Weekly Taxol group
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Hello strong ass ladies!!
I hope everyone is having a good week so far. To the ladies still fighting with the cuervo Ann's negative side effects keep up the fight and know you've got this!! To those coming up to chemo know the ladies on this board have so much great advice!!
To the ladies pfc yay about feeling better and hair, no matter where, coming back!! I'm just about 17 weeks (4 months) pfc. I feel pretty much back to normal which I'm loving!! My hair is just starting to show a little wave to it but it's still pretty short and white/ platinum blonde. I love the pixie look!!
I hope all you awesome women, and men if still on the board have a wonderful week!! Keep fighting hard and kicking cancer's ass!!🥊🥊
~Katie💗
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Wheatscapes - that's cool that you are doing Zumba. You have more energy than I do! I hope #8 went well.
Palmetto - it is strange how my infusion place is my safe zone. Everyone there is a patient or a nurse or a support person. While I am glad that the Taxol is over, I'll miss that feeling of being normal in at least one place. At least I'll be there every 3 weeks.
loiswb - no tvs at my place. It was bring your own entertainment 🙂
ik- I had my last Taxol this past Thursday. My infusions were on Thursdays. I worked Monday-Wednesday and then on Friday. My infusion place couldn't do it on Fridays so this was my best schedule. I started losing the steroid high on Saturday evening and then pretty much crashed on Sundays. I was nauseous and had/still have a bad taste in my mouth where food does not taste very good. I still have fatigue and some body aches. I have a little bit of hair on my head and some eyebrows/eyelashes. I have minimal neuropathy in my big toes. Good luck with your infusions. All of these ladies are very helpful here.
ipenelope- yay to almost normal
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DogMomRunner thanks for the tips. If I am icing my hands I guess my entertainment could be movie on my IPad ? Very reassuring words. Thank you.
Martaj Thank you.
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Palmetto you are so beautiful. And you rock your baldness so well!! Your smile is amazing. You inspire me to embrace my journey when I lose my hair. My baldness will be my tough Fight also !
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Had #8/12 Taxol yesterday, and a PA visit. My heart rate has been increasing-- it was 120 yesterday, so an echo was ordered to check on it.
Also, a month ago when I saw the Dr, he said my lump was nearly gone. But PA felt a lump measuring 1.2. She said it might be swelling from chemo but it felt firm. But when it was nearly gone, that was closer to the AC treatments. It had shrunk significantly on the AC. So an ultrasound is ordered to see what's going on there. Trying not to be stressed about it.
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St. Auggie- I hope that the lump does not turn out to be the tumor bigger!! And good luck on the echo and I hope the chemo hasn't done damage to your heart!! Thoughts with you on both of these tests!!
I hope everyone is having a good week!! For all you ladies with little to no hair or your rocking the peach fuzz your hair doesn't define you!! Embrace the look and know it's a battle scar, so to speak, for the hell fight your going through!! Keep kicking cancer's ass!!🥊🥊
~Katie💗
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Thank you Katie.
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Quick Question: I have my 8th Taxol tomorrow and last week my neophils were 1.4/ Anyone have any idea how low they can go before they delay chemo?? I want to get this one done.
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They say 1.2. But they should redo the blood to verify as the saline flush can dilute the sample. I literally just asked our MO this on Monday as my wife was at 1.6. Praying yours will be even higher for #8!!
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Thank you so much jrominger...for the good info and also the good wishes.. I send the same to your wife.
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mpv- my MO said they don’t like it dropping below 1000 or 1.0. Butmine dropped to 900 twice. The first time they did not give me the taxol that day. I had to have 3 neupogen shots. The second time I got the taxol ( they didn’t want to skip again) and I got 5 neupogen shots. I ended up having only 11 of my 12 taxol treatments in the end.
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I am doing dose dense Taxol. Today, I saw the MO before my scheduled infusion and had labs. My neutrophils were 0.6. They cancelled my infusion and rescheduled me for next Wednesday. I had a two month break between AC and Taxol and thought my body would have recovered. I never had this low a number with AC so was very surprised. The MO said I'll have to do the Neulasta shot next week. We had thought I would be okay with Taxol and not need the shot. My first Taxol, two weeks ago, brought terrible bone and muscle pain. Now, I get to add the bone pain from Neulasta. Hoping that Claritin will help. Fun times ahead!
