny leg.  Something is obviously working.  I suppose you won't have all the answers today, but at least a start on them.  I've got my fingers crossed for you.

    Bunkie, that was great news about the house not needing to be gutted the way the friend-contractor said.  I think sometimes people get carried away with "well, if we're going to do this RIGHT...."  But you don't need it to be perfect, just inspectable so you can skedaddle.  I'm curious to hear what the realtor says.

    My skin looks OK these days and the last bit of scaliness came off the nipple today (I helped it gently with a towel, eek).  The itching is much better, fortunately.  But my breast seems a tad swollen and heavy.  Maybe the heat and humidity, which are really hard to take.  I guess I should get back to my LE massage.  I got an email this morning from the surgeon's office saying it's time to schedule my first 6-month checkup, with mammo.  I thought about how several of you had felt resistance at going in for those follow-ups, so I just called fast without letting myself think about it too much.  Is it bad luck that the appointment is on 9/11?  OK, of course not.  That one and the MO follow-up on 9/9 will both be done before my big birthday the following week.  Therefore it all has to be beautiful nothing-to-report news.

  • SAB
    SAB Member Posts: 1,121
    edited July 2013

    Runfree, it will be a great birthday gift to yourself.



    Hey Kate, after hearing about your skinny leg I'm hoping for excellent news!

  • rmlulu
    rmlulu Member Posts: 1,501
    edited July 2013

    RunFree - coal for Christmas so...Birthday GOLD!

    Here's to great test results...good karma:)



    Kate - expect great results for you too!

  • katehudson25
    katehudson25 Member Posts: 1,939
    edited July 2013

    Runfree, Sab, and Cindy thanks so much for the support.

    My doctor was thrilled today when he examined my leg and tummy and saw no leg swelling, and the hard distended tummy is gone. He is hoping the lung nodule has shrunk. I am having the CT scans tomorrow, and Friday I see my urologist. I won't find out any results until Wednesday July 24. I don't want the urologist to tell me his findings in case it is bad news. I prefer to hear everything from my MO when I see him that Wednesday. Regarding my low blood count he thinks I am mildly anemic, because my red blood cell count is low. This is caused by chemo, and he thinks the 2 weeks off of chemo will help to correct this, but if not I may have to take meds. I have been feeling exhausted and a little out of breath lately, and he thinks the anemia is causing this. Even though he originally said my cancer was inoperable he now thinks there is a small chance to get a neo bladder. Of course he won't know until after the CT scans, and after my urologist sees the results of the ct scans to see if this is feasible. 

    Runfree 9/11/01 was an unlucky day, but 9/11/13 is going to be a good luck day for you

    xoxo,

  • joan811
    joan811 Member Posts: 1,981
    edited July 2013

    Hi to my friends here...DH in TX and it's a bit too quiet....DD called tonight and I talked to Charlotte and Caroline and I really miss them...if they were not moving, they would be out here on the week ends...DD finished her job at NBC and will start in Boston area on Monday.  No moving plans yet...but they had an offer on their house.  I wrote a post last night and somehow it did not send...but still here ...

    Thanks Sew, Cindy, Runfree, Josie, SAB, others, for sharing my relief over a good 2 year report.
    Kate, so glad you are BC free...  I wish this were all that is going on for you.
    Glad your Monday chemo is behind you.

    I was away in DC for 4 days. I drove alone and it was over 5 hours down and over 6 hours back (heavy rain).  I had a great visit with the grandsons (8, 4)

    Wednesday is my last day of work until the end of August.  Tuesday I did not have to get up early but I did have to clean up for my cleaner who insisted on coming in 90+ degree heat (no central AC here)....later I took a long walk on the beach.  Sew, on summer days, I agree that retirement would be so nice but it’s not in the near future.

    Saturday is my DD#2 40th BD!  I still don't know what to get her....she has everything.  Maybe a day at a spa.

    Next week I head out to western CO and eastern UT (Arches and Canyonlands NP)for a geology course with other teachers who I may or may not know.   I hope it isn't blazing hot...I am going a day early and plan to go rafting in Westwater Canyon.  I hope my tired body can keep up with what my head thinks it can do!  I have been exercising a bit and eating better...and lost 5 lbs. Hope it stays off!
    I planned this trip 2 years ago and had to cancel due to BC dx 10 days before my flight. 

