Starting Chemo in Nov. 2011...anyone else?
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sueshane,
One down, is it 3 more to go? Sounds like you did great. Thank you for taking the time to post, I've been feeling really anxious and between you and allagashmaggie, I feel so much better.
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Denise - My wife will start chemotherapy on November 29th. My wife had a double mastectomy on October 14th. Her left breast is all DCIS Stage 0. Her right breast is IDC Stage 1a with three foci of invasion of 1 mm, 1 mm, 3.5 mm and DCIS of 2.5 cm. The IDC is HER2 positive and ER positive. She will start Taxotere Cytoxan Herceptin one treatment every 3 weeks for 4 treatments and then Herceptin alone every three weeks until she reaches the one year anniversary of treatment. Also, Arimidex one pill a day for 5 years. I am in China on a business trip and will return to take my wife and kids on a vacation prior to chemotherapy starting. I have been actively posting trying to find out about Taxotere Cytoxan and Herceptin regimen.
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LynMichel- Keeping my fingers crossed for you tomorrow and sending you good wishes :-)
Sueshane- So happy that your first treatment went well! I start on Friday :-)
Trying to keep up with everyone on the boards is confusing..lol doing my best though!
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Starting chemo tommorrow on the 3rd, port then the chemo. I tried posting but noone grabbed my post, maybe because i was venting. But count me in everybody. I went and buzzed my hair off today and didnt even cry! (I was amazed) I really thought it would bother me alot. I know I am stage 3, and I know the oncologist told me I am having one of the toughest Chemos there are. I hope and pray for all of you wonderful women out there, and will be thinking about you in the morning. Eazy Breezy right? (not).
Prayers
Connie
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Boxcar- Good luck tomorrow. I got my hair cut short a few days ago so that way it may not be as dramatic when it does fall out. What type of chemo are you getting?0
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Hi Everyone, unfortunately this list keeps growing, but that means more of us to lift each other up and share our experiences. It was so nice to read about everyone today! I'm happy to hear that the ladies ahead of me are coping well and Sueshane, I'm glad your treatment went well and you're feeling good. I am praying for all you sweet ladies waiting in the wings, I know this is a big week for a lot of you. I hope you tolerate your treatments well with minimal side effects. I was talking to someone who's been through this and I told her I had one down and three to go and she said "you've got 2 left and then the last one!" I think that's how I'll think about it now! I'm also keeping a day by day journal of side effects so I'll (hopefully) know what to expect on the next cycle. My daughter and I went to get our hair cut last night. I got a short "do" and I actually quite like it. One of the blessings that has come out of this whole experience for me is that I've grown very close to my 16 year old daughter and she actually wants to do stuff with me! I'm very grateful for that. God bless and hang in there ladies we will get throught this journey xoxo
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Tipnas, so happy to hear that you are doing well. I start chemo on Friday, and am Sooo scared. Does help to hear positive things from all of you. Since my journey has started, there are def a few people that I have gotten very close to. Awesome to hear that you and your daughter have grown closer
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bullwink14,
You're right, it is getting hard to keep up with everyone. We have so many starting this month and I'm sure there are more to come. I'm starting Friday too and I've been a wreck.
Boxcar, thank you for joining us. We need all the help we can get and we'll be here for you, too. I hope your tx goes well tomorrow and you have minimal SEs
Tipnas, It's great to hear you're still doing relatively well. I agree with bullwink14 that it's great that you and you're daughter have grown close. Thank you for all your well wishes.
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I agree banjobanjo on what you wrote. I want to reclaim my life. Boxcars I love your sig line. 'It's a Wonderful Life' is one of my favorite movies I always cry at the end.
Everyone thank you for the well wishes. I should go to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.
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I started chemo on October 10th - 3 weeks of Taxol - my tumor grew- not much, though knew I had to change treatment. Feels like starting over. Had my first treatment of FEC just this Monday, Oct.31st - treatment will be x 4 or 6 every 3 weeks. I thought TNs were extremely receptive to chemo (?) "Shows to go you" what I get for thinking. I
I stuggled with going neoadjuvant, but now glad I did. MD Anderson's protocol for TNs is neo for all growths at 2cm or above.