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Hi all,
I got some really good news yesterday!!! Met with oncologist and breast surgeon. My tumor has shrunk and enlarged nodes under arm have gotten much smaller!!!!! I might only need a lumpectomy in January. I still have 9 more chemos in phase 1 and 4 in phase 2. Surgery to take place in January. Waiting on results from genetic testing to see if I need ovaries and tubes out which can be done at same time as breast. Of course radiation 4 weeks after surgery. I'm feeling very upbeat about this. Tomorrow #4 of taxol and caboplatin, and trial drug/placebo. I want to warn those receiving taxol and live or work in sun. Wear sunscreen. High SPF. I had to have biopsy of my calf because I had these red spots non itching, on my lower legs, arms, and V on my neck. Dermatologist stated it was reaction from chemo and sun. Did biopsy to be positive. Of course I love being outside and on the boat. Oh well, will cover up big time now. I always wear sunscreen but only SPF 30, now will go to higher level. Have a great day everyone. Thank good cloudy and overcast here in RI
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That is great news, Martaj!!! (And just a heads up if you need rads. I assumed last year that I'd get 20 sessions just like I did in 2016--even planned a vacation around it. My RO told me that after chemo, the skin is more sensitive, so I got the 33 sessions, which are lower dose so a bit gentler on the skin.)
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Ingerp I cannot tell you how reassuring your words are to me. You take the time to stay active on this group even though it looks like your treatment is complete? That is so kind and I want to say thank you. I went all the way back to January 2019 and I have read all the posts and I hope to be as brave as all of you are
The message you have said about protein. Particularly red meat I have taken seriously. I found grass fed hamburger and will be making some meat loaf later today. I have never been much of a red meat eater but I will to keep the SE to a minimum so hoping it works for me.
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MVP
I was told that my center does not treat below 1.0 (1000). I was at 1.1 around #11 and they let me treat then I had to do the shots ( and they taught me how to do it myself to keep on schedule ...gulp! But I did it and I did stay on schedule). I was told that the drop is because of the chemo, and nothing you can do (through diet or vitamins). The worst thing that can happen is that they make you skip a week and let your body rebuild...but no chemo patient wants to hear that! Try to rest and take care of yourself and hopefully that will do the trick.
Lauren
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Martaj, Congratulations!! It's great to know when the chemo is working. I had my mastectomy before chemo so just have to assume it killed any extra cells floating around. I also had the exact same skin reaction on taxol. Mine was on my arms and chest. We had been out in the pool for a couple of days and I used 50spf. I stopped going in the sun after except normal day to day things. I am 4 weeks from my last treatment and they are still there but fading. However, when I get hot they are a little worse. I will have to cover up for a while I guess. I am in rads now so really don't need to be in the sun much anyway. I am already looking forward to next year when things are back to normal!
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Martaj- Yay!! Congratulations that your ronnie has shrunk and might be able to just do lumpectomy!! Not sure if your MO talked to you but I was informed when I had my genetic testing if there were any mutations a BXM would be highly encouraged in addition to the hysterectomy. The wait for the generic testing was annoying because so many decisions were based off of it, at least for me. Thoughts that no mutations are present!!!
I hope all you ladies are doing good and keep up the fight to kick cancer's ass!!🥊🥊
~Katie💗
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LoveFlorida--re: the protein, I ate red meat 5-6 days a week, plus an egg every day, plus one of those overly-sweet-but-really-delicious protein shakes every day. My MO told me she's the first patient she's seen who was actually making blood through chemo. Also, while Herceptin is supposed to NBD, I noticed after a few months of Herceptin only that I was starting to feel pretty weird after treatment. I got it in my head that it might be related to the fact that I'd cut *way* back on my protein. From then on, I made a point to eat red meat (usually meatloaf) the two days before treatment and it made a huge difference.
And yes! I keep up with this thread. All I can tell you is that while it is a L-O-N-G year, you *will* get through it. My last Herceptin was May 17th and *man* did I celebrate. Expect the runny nose to keep going for another 3-4 months--mine has recently dried up. Hooray!! I'm a little over one year PFC, and my biggest complaint these days is my wacky hair. It's still super curly (I'm understanding it may stay like that for about another year), I only last week finally had enough to color (full foil--the woman said an all-over color would have come out reddish), and I'm <im>patiently waiting for enough length that it kind of falls over. A lot of women love their chemo curls! A woman recently told me about a friend of hers who started getting perms after they went away.
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Well ladies, I am officially one week PFC. I still have some eyebrows and eyelashes. But more scalp than hair. As I predicted the chin hair on this post menopausal woman was the first hair to come back. Nose hair will probably be next. 🙄 Hands and feet are ok. Still having bloody nose and some nausea. Food still tastes blah. I know I have a ways to go. Radiation is next. My mapping appointment is September. All you ladies still getting the Taxol (and other chemo) I'm thinking of you and hoping SE are minimal
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Hi everyone:
I'm getting my first of 12 Taxol infusions next Wednesday. Can anyone recommend products that you used for icing hands/feet? Thanks in advance.
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britgirls
They sell fancy stuff on amazon, but I used plain old ice packs that they sell for lunch boxes. I held one in each hand and placed each foot on one during infusions. The nurses at the center and my MO did not think much of icing. I did not experience neuropathy and did not loose my nails (but they did start to lift up towards the end and looked awful)Good luck!
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Hi britgirls. I use natracure cold therapy socks. They stay cold for the hour and fifteen minutes that I wear them. I have a large gel ice pack that I place over my hands.
Congrats on finishing AC! That's a major milestone.