  • katehudson25
    katehudson25 Member Posts: 1,939
    edited July 2013

    Joan so glad you will have time off. Enjoy your trip

    xoxo,

    Kate

  • joan811
    joan811 Member Posts: 1,981
    edited July 2013

    Thinking of all of you...I read back a few pages...
    Brookside, glad you remembered your BD and got in that extra celebrating.  Do we get another cake??
    Josie, my cancer center constantly cancels and reschedules my appointments and it does make me a little crazy.  When I went last week, I also put my stress level way up there...Also due to personal issues, not BC.   I remember my breast was so large after rads, and it went down pretty steadily...then got tender and lumpy but looks normal.  Your daughter’s words are very touching. And so is the story of your FIL barbecue-ing.  There are so many moments to treasure in life.

    Bunkie, it must feel great to get rid of some of the things you really dn’t need.  Sorry you had to go through that vertigo again.  Thanks for your kind words about my little Gds.

    Gigi, sounds like retail therapy is just what Maya needed.  It is a good sign that she is actually OK with staying awhile longer.

    Runfree, I had a weird moment when my irradiated nipple area looked strange (dirty, like something stuck to it) so I rubbed off the dark stuff and it was all my nipple skin...to this day the pigment has not returned.  If someone had told me that would happen, I would have fainted.  But it was uneventful.
    My daughter got married on 9/11 in 2004; there are only so many days on the calendar, and you will do fine!  And, birthdays are everything...so start planning!

    Kate, oh, I can only hope and pray for you that you will have a good report.  It would be amazing if you could get the surgery; but one day at a time.  It is true that anemia causes shortness of breath...I once had a very low blood cell count and felt weak.    About that leg....I think you should get some Angelina Jolie fashions to show off the new slim!!!

    Hugs to all, and to anyone new...this is the best place for information, BC support, sharing life's ups and downs, and collecting smiles!

  • SAB
    SAB Member Posts: 1,121
    edited July 2013

    Joan, glad to hear you had a nice visit in DC. I am pretty jealous of your upcoming trip to Colorado, so enjoy it and make sure you report back so I can channel your adventurous spirit!

  • joan811
    joan811 Member Posts: 1,981
    edited July 2013

    Thanks, Kate; thanks SAB. I have taken the course before and couldn't take it all in at once.  It's an active trip, but I do not do well in heat, so am hoping for a cool-down! 

  • RunFree16
    RunFree16 Member Posts: 649
    edited July 2013

    Joan, so glad you checked in, and I'm also glad you're going to get a little time off.  This trip is a big deal!  It means, doesn't it?, that you're able to rewind in a way and declare that the BC diagnosis will not stop you, doggone it.  Of course it's not exactly a rewind, and we never step in the same river twice (sorry for the mixed metaphor).  But I would think it would feel important to go back to what you were going to do when you were diagnosed and say, "No way, BC, I WILL go on this trip!"  We'll hope for the best about the heat.  I don't do well in it either.  It's so hard to be missing your daughters and granddaughters.  It must be a good job your daughter got in Boston, so good for her--but a loss for you. 

    That's interesting about the "dirty" nipple skin.  The outer edge of my nipple looks darker and dirty, and it looks a little odd.  There were some yellow scaly spots too, right on the tip, and I wasn't sure if it a was build-up of aloe gel or dead skin.  I started using my regular moisturizer on it instead of aloe about a week ago, and gently rubbing it with a washcloth in the shower (which I hadn't done before), and sometimes using the edge of a fingernail to lift up the scaly bits.  Several came right off, small, like the size of sesame seeds.  This was the last little bit, and it was small but a bit bigger, like the size of a lentil.  It was sore earlier when I tried, but yesterday it was ready.  What's left under those areas is normal and pink, inside the tanner rim.  More of a curiosity than anything else, at the moment. 

    Thanks, Joan and Kate, for the encouraging words about my 9/11 appointment.  I expect the RO's office will be calling to set one up too, maybe sooner.  I thought I'd be seeing the BS in October, not September.  By October, I'll really be in the swing of the semester and I'll have lots of distraction, so that would sort of be better....  Oh well.  I'm going to stay as mellow as I can.  There is always plenty of other stuff to think about.