BTW, hair started falling out in spots at the end of third Taxol treatment. I still have most of my hair if I wear it up. That won't last long and I'll need to break down and get it cut about 1/2 inch long. Then I plan to just shake it all out while sitting outside. I got that idea from a sweet lady on the TNBC forum. I just couldn't bring myself to do that today. I need to add, I tolerated Taxol very well. More nausea with FEC. I'm sorry I couldn't finish Taxol. A large study shows Taxol followed by A/C FEC or FAC have better outcomes. I don't pay much attention to these studies though. We're all so individual.
Best of luck during your treatment.
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gandmav-
The staff at chemo will make you fee like your in Good hands. It really wasn't a bad experience at all. I am having a lot of stomach cramping. Just keeping up with the anti-nausea meds. I just ate a small bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. I am sure you will do just great.
bullwinkl4- I am sure you will do great on Friday. Keep up with fluids.
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Hi there Bullwink,
It is Adriamycin,Cyclophosphamide,Neupogen,and Paclitaxel, (im still learning all of this. I will try to post tonght if i can to ease your fears on Friday. if i can.The oncologist said i would lose my hair anyway. LynMichel, I need a Clarence now more than ever, thats for sure. Good Luck to everyone!!!
((((hugs)))
Connie
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Grammav: Dont anticipate the worst thats whats gonna get you every time, go in there being prepared and Knowing whats coming, whats gonna happen and what the outcome will be.. Stay Focused, Stay positive, And always, always SMILE!!!!! we are in this together and we will WIN....... here some Incentive. Yesterday Nov2nd 2011 ( 7 year Anniversary) That My cousin Nancy was declared CANCER FREE she had b/c, over half her liver removed, part of her jaw bone, and a hysterectomy..... she now has a D boob and an A boob and she doesnt care... She is here and her saying to me is " This too Shall Pass"
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Terry, your cousin is an inspiration! Good for her!
Boxcar, good luck today..will be thinking of you
Just took my first set of steroids and heading into work. Trying not to be emotional...taking it hour by hour0 -
sueshane, I have been drinking A LOT of water!0
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Denise, I will be starting Nov 15th..I will be having SNB and port placement this Wednesday..I feel strong and informed. I will be having 2-3 3 week rounds of chemo followed by lumpectomy then radiation. I think the hardest part of all of this is having to pull back from what I do for my family a bit.
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adgirl5 and Lory48, thank you for joining us. We have a very encouraging group of ladies here.
sueshane and Terry71, thank you for your words of encouragement. It's very difficult to maintain a positive attitude. But I am trying.
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Well I made it through my first round of chemo okay today. I played my Ipod and read a book. They even served me a sandwich. I don't have any stomach problems. I just feel this need to drink a lot of water like we're supposed to. I took a walk when I came back this afternoon and it seemed to get rid of my brain fogginess.
GrandmaV my motto for what we're all going thorugh is this:
"Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. Christopher Robin to Pooh" ~A. A. Milne
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Lynmichel, so happy that your treatment went well today!
My best friend just sent me a pic with that same quote0 -
LynMichel, that's a great quote, I'm going to try to remember that.
Well, bullwinkl4, are we ready for tomorrow? I think after a good night's sleep I will be.
Also to the other ladies starting tomorrow, I hope all goes well. claireinaz, gamergirl, CaroleH, luckyjnjmom, and any others I may have left out. Have a good night.
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Bullwinkl I was surprised myself how well my treatment went today.
I'll be thinking of you GrandmaV and Bullwinkl4 and anyone else starting tomorrow.
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Hi, I'm Cindy. You all seem to have much more info than I do so that means I probably need to as more questions of my Doc! I am to start chemo "soon", don't know what kind, for how long, or if a port will be involved. My mother had a double mastectomy 2 yrs ago and I will need the same after chemo (interesting cuz her surgery was first THEN her chemo)
Any thoughts on making hair loss chic and fashionable for the work place? I try to stay really positivie and would rather see this as a journey and experience than something to dread. I'm a dog groomer so it's not like I need to be on the high-class end of things, just something creative and unique. I would rather celebrate the hair loss and my fight than cower to it.
Denise, thank you for starting the thread and for referring to us as fellow warriors....you are a worthy leader!
Prayers to all,
Cindy
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Well Ladies,
Made it through yesterday, and I feel really sore from the port, and kinda itchy from the antibiotics, but not much else yet. I was so apprehensive, like I was going to the electric chair ofr something, and the minute they started pumping drugs in, I was going to get sick. What does anyone think about steriods? I asked my oncologist, but she said my chemo soesnt warranr it. Sometimes when I am in pain, it seems steriods help better than the pain meds. Sueshane, and anyone else who started today, hope all goes well.
