mets to lung
Comments
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tryn, good to hear no mets in the eyes! Diabetes must complicate things. Sorry you have that on top of everything else.
Hugs,
Brenda
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Thanks Adnerb -- I have had it for a long time (diabetes) and the hardest thing about it .. no not the daily injections.. but the fact that no matter how much you don't feel like eating (loss of appetite now) I have to eat (get my protein) or I will go into a sugar low and that is more dangerous than a high. Other than that I have adjusted to life with diabetes.
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Hi everybody!
Chanah -- congratulations on your daughter's graduation and marriage. What an exciting time for you!
I'm about 3 weeks out from my last chemo (yahoo!), and aside from 2 fingernails that look like they're about to fall off, I'm feeling pretty good. :-) I felt good enough to attend my son's spring band concert last week, and I'm so glad I did! The band teacher gave out awards that night instead of at the school's end of year award ceremony, and my son got the Director's Award!! I was totally blown away and got all teary. Didn't even know they gave awards in band, so having him come away with the highest award was a HUGE surprise! And he followed that up with making A/B Honor Roll.
I had my follow up appointment at the MO this morning, and all my labs looked good. She suggested keeping my two nails trimmed as short as possible. One of them is like oozing underneath the nail bed a little (so gross), so she said to soak it in a half and half water/peroxide mixture. Hope I can keep them from falling off. That would just suck. I also talked to her about how uncomfortable it is to breathe. It doesn't exactly hurt, it's just...uncomfortable. How else do you describe that? She said my lungs did sound a little "tight" when she listened to my breathing, so she suggested I go back to using my inhaler to open things up a bit. (My regular doctor prescribed an inhaler for me last fall when the original diagnosis was just bronchitis.) And you know what? It actually seems to help. Keeping my fingers crossed that as I continue to feel better and start getting a little more activity in my day, maybe some of this is just because I've gotten so deconditioned and my breathing and SOB will improve over time. I can hope anyway.
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CarolSue,
That's wonderful about your son's band performance and award! Your son looks like such an angel. Just beaming to be dancing with his Mom. My son had a high school concert for his Jazz Ensemble on Tuesday and I was also so happy to be there. He now faces final exams and is going through a very rough patch emotionally so we are very worried. Being 16 is already so tough without your Mom being sick. My daughter is back from college so that is really nice.
Sorry to hear about your nails. Hopefully the peroxide mixture will work.
Glad to hear that the inhaler helps. I have been coughing a bit more lately and I think it's because the radiation fatigue has kept me from my usual exercise. When I exercise rigorously I can just feel my lungs opening up. I also hear exercise is great for lowering inflammation in general. I hope you will be able to increase your activity level too. I try to schedule walks with friends so that I can be sure to get out and have some quality time with people I care about.
I was hoping to stay off of steroids but today my RO said that I should start them since my vision has been getting worse. I only have one more day of treatment left out 20! Hopefully, I won't be on the steroids long. She prescribed 3mgs a day but I only took 1 this morning. ;-)
Hugs, Susan
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Carolsue and Susan,
You both mentioned that your last chemo day is coming up. I am happy for both of you because you clearly see an end to your present treatment regimen. I am curious. What are your treatment plans after chemo? Are you both getting scanned to see if everything is clear, then go from there? Are you both going to take anti-hormonals? Good luck to both of you!
Brenda
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Hi Brenda -- my last chemo was 3 weeks ago today! Still waiting to feel better. The side effects are gone, but I'm still so darn tired and out of breath all the time. My labs yesterday showed my RBC's were a little low. Could that be part of it? I'm so hoping to feel better than this some time soon. As far as long term plans go, I start my maintenance treatments a week from Monday (June 2nd). I'll be getting Herceptin and Perjeta every 3 weeks, assuming my insurance is going to cover the Perjeta. And I think she's going to put me on Arimidex, too, but I'm not sure when that will start. My next scan will be in July I think.
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Carolsue,
Are you discontinuing chemo because your bc has been stabilized or because of side effects? I hope it's because of the former, but you have not had your scan yet, so you have no way of knowing, unless you rely on tumor markers. Sorry for all these questions.
Yes, some chemo drugs cause shortness of breath! Isn't that something? I am hoping and praying that your breathing gets better in time.
My oncologist put in a request for LiquidBiopsy. He doesn't think my insurance will cover, but at least he does not see a reason why I should not get it. I think of this as a little victory.
Hugs, everyone.
Brenda
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Brenda,You are so supportive of everyone and I just wanted to say thank you. And thank God for small victory's!
Have my bone scan booked for next Wed. and see my MO June 5th. Finally getting somewhere so I can start treatment.
Cathy
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Brenda, I had a scan at the beginning of April (after tx #4), and it showed my lung infiltrates nearly completely resolved (upper area still a little hazy), right PE was completely gone, left PE reduced by half, bone spots were stable and didn't light up on PET. (Nothing was lighting up on PET.) The radiologist ended his report saying "dramatic improvement". So I guess my MO figured that since I responded so well to the first 4 treatments, the last 2 would knock out the rest of it. That and the only thing that got me through those last 2 treatments was knowing that they were my last 2 treatments. In other words, I would have been begging to stop if they hadn't stopped already. And even though the chemo part is over, I'll still be getting Herceptin and Perjeta, which I've heard has gotten very good results for a lot of people. I think my next scan is in July. Haven't scheduled it yet, but I think my insurance covers one every 3 months. Hoping my next scan shows as much improvement as the last. If not, I'm sure she's got something else up her sleeve.