    Kate, I am thrilled to hear how encouraged and encouraging your MO is!  What wonderful news!  Sorry about the anemia, but at least it's nothing worse and maybe it will turn around during your chemo vacation.  We will focus on 7/24 for your next MO summit meeting.

  • rmlulu
    rmlulu Member Posts: 1,501
    edited July 2013

    Hi y'all



    Kate - good news:). Will be praying for Wednesday results. Hubby's neobladder was done at USC. RT & fun over the next 2 wks...enjoy time off from chemo...trip to Windy City?



    Joan - yippee time with kiddos, DC, walks on beach, and now trip/course to CO&UT and white water rafting...go girl! Celebrating and grabbing Life:)



    RunFree - yes, you'll be into the new semester buzyness and appointments will just breeze by...or reschedule if the dates bug you. Our brown moles/crusty spots remind me of losing a tooth...waiting, working it, and then yeah ready to come off...put under pillow and look for rad good fairy money! My 1st mammo is midNov...not ready for that squeeze too tender:(



    SAB&Josie - here's to perfect happy helpful angle girls around your homes:)



    Brookside - BDay! So it's a day away but it's aways right to celebrate you:)



    It is cool here in the TX Hill Country...70s with rain for past 4 days :) no complaints meadow is greening up & oaks needed the drink of water. We were planning an escape from heat, but now thinking we can hang on. Headed to airport family returning from 2 months in Costa Rica..my cohorts in crime, dance, exercise, and just play time:) just cleaned house stocked the frig and put fresh flowers on table...she always makes my home say welcome when we return:)



    (((Hugs)))

    Cindy





  • katehudson25
    katehudson25 Member Posts: 1,939
    edited July 2013

    I am fasting this morning for my CT scans in 3 hours. I am going to pig out at Taco bell after the scans lol. As mentioned earlier I won't find out any results of the CT scans or from the urologist until next Wednesday. I don't want my urologist to tell me anything. I rather here it from my MO. In the event that I can have surgery then I would go back to my urologist and discuss it with him. If I was able to have surgery I am hoping it could be at St. John's where my urologist is associated. Keep in mind it is only a small possibility that I can have the surgery.

    xoxo,

    Kate

  • SAB
    SAB Member Posts: 1,121
    edited July 2013

    Cindy that's a sweet welcome!

    In your pocket Kate.

    Hot day, but I'm getting into a hot tub...my hips are protesting all the fun I've been having on the trails and at the gym. Ouch.

  • katehudson25
    katehudson25 Member Posts: 1,939
    edited July 2013

    Ct scans are done Yeah! Urologist Friday, and results of everything in 1 weel. Then I am going to party for 4 days straight before my 6 hour chemo.

    xoxo,

    Kate

  • RunFree16
    RunFree16 Member Posts: 649
    edited July 2013

    Yay Kate!!!  Bet that skinny leg slipped right through that CT machine like buttah.

    I found the other article I had read earlier that points a finger at both radiation and hormonal therapy, in addition to chemo, in issues like brain fog.  I knew I'd read it, but I couldn't place it.  I got a chuckle/eye-roll out of it when I found it:  it's the Memory Loss article on this very website--and I couldn't even remember THAT.  Too silly.  Here it is.  http://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/side_effects/memory_loss  For me it's not remembering conversations more than anything else.

  • BUNKIE10
    BUNKIE10 Member Posts: 670
    edited July 2013

    RunFree _ Thanks for that post. I am really getting bad. I was going to have myself tested for altzeimers but am scared to hear the results. One of my ex employees just got diagnosed. Scary. I have also been reading about the side affects of steroids. That is one there too so I am getting a double dose. The other day I was cooking early before the heat started to build up outside. I finished and turned off the stove.... I thought. I ran out to the store and to get my hair washed. Came back about 90 minutes later to a kitchen filled with smoke and a ruined pan full of collared greens. Had I stayed longer the house would have caught fire. I never do that. Before I leave I always grab my keys last and check the back door and stove if I have been cooking. Now I have a post it note on the front door. My ride came 10 minutes early and I ran out the door. Too much on my mind. After taking care of my mom with her overnight dementia this does scare me.