((((Hugs)))))
Connie
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The surgery for the port really bothered me too Boxcars afterwards. It seemed worse than the surgery I had before it. My whole side of my chest got black and blue again. The pain was of a burning type.
Cindy there's a place where you can get a really pretty free scarve to wear. Here's the link: http://www.goodwishesscarves.org/ I just ordered one this week. I also received two head scarves from this seller on Esty. They're very nice. http://www.etsy.com/shop/EnglishTraditions?ref=seller_info
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Good Morning All-
I had my first treatment yesterday. It was a long day but, I can honestly say it went way better than I had anticipated. They gave so many pre-meds that I don't feel nauseous, I am also staying on top of my nausea home meds. They were all about jumping in front of any issues so they gave pre-meds to prevent any. They were proactive so they could avoid reactive....fine by me. I go and get my Nulasta shot today. Boxcar-I received steroid pills day before, steroid iv day of and I take steroid pills again today. They made me jittery but gave me a lot of energy. I was worried about weight gain but it just 3 days every 3 weeks. I am on Taxotere, Carboplatin (both every 3 weeks x's 6) & Herceptin is weekly for 18 wks then every 3 weeks for a year. With Herceptin no steroids so that's good. Prayers and positive thoughts are with all of the lovely ladies starting today....as mentioned before there are so many starting, I get dizzy just trying to remember who is who and dates they start. I will update if anything changes but so far so great! God is good! ~Live Life Sincerely~
RSTAYLOR 0 -
Good afternoon~
Wishing everyone a good weekend! For those who had chemo today, I just want to let you know I've been thinking about you and wishing you the best.
My port goes in on Monday, Chemo to start Nov 18th. My cancer center doesn't have taxol!! This will just prolong my treatment. Starting with DD of A/C.
LynMichel thank you for the scarf web link.
Prayers to this amazing November Chemo group!
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Hi Everyone! It has been a week since my first chemo and quite a fun filled week at that. I have had absolutely no nausea problems and for that I am very very grateful. I have however suffered from intense joint pain all week. Made working so difficult that I did not make it in at all today. Looking forward to next week, a week of no pain!
My prayers and thoughts are with all of you! Keep strong!
LJ
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I had my first chemo scheduled for today. Now, I hesitated before posting this, but in the interest of people seeing the full experience, I thought I would throw it out there.
Almost immediately after the Taxotere was started, I has a massive allergic reaction. Chest pains, couldn't breath well, felt like my head was going to explode, flushed bright red head to toe, and severe, severe pain from my hips to my knees. I thought I was going to die. Literally. And almost welcomed it because of the pain.
Now, they pushed Benedryl and a bunch of other drugs as quickly as they could through my IV. My heart rate and BP skyrocketed and my oxygen went dangerously low, so my Dr had them call 911. My Dr office is right next to the hospital, but I still had to go in the ambulance. More drugs in the ER, and eventually most everything subsided. I still looked like a tomato for a couple of hours, but once that stopped they let me go home.
So.... always listen when they say to alert them of any reaction. Thank goodness my mom was there, cause I tried to yell for the nurse but didn't have the breath to do it. I had also been taking my steroids. I get to continue them for a couple of days to help my body fight the allergy. And I only had 3 ml of the Taxo before the reaction hit. Hardly any at all.
Has anyone else reacted? I am curious to see what they will use now. I have to go in next week for try #2. I am freaked out and scared now. I just know I will needs meds to get me there. I'm that anxious. The Dr reiterated just how rare such a reaction is, but it seems to me that if a bad reaction could occur, it always does with me. I am tired of beating the odds all the time.
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Well looks like Im starting dose dense chemo this month as well. 4 cycles of AC every two weeks followed by 4 cycles of Taxol every two weeks. Going for a Muga scan next week and a port placement procedure as well. Oh boy, can't wait! I had a wig made for me to try and best match my existing hair color and cut. Trying my best to not look like a cancer patient. They even added in some roots! I'm not entirely sure what this journey will bring but I'm trying to stay positive.
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Wow gamergirl, glad you caught everything in time. Our worst fears you experienced. Don't be tired of beating the odds, not alot of of do!!!! Be happy, at least you know you are allergic now. I have heard the first allergic reaction is the least, so better they catch it now. Anyone think I should push for the steriods?Seems like everyone else has them. I still feel pretty ok, but if i stop and sit, i want to sleep.
((hugs))0
Connie
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