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Congrats Carolsue!0 -
Carolsue!
Everything bodes well for you. Wow. I can almost picture "remission". Have you had another biopsy since the first one? Have any of your hormone receptor status changed? I surely hope not because the herceptin and perjeta would give you added boost.
Love,
Brenda
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Cathy,
Good luck with the bone scan. I wish you and everyone here a happy Memorial Day weekend!
Love,
Brenda
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Carol,
Fantastic news about your scan results!!! So happy for you!!!
Hugs, Susan
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hi all, I've been out of the loop for a while due to my daughter's wedding last weekend. The wedding was perfect in every way. Life is back to normal. Had a ct scan last week that showed NO progression. Was a little nervous because my liver numbers were high but onc says it's because the liver has to process the carboplatin. Feeling happy for a great wedding and CT scan! Good to catch up with everyone here!
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Glenna,
Wonderful news about the No Progression! Congratulations on your daughter's wedding too!!!
Appreciate that you shared the good news and the beautiful picture.
Hugs, Susan
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Glenna_E: Your daughter is beautiful!! I love her dress!!! I am so happy for you for having a beautiful wedding and a great report too!
Everyone: I've felt well enough since going on a lower dosage of Affinitor (5 mg) so I've been taking care of my twin grandchildren who have been sick! I love them so and am feeling good about being well enough to be gramma to and for them when they are sick!!
I've been keeping up with the boards as much as possible!!
Love to all!
Judy
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Judy and Glenna: It's been a while since we last "saw" you both. So happy to hear that life has been good!
Love,
Brenda
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Brenda, it's good to be back. Took me an hour to catch up on my favorite threads. There's no way to respond to all I've read because I know I would forget someone! Congrats to carol sue on the great scan! With the wedding being at the beach and having lots of family from out of town to cater to, there just wasn't any time to log on. It was so nice to have this weekend to catch up with laundry, BCO, and sleep! LOL! Chemo this week plus babysitting on Friday for my 2 year old granddaughter and a grandchildren sleepover Saturday night to look forward to. Life is good!!
Chanah, want to see a picture!!
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Glenna What a beautiful pic and beautiful daughter! Glad your feeling well enough to do it all! Congrats on being stable too!Cathy
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Wish we had a like button. Thanks for all the compliments on my daughter. She looked so beautiful on her wedding day. While the wedding was a lot of work in a very short amount of time, it was worth it all when she told me she loved me and thanked me for a beautiful wedding and letting her feel like such a princess! I have learned through this cancer journey to appreciate those special moments and that was indeed one of them.
Judy, how old are your twin grandchildren? I'm babysitting my 2 year old granddaughter on Friday and enjoy her so much. She does keep me hopping though, and I'm hoping that after chemo tomorrow I'll be up to the task!
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I was on the fence about retiring from teaching, but the stage 4 diagnosis convinced me that I should do it this year. I will miss all those little five year olds. I like 2 year olds as well. They are contrary (no! no! no!) and they are more stable and sturdy than 1 year olds, but they still toddle.
Hugs,
Brenda
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Brenda, I retired from teaching three years after my stage IV diagnosis. Was missing too much time due to chemo and was just so tired all the time. Retired on disability and have never looked back. I can now focus on doing fun things when I have energy and resting when I am tired. It has really helped my quality of life. It's also good to be able to plan trips around my chemo treatments!
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Glenna: My twins are 4 years old; they take turns letting Gramma run after them. I think they realize that I can't run in two different directions (LOL). They are a major reason that I still have the fortitude to keep moving forward--one step at a time!!! They are spending tonight with us (and their Mother)! My mother is 89 and I am 66. I don't have the energy to keep up with them but my mother is determined that we can take care of them and somehow we do it! I hope you have a ball with your grandbaby! They help us in our fight; they make us smile, laugh and cry all at the same time!
Brenda, thanks so much for thinking of me while I had no time to write for several days! My grandbabies had a terrible virus and we suspect that they got it at a fast-food play land-- no proof, of course, but it seems as though that's the culprit! The last two times they've had to go to the doctor and miss about 4 days of school. They won't be going again. Has anyone else ever had this happen?
I'm so glad that we are all able to enjoy our children and grandchildren (for those of us who are old enough). The special events in our children's lives are what make our days happy even when we are sick or tired from our meds, etc. I love hearing all about them too!
Judy
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Glenna, welcome back,so so happy to hear you are stable - go dance with that stable boy!! Such a beautiful pic of your daughter's wedding - how great that you were there and able to enjoy it!