    Kate - Whoo hoo!!! Done done done. Ok those results are going to be great. In your pocket and party really hard. Thinking of you and your love of Midwest weather. Not today. 101 and 90% humidity. Has been that way for 4 days and we have 2 more left.

    I missed someones birthday. I think it was Brookside. So happy belated. Have to go get stuff ready for my cleaning lady later today. That is awful that I feel the need to get things READY for someone to clean. I need to work on that. She always says my house is not dirty but I can see the difference when she leaves. What she means is my house is not messy. My only messy rooms are the bedrooms upstairs and I clean those.

    Sab - How does the hot tub feel when it is so hot out?

    Joan - Enjoy your vacation. Sounds like fun. Congrats on the 2 year report. I go next month for my 1 year. Scared but hopeful.

  • cherylcr
    cherylcr Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2013

    I am in so much pain. THE pain is down my arm. My last radiation treatment was March 6.32 treatments that almost killed me..I had stage 1lumpectomy on right breast.

    I am an artist. Tried to paint for a long period of time yesterday. Got ready for a show and today I cannot move..Wondering If I need to go to the doctor?My radiologist dismisses anything I say. He says Radiation does not cause pain.

  • BUNKIE10
    BUNKIE10 Member Posts: 670
    edited July 2013

    Cherylcr - Check with your BC surgeon. Yes it can cause pain. My RO said the same thing. I do not think they take into consideration anything that is not textbook sometimes. I had a lot of pain and it got better after I started doing some stretch exercises. That was something they never mentioned to me and it took my PT therapist for something else to tell me.  

  • SAB
    SAB Member Posts: 1,121
    edited July 2013

    Cheryl I'm sorry you experiencing pain. Many of us have had tightness and cording, or nerve damage. The good news is that pt can often help.

  • RunFree16
    RunFree16 Member Posts: 649
    edited July 2013

    Cheryl, I had some really helpful physical therapy for a couple of months.  The therapy addressed lymphedema prevention, cording prevention, and shoulder mobility.  If your RO won't give you a referral to a physical therapist, try a PCP, but also get in touch with your surgeon.  It could be a residue of the surgery as well as the radiation.  My surgeon was a little mellow about it, but fortunately my RO was on it.  You don't really need all your doctors to believe you, just one.  Call today if you can and let us know, if you don't mind, how it turns out.

    Bunkie, I don't wonder you're very concerned about your brain.  Leaving a stove on is scary stuff.  It's so hard to know what normal really is, and then normal-given-what-has-happened, etc.  It sounded as though your mother's dementia was not Alzheimer's, but a horrible mishap during surgery, right?  Does it give you comfort to think it wouldn't therefore be something you'd inherit?  Just having seen it up close would be enough to be very scary.

    Brookside, your birthday is TODAY, is it not???!!!!  If so, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!  (If it was last Thursday, I refer again to the article I linked above.)

  • brooksidevt
    brooksidevt Member Posts: 1,432
    edited July 2013

    Cheryl, I agree with the others--You probably have cording, or perhaps some scar tissue issue, or even a delayed rads reaction.  A lymphedema therapist can help with any and all of these.  I should say can help tremendously.  These people are amazing!  Please call all your providers in whatever order you like until one gives you a lymphedema therapist referral.  As someone else indicated, your breast surgeon probably will want to evaluate your arm also (as ought your RO!).  Have you let your BS know about this problem? 

  • brooksidevt
    brooksidevt Member Posts: 1,432
    edited July 2013

    Bunkie, you did not miss my birthday--it's today.  I'm the one who had the date problem--thought it was last week.  Rads brain.  And thank you so much for the well wishes,everyone!

  • joan811
    joan811 Member Posts: 1,981
    edited July 2013

    Happy Birthday to the VT girl from Brooklyn!  Glad you gave us notice...Laughing

  • joan811
    joan811 Member Posts: 1,981
    edited July 2013

    Kate, glad you are done.  Sending positive thoughts and prayers your way!

