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Weekly Taxol group

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Comments

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    I assumed I'd be getting 20 sessions of rads like last time so was a little surprised to hear it'll be 33. I even had to move a vacation. :-( I've been a tiny bit pushy with my MO's office. My RO said I could start rads 2-3 weeks after the Taxol so I get my last T on 8/3, will go get mammo/scan/meet with MO on 8/9, and will start rads 8/20. I was hoping to be done by mid-September (just in time for my new hair growth!) but whatcha gonna do?

  • Clusus
    Clusus Member Posts: 1
    edited July 2018

    Hi! I'm on week 5 of taxol after AC. I had several side effects during the first few taxol treatments such as cramping, hot flashes, high blood pressure. Onc said to get the taxol slower over a 2hour period instead of the 1 hour. And no side effects!

    My experience after steroid wears off is bone pain in hip and leg area. Fatigue 3-5 days after.

    I get treatment on Fridays so I take fridays and mondays off work now. I can drive to and from treatment. I tried to take just fridays off but the fatigue is too heavy for me to drive and properly function.

    No doubt better than AC!

  • moderators
    moderators Posts: 8,643
    edited July 2018

    Dear Clusus,

    Welcome to the community. Thanks for sharing your experiences. We know that our members appreciate hearing from others stories. We wish you continued good health through your treatment and look forward to seeing you around the community. The MOds

  • nellabella
    nellabella Member Posts: 74
    edited July 2018

    hi,

    Thank you all for the congrats and well wishes. Congrats Moth !! You did it !! Ding Ding ! My center didn’t have a bell either. Yes oh yes the sweets craving is gone and still no appetite which is good so maybe I can lose all the weight I gained. Ingerp you’re almost done so that sweet craving will go away. Back to my normal self not liking sweets at all. Funny my new craving is pizza, but homemade pizza with no cheese. Weird who can explain it. Also it wasn’t till just now when I layed down to read posts that i realized that I didn’t hardly feel any neuropathy today. Idk maybe because I was more active than usual today. Oh here it comes that falling asleep feeling in my feet. The big D continues can’t stand it.

    Well ladies hang in there and know the SE’s will slowly fade.

    Have a blessed weekend all

  • yellowb
    yellowb Member Posts: 102
    edited July 2018

    So, new cosmetic side effect for me this morning: it looks like someone filled in the circles under my eyes with a magenta highlighter. It's ... unlikely to trend in beauty magazines.

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    Maybe you just need matching color on your eyelids? ;-)

  • yellowb
    yellowb Member Posts: 102
    edited July 2018

    And a nice magenta dress. Everyone likes magenta, right?Scared

  • Taco1946
    Taco1946 Member Posts: 630
    edited July 2018

    LOL!


  • Frog-on-the-lilypad
    Frog-on-the-lilypad Member Posts: 159
    edited July 2018

    Thanks for the wishes Moth. Yes, I did Taxol 9 yesterday. Hope you are feeling better with each passing day.

    I have a question for you ladies in regards to bone pain/ muscle pain. Is it only on the legs and arms. I dont know why I think it is. But, I feel it everywhere. Not all the time. It jumps. And I feel really tired. I did manage to do lots of household chores but Ido not have the energy I had when I started Taxol. After 4 rounds of DD AC, having no downtime felt good. But since last week I feel I am dragging myself. Is this normal on weekly Taxol? I also have my surgery consult tomorrow which has added to my anxiety. I thought since there are no tests or results involved I would be good. But no, feeling so wound up.

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    Frog--I've been feeling draggier every week on T. Mostly days 4-5. I don't feel bad (and haven't had any pain), just this incredible inertia to sit on my fanny.

  • yellowb
    yellowb Member Posts: 102
    edited July 2018

    Frog - I'm starting to feel it in week 4 - it's really hard to get to work in the morning, and I feel like there are weights on my ankles. I have the bone pain now and then, here and there. My onc had led me to expect it, so I don't think it's a bad indication -- I think taxol is only "easy" in comparison to other chemo...

    Very best to you in week 9!

  • moth
    moth Member Posts: 3,293
    edited July 2018

    Frog, the fatigue is cumulative and definitely the last 1/3 or /14 of the taxol kicked my butt. I became a queen of naps & yes, everything felt like a big exertion.

    And all over muscle pain. I go to a registered massage therapist regularly and that helps but by the last 2-3 treatments, I was taking advil &/or tylenol pretty regularly (& because we have to take our temp before, that's when I discovered I was running low fevers ~ 37.5 all the time as well)

    Hang in there, the end is in sight!



  • Frog-on-the-lilypad
    Frog-on-the-lilypad Member Posts: 159
    edited July 2018

    Thank you for answering ladies. Ingerp, 3rd August, you are almost there. Next week you will be done.

    YellowB, hang in there. 1/3 done. Do what you can do tide you over.

    Moth, a massage sounds really good. I should look into it. I also have a severe lack of motivation going on.

  • ohio4me
    ohio4me Member Posts: 323
    edited July 2018

    question for my niece

    Anyone about 2 years past Taxon still having chemo brain/fog?

  • nellabella
    nellabella Member Posts: 74
    edited July 2018

    Hi all,

    I see everyone is almost done with chemo here, amazing how fast it seems to go once it’s over. Ha g in there yes it gets better quick after you’re done. Neuropathy for me is weird, good days and bad.