All this talk about grandkids - I'm not sure when my son will get round to finding a good woman, I know he wants to have kids. So I've adopted my sister's grandkids as my surrogates, and I do love spending time with them. The eldest is Emma at 7, - when I said her grandad can fix anything, she said to me, 'can he even fix you?' They are so precious, but live about 1000 km away, so I usually only get there a couple of times a year. My closest friend has 2 grandkids here, 5 and 3, and we took them to the next town to us today, when I went to see my surgeon. We had time to kill so we stopped at a park where they had just cut the grass and we ended up throwing the clippings at each other - they are good medicine, as you say. Also good exercise!
CarolSue, such great news from your scan too! I hope the Herceptin & Perjeta will continue the good work, and not be too hard on your system. Well done for getting the chemo done. I seem to live from scan to scan - also have them every 3 months. Next one coming up at the end of next month. I guess if we get scanxiety, I also get very scanxious lol! I get the report e-mailed to me and opening that mail is so scary, I always find I've held my breath. I've been stable now since November - please God may it continue for a long while. I really hope your next scan will be more good news!
How are you doing, SusaninSF? I remember how tired I was from radiation - hope that will improve for you. I also hope that the rads did a lot of damage to those brain mets, when will you know? I get a very tight chest and/or a feeling of something heavy on my chest. It seems to happen more often during chemo (am on Xeloda), but you are so right about using your lungs with exercise - I do yoga and walk, that's my exercise - some days just sweeping the floor is exercise enough!! Agree with you too about the walks with friends, and we're on the sea, so beach walks, even in winter, are always good. And my lungs feel better for the exercise, gentle as it is!
Brenda, you're back on the Carbo/Gemzar combo aren't you? How's it going? Hope it's treating you well and will kick butt for those mets. It is scary knowing there are 'numerous' nodules all over my lungs (like you) - and my onc reckons that if we didn't get rid of them with Xeloda in the first 4 - 6 cycles, they are probably there to stay, dammit. Whatever, stable is good.
I feel so tired of cancer, I think of it at some stage every day, I'm tired of treatment, tired of having my life revolve around scans, doctors, chemo, side effects, blood tests; tired of side effects and tired of being tired! I'd love to just be able to shut the door on all of this and just forget about it for a while. My old life is gone, and I really am struggling to find my feet with this new life. I think that maybe sometimes God does give us more than we can handle so that we have to learn to surrender and trust.
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Hi Carolben,
Yes, I'm back to my first line of treatment, Gemzar/Carboplatin. I've only had 4 treatments (1 and 1/3 cycles) and my breathing is much better. The gemzar is so annoying, though. This time I have a rash on my chest, a disgustingly white tongue and fatigue. These s/e's are being addressed with dosage change and an antibiotic for my mouth.
I am hoping and praying that the xeloda is working its magic on your lung mets. What type of s/e's do you have? Are you reporting everything to your doctor? It's amazing how a dosage change can help!
Like you, I am tired of cancer. I am not ready to surrender, though. I will "rage, rage, against the dying of the light".
Love,
Brenda
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Carolben, I surely understand your struggle with this new life. I'm struggling too. My son is 15-going-on-16, and between the Tamox fatigue and the morphine for the pain, it's exhausting just to drive him to school and pick him up. (And I don't do it all the time, just every other week.) I miss cooking, gardening, doing something fun every night. I miss working, I miss remembering things. 😜 I am so grateful to be alive and I'm blessed beyond measure. But I feel happiest when I'm productive and I just don't have the energy to be productive.
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Hi Ronda,
So sorry to hear about your pain. I don't even know how you can drive while on morphine! Pretty soon your son should be able to drive himself? I don't remember what the right age is.
You have been on tamoxifen since 7/8/13. Is it working at least? What did your last scan say?
Gentle hugs,
Brenda
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resting today after a wild weekend with my three oldest grandchildren (9, and two 6 year olds). Do 'to know whose idea it was (ha ha, mine) to get the cousins together for the weekend! My Friday with the two year old was a piece of cake by comparison. Luckily I had hubby to help over the weekend! This chemo also leaves me feeling tired about day 3-5 and of course that was the weekend!
Ronda, noticed you recently had reconstruction. Is that why you are on morphine or is the pain from your cancer?
Carolben, my lung nodules seem to be here to stay as well but onc feels good as long as they stay in my lungs. I've sure tried enough different treatments to get rid of them! I think I was NED once but a long time ago! I'm happy with stable for now! Celebrating 6 years of stage IV living.
Brenda, when is your official retirement date?
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Glenna - whatever your doing keep it up! I don't know how you did it (kids get together) after doing chemo. When I did chemo I was in bed for day 2-6! I know all chemo's are different and we all react differently too but wtg!Cathy
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Glenna, I haven't been at work since September, 2013 (short term disability). My official retirement date is the end of the 13/14 school year, which is June 18, 2014!
My lowest energy days are also days 3 to 5! Yesterday I was at Michaels. I was in a long line holding 2 picture frames. They were not even heavy, but they might as well be 20 pounds each! The fatigue was that much.
So today was my appointment with the doctor. I tried to get him to lower my gemzar dosage. I also have a rash on my chest. He said he will give me Procrit on Tuesday.
Hugs,
Brenda
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