    Runfree, LOL you made me smile...I am not surprised about your skin peeling off...It wasn't painful at all for me just a huge surprise.  Lucky for you that you didn't lose the pigment. 
    It is so true that the A.I. drugs bring cognitive impairment.  My MO says "that'snot a SE of this drug"  (wrong!)   Add the stress of rads and for awhile it can be quite challenging to find the right word or remember anything.  I found that when I was taking Crestor (statin) that it was much worse, as was the joint pain.  I do not feel I have any residual SEs from rads except the tender spots and scar tissue which could just be from surgery. I had some cording early on, and Mondors which is inflamed veins in the abdominal area.  It's gone and there was no treatment.

    Thanks for the encouragement for my upcoming trip. 
    Cindy, yes, it is important to me to get to do this...there is a lot of physical stress involved but more hanging around time and time in the car. Last summer I did a "bucket list" trip but this is meaningful to me to reclaim....and my job is paying for a huge chunk of it. 

    I've been eating right and exercising (not enough) as I want to be able to do all the long hikes...the altitude and heat may cause me to say "pass".  I lost 7 lbs.and feel better already. 

    SAB, hope your muscles and joints get soothed!  i can't do 1/10th of what you do!  I'll settle for 1/4 some day...

    I have some things that are bothering me in my life and went to my favorite therapist (without the group)...I know that i am grateful for my health and my life but I need to practice gratitude.  I have been reacting so negatively to work and friend issues...I have to try to take control of my life and just move forward.  Each day is a gift and the problems of life will always be there.

    Bunkie, so so glad you got home in time...I have left things on the stove...and electric stuff on all day...so far,I've been lucky.  Focusing is something I have to choose to do...it no longer is automatic.  We get overloaded and then we do things we wouldn't normally do.

    High heat here today...It's near 100 today.I hope the runways in NYC don't warp! There is a good chance of power outages in NY today. I am not prepared for that!DH flying back from TX (Amarillo) where it was in the 60s and 70s...as Cindy said, TX is cooler this week!  

    Stay cool, everyone!

  • josie123
    josie123 Member Posts: 1,749
    edited July 2013

    Bunkie, I'm sorry you forgot about the stove.I know what you mean about the steroids and memory.Once I was on Advair after a bad viral infection and I was very forgetful.It went away soon after discontinuing the medication.

    Brookside Happy Birthday!!!!!

  • katehudson25
    katehudson25 Member Posts: 1,939
    edited July 2013

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY BROOKSIDE! I hope you have a wonderful day and a fantastic year.

    xoxo,

    Kate

  • katehudson25
    katehudson25 Member Posts: 1,939
    edited July 2013

    Bunkie I am so sorry about your confusion.

    Cheryler I am so sorry about your pain

    Today I had another medical appointment it was for a 2nd. echo test for my heart. The technician said my heart is good. Yeah!

    Tomorroiw is my urologist appointment. Not looking forward to the prodding, but anxious to find out if he thinks surgery is possible. As mentioned I won't find out the CT scan results or the urology appointment results till I see my MO Wed.

    Monday, I am having my living room and dining room painted. Tuesday I have an appointment with my social worker. Wednesday is my MO appointment. Then I have 4 days to party until my 6 hour chemo Monday. Thurs. I will have lunch at the promenade with a friend, and of course shopping. Friday Tracy and I are going to happy hours in Manhattan beach. I haven't set up plans for Saturday yet, but I will party. Sunday my hairdresser and friend Joanna and I are going shopping, and out to dinner in Torrance. So, I will have plenty of enjoyment before I am stuck with a 6 hour chemo Monday.

    xoxo,

    Kate

  • SAB
    SAB Member Posts: 1,121
    edited July 2013

    Happy Birthday Brookside!!!!!!!



    I love reading your plans Kate, it motivates me to get going!



  • SAB
    SAB Member Posts: 1,121
    edited July 2013

    Joan, 7 pounds! That was quick! Maybe you have a future in fitness!come coach me!

  • gigil
    gigil Member Posts: 916
    edited July 2013

    Happy Biethday Brookside. Hope you have had a great day. Good luck tomorrow Kate. Sorry I have been absent. My Grandson is having surgery either tomorrow or Saturday. His bone will not stay in alignment. I am still caring for my granddaughter. Dad is also having lots of trouble. I will check in now and then. Love to you all!

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