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My hospital provides Elastogegloves and booties. They do tend to get warmer and couple of times I asked to change them mid-infusion. I usually wear thin cotton gloves and socks underneath, to avoid direct contact with the icepack.
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Chiming in on which day to schedule Taxol. I did mine on Thursdays. I can't work from home. For the AC that was every two weeks I took off 1/2 day on Thursday for infusion and all day on Fridays. For the Taxol I took off 1/2 day on Thursdays and then scheduled a light day on Fridays (I went in from 10-3). I have 3 active teenagers with lots of sports/activities and I didn't want to be totally wiped out on the weekends. It turned out, as others mentioned, that the first day I usually felt pretty good (though it varied depending on how much sleep I got) and Sundays (3rd day after) were usually the worst, but if I needed to I was able to function. Mondays were OK but then by Tuesday/Wednesday I would feel relatively good again. I picked Thursdays even though that was my MO's day out of the office, so I had blood work and visit with her (if scheduled that week) on Wednesdays. Since I work on the same hospital campus as my treatment center is located, that was not a huge deal to me but if I had to drive further that would have made a difference.
I had the low WBC count throughout my treatments (I did neulasta with the AC every time). I believe at my center they give neupogen with anything under 1.5 for sure, and I got it at 1.6 a few times because they knew it would go down more with the chemo. I got it about 8-9 of the 12 weeks. At my center they do the neupogen 24 hours after the treatment or as close to that as possible, and I'd go back on Fridays to get the shot. (No option to give it myself, which would have been fine with me). I had my last Taxol on a Friday due to Thursday being a holiday, and got the shot on Monday morning, One weekend I was going out of town and they let me come in 3-4 hours earlier than the 24 hours so we could get going.
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Good morning to all, yes it is early, Wake up very early after the infusions. Yesterday # 4 taxol, carboplatin, and clinical trial drug/placobo. Slept though most of infusion from the benadryl. Of course now up at 0300. no big side effects except hair gone, and diarrhea on day 2 after treatments. Tumor is smaller and only 1 node felt under arm. Breast biopsy # 3, with ultrasound, Sept. 17th for trial med. Did have a great get together last night with our dock friends. Great food of which I really couldn't taste but looked good. My sun rash is fading, wearing long sleeves and long yoga pants. Feeling upbeat because of the exam. Hopefully will be a good day. Everyone have a great Labor day weekend.
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Martaj, I am so glad that you are responding well to chemo. Certainly makes it worth it.
I had Taxol and Carbo yesterday, too. I slept two hours last night. I have my typical reaction to the steroids: red face, shaky hands, weight gain. I am frustrated because I don't get the steroid energy like so many people do. I mentioned to my May chemo friends that I feel like the Benedryl and Dexamethasone are fighting each other. I did take the Zofran as suggested by Ingerp, even though I don't have any nausea. Hopefully I can get some rest today. I will feel better once I get some shut eye.
I have next week off, then finish up the last three infusions. That's what I'm looking forward to. I will have completed a total of 16 treatments, like many others before me.
Be well everyone.
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britgirls - I used cryomax ice packs for my hands and feet. You can get those through Amazon or at target or Walmart. I have minimal neuropathy in my hands and feet.
loiswb - I was also a Thursday chemo person. My mother in law had chemo and the third day was always bad for her. That way Sunday could be a real down day for me unstrpead of a work day
Martaj - good news that you are getting some effects from the chemo.
HappyAnyway - I gained weight with the steroids. I also got muscle twitches in my legs with the combo of benedryl and steroids. I am still getting the twitches a week out from chemo. I hope you get some rest and that the SE subside.
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Hi everyone,
Kind of a crappy day feeling today. But I watched this great movie called "unbroken". I'm not a religious person by any means, but this movie is so moving and inspirational, there is hope out there for us. I believe it. Movie is a tear jerker, but so inspirational.
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Hello!
Long time listener, first time caller.
I started AC + T Chemo beginning of April and finished August 19th. I'm so happy to be done, but I honesty feel like my body is revolting against me.
Starting a week post chemo I noticed that my feet, ankles and legs were swelling really bad, so much so that I measured in the morning and then at night and there is a difference of 2" at my ankle, calf and knee. Has anyone had this? Does it go away? I went to my Primary Care Dr. today (for pre-op physical) and showed her and she put me on some water pills and told me to buy compression socks. I'm fine doing this short time, but I want to know if this is a long term deal or what.
I also noticed that my muscles are incredibly achy and sore post chemo. When I was pre-chemo, I could walk 10 miles and it wouldn't bother me and now I'm having problems walking 2 blocks. I feel like I aged 50 years since chemo ended (which seems weird, that it's not since chemo started).
I know I need to be patient, but it's like you look forward to your end date for so long, especially those last few weeks (my crash's were really hard mentally). I guess I had my hopes up so high that these set-backs are really messing with me. It's helpful to hear that people are having/had the same experience post-chemo and that it does in fact get better... right?
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