    Yes Moyh like the saying and thanks it will be something I will repeat to myself

    “ you don’t have to be brave, just show up”.

    Ha lol

  • kdrake1007
    kdrake1007 Member Posts: 55
    edited July 2018

    I'm going to be joining the gang here with weekly Taxol starting next week. AC was quite the journey and each Tx was different for me. Haven't yet bounced back from #4 but I'm hoping to have a couple of good days before I head into Taxol.

    I've been using DigniCap and still have a decent amount of hair. I'm planning to ice hands & feet as long as I can.

    I have a question about the cough. Mine started after Tx #3, subsided just before #4 and is now back with a vengeance. Has anyone found anything that helps? I'm trying Benadryl at night as the sinus drainage seems to be linked to the cough. Really hoping it doesn't stick around for the next 12 weeks!

    The journey continues...

    Thanks!

    Ki

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    kdrake I had a cough for a couple of weeks but it seems to have resolved. I have started taking a Claritin generic every day—not really sure why, although it seems to help so many women with lots of SEs. My tx nurse did ask me if I had allergies when I talked to him about it. Maybe that’s what it was

  • kdrake1007
    kdrake1007 Member Posts: 55
    edited July 2018

    Thanks for the reply, Ingerp!

    I tried the Benadryl last night and it definitely helped some, maybe I'll double up and try Claritin in the morning and Benadryl at night. The Claritin definitely kept the bone pain at bay after the Neulasta injections, so maybe it can do double duty! I'm also calling the nurse practitioner at the MO office just to see if there is anything else that I can try.


    Enjoy your weekend!


    Kim

  • JackyR
    JackyR Member Posts: 39
    edited July 2018

    Kdrake, I found that I feel Taxol SEs most on days 3 & 4 so I’ve been taking Claritin at night for the muscle aches. I also take a B complex and have been keeping neuropathy at bay so that’s been good. Benadryl definitely helped me with my allergies. It seems Taxol heightens sinus blockage so steaming helps and irrigating my nose. I had pressure in my ear which caused ear pain so keeping sinuses clear helps. And this has def been better than AC

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    Now that you mention it, JackyR, I had plugged ears for a few days too. These SEs just get better and better!!

  • JackyR
    JackyR Member Posts: 39
    edited July 2018

    Ingerp, amazing what we find with these SEs. Definitely has made my allergies more unbearable. Because of the pressure in my ears, I was dizzy, had a sinus headache, and was sensitive to light.

  • JackyR
    JackyR Member Posts: 39
    edited July 2018

    Oh and BIG CONGRATS to Moth and Idkidk on the completion of chemo!

    Ingerp, you’re next

  • Taco1946
    Taco1946 Member Posts: 630
    edited July 2018

    kdrake - I also do claritin (generic) in the morning and benadryl at night. Started during taxol and have continued through just herceptin and AI's. My SE's have been manageable, especially if I exercise. Hydrate everyone!

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    <JackyR—six days. But who’s counting? ;-)

  • lg10
    lg10 Member Posts: 37
    edited July 2018

    I am officially done with chemo!! So excited. I meant to ask my MO about this yesterday, but forgot. My family is celebrating with dinner tonight and I’m curious about having a drink. I haven’t hadn’t any alcohol the past five months of chemo, but I am so anxious to “get my old life back.” Anyone have a drink during taxol? If so, how did your body respond?

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    Best news ever, lg10!! Congratulations! I have drunk on and off through chemo. No impact at all. (In fact while I know it's not related, the one week I took completely off my blood work was actually a little bit worse. 🤷🏼)

  • lg10
    lg10 Member Posts: 37
    edited July 2018

    thanks, ingerp! That’s all I needed to hear! ;)I know you are done next week!! So happy for you. We are also going to be following similar radiation schedules I think.

  • ingerp
    ingerp Member Posts: 1,515
    edited July 2018

    <fist bump lg10>

  • moth
    moth Member Posts: 3,293
    edited July 2018

    not to be a Debbie Downer here but just sharing information:

    "Among women, light drinkers have a four percent increased risk of breast cancer, while moderate drinkers have a 23 percent increased risk of the disease"

    "people living with cancer remain at risk for other cancers so it's important that they realize alcohol's role in cancer recurrence, too."

    quotes from an article about ASCO's 2017 position paper on alcohol https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/alcohol...

    The paper itself: http://ascopubs.org/doi/full/10.1200/JCO.2017.76.1...

    "for cancer prevention, it's best not to drink alcohol." Recent updates to the AICR report estimate a 5% increase in premenopausal breast cancer per 10 grams of ethanol consumed per day (pooled relative risk [RR], 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.08). The risk was even greater for postmenopausal breast cancer, which had an RR of 1.09 (95% CI, 1.07 to 1.12) for each 10 grams of ethanol per day."


  • llupp
    llupp Member Posts: 11
    edited July 2018

    My nurse told me my cough was probably from acid reflux from the Taxol and to talk to my doctor to get a script. I have only had 2 cycles and the bone pain on day 3 and 4 are killing me. The AC I flew thru my thumb nails are turning black I am losing my eye brows but this too will pass .

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