Weekly Taxol group
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dvh—I mostly let my hair grow although buzzed it a few times when the super-tight chemo curls started to show up. The last time I buzzed it was about seven months PFC. I’ve been letting it grow ever since. I went back to a salon for the first time for color about one year PFC. Pretty excited that the next time I see my hair gal (about 16 months PFC) I’m going to get my first cut! She said she’ll just nip the ends but it’s a start. :-)
Early stage cancers do not typically get any scans.
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Marta- I hope you do ok with the AC. I just did my second AC last week and it wasn't as bad as I was expecting luckily. I've noticed a bitter taste when I drink water in the last few days.
RadQueen- I did taxol first because of the clinical trial. They want the immune system to attack the cancer and I'm guessing the AC/steroids knock it out more than the taxol. My MO said that they used to do taxol first a long time ago and she wasn't really sure why they changed the order. So I don't really think it should matter in the end.
Dvhmouse- I had a pet/ct scan before I started chemo. I don't know if I will have more to look for mets. I'm hoping they recommend it every few years. If you are having bone pain definitely ask your MO. For me worrying about it would be worse than knowing and dealing with whatever they find. Hopefully it's nothing for you. Don't they also look at phosphorus levels in the blood to monitor bone mets? I don't really know but your MO will probably have some good advice for you.
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Hi Martaj,
I finished up AC this week. I had 2 transfusions during this treatment phase. The AC did hit me hard. I had a delay of 1 extra week between 3 and 4. I had 2 bags of blood after 3 which has helped significantly. I was also given new nausea meds. My tastebuds are basically non existent, and no appetite for months, but it’s all good. I had my pre surgery imaging yesterday and everything looked great. The tumor has shrunk and there does not appear to be any lymph node involvement. 😊 Good luck to you with this new phase. If you feel like you need it ask your MO for some blood
As always hoping for few SE and sending positive vibes,
Kate
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Katiekins,
Thanks for the update. Tomorrow 1st DDAC, along with trial/placebo med. My hemaglobin is low at 9, so I expect a transfusion at some point. My normal is 14 and dropped a lot the past 3 weeks. Not looking forward to phase 2, but only 4 doses and I will get through it. Remain very tired and get short of breath with exercise so I go easy. The exercise, gentle YOGA and long walks with my dog make me feel better emotionally. Still have leg bone pain, hopefully will not get to worse. Great news about the tumor shrinking. Mine also has shrunk according to ultrasound several weeks back. Meet again with surgeon on December 1st.
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Hello everyone.
Divergent- sadly the bitter taste is pretty common with AC. Everything sadly doesn't taste good. This usually lasts through all of AC.
Kate- yay about being done with AC and the tumor shrinking, that's great news!!
I hope everyone is doing good and keeping kicking cancer's ass!! Last week was my 6 month anniversary pfc.
~Katie💗
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my mom is starting weekly Taxol - herceptin. The doctor is giving steroids with infusion but isn’t giving anti- nausea meds. This doesn’t seem right.
we were also told hairloss isn’t a problem !!???
could someone advise on premeds/ anti nausea meds. Did you get them? Did you have nausea?Thanks in advance.
I had TCH 10 years ago. Different experience so it is hard to compare.0 -
My four premeds were standard—steroid, antacid, Benadryl, and Zofran.
I took Zofran for two days after each treatment, not because I felt bad, but because they helped me sleep. A lot of women have a hard time sleeping with the steroid on board.
And losing your hair sucks.
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llaina,
I lost my hair with the taxol. Actually had my husband shave it off after the first infusion. If was to much seeing it all over the pillow in the morning and in the shower drain. It was all over the place. I had very thick hair, looking forward to having it grow back.
I also had steroids, anti nausea meds and Benadryl prior to infusion. I thought it was standard. Check with your MO
Kate
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I start chemo tomorrow. I keep telling myself that it cant end until it starts. I will have weekly Herceptin and Taxol tx. I also will receive Benadryl, Zofran, Pepcid and a steroid, I just thought that was standard. Out of all the side affects, it seems to be the hair loss that I am really struggling with. I have to admit though that I am scared of the unknown, but hoping for the best.
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TJF, the hair loss for me was the biggest side effect. It takes away your idenity. To me who I was. I had really nice hair. Yes I got tired, crankly, slight nausea 4 days after, and hyper from steriods but I finished 12 infusions of Taxoll, 4 of carboplatin, and every 3 weeks trial drug. Today is beginning of phase 2, DD AC plus trial
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Hi Ilania,
No nausea meds with taxol? That definitely doesn't seem right.
That said, has your mom been ok so far? Some people do choose to forgo premeds, even the steroids, after the first couple of chemo treatments, but I've only ever heard of this as a patient choice, not standard care.
I got confusing info about hair loss with taxol as well. I think it's because some women may not lose their hair, so I got the initial recommendation not to go out and shave it all off right away, but to wait and see how it goes. By the fourth week too much was falling out and I had to do it. The chemo nurses said a good rule of thumb with this treatment is that most people will lose most of their hair -- it's just that the timing might not be as standard as with other forms of chemo.
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Has anyone had their liver enzymes spike while on Taxol? I take Lipitor if that makes any difference
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Ilania - I am getting steroid, antacid, Benadryl, and anti-nausea with my weekly Taxol treatments. I was told to expect to lose all my hair with Taxol. I lost a small amount of hair on the 13th day from the first Taxol treatment but the next day my hair was falling out in significant amounts. I am now 25 days since the first Taxol infusion and my hair is really thinned down to not much and I will be getting it shaved off today.
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doesn’t feel right to me. They gave her pills and told her to take them as soon as she felt nauseous. Sounded off to me that’s why I came here. Had TCH 10 yrs ago didn’t know if anything had changed.
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Ilania - they prescribed me a bottle of Zofran and another anti-nausea medicine at the beginning of chemo to take if I had problems with nausea but these are in addition to the Zofran infustion that I get with my Taxol treatments.
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she’s just starting this week. I assume most people get it just before chemo. Do any of you take anything at home ahead of time. 10 yrs ago I took some steroids the night before. And got benadryl ( I requested it ) to nap and anti nausea before.
I think I’m going to have to have a talk with doctor.
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for those who at losing their hair I remember how terrified/horrified I was when it came out. Made a ball out of it. I kept that ball until cat found it one day and started to bat it around. After it’s gone it’s easier and there are some benefits. The best one is no blow drying - no fuss. Can be very freeing. Spend xtra time on makeup. There is great makeup for eyebrows. When it grew in I kept it extra short for a while it was so easy.
You can also look to get some cool temp tattoos
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Ilania - I did not get any pre meds for my first Taxol treatment. They did the first chemo treatment slower than they are doing the rest in case you have a bad reaction to the Taxol. I did have a bad reaction after 6 days so I have been taking extra steroids that are slowly being ramped down over 4 weeks and then I will just be down to the normal amount of steroids I take with the chemo.
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Certainly she should have a script for nausea to use just in case, and many do use it on a routine for a few days around treatments. At my center I got Pepcid and steroid with the taxol and Pepcid, steroid and Benadryl with the AC (I think) but no regular anti nausea scheduled and didn't need it. Remember that doses/protocols for chemo, as well as the premed regimens, are much more specific as far as dosing based on weight, etc, so what used to cause a lot of nausea, may not anymore. That said, do ask the doctor. I was not advised to take anything ahead of my first treatment.
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ok that makes a lot more sense -- she will likely get an infusion of premeds just before the taxol.
I wasn't given anything to take in advance.
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Snaffle53– I had trouble with my liver enzymes. They didn't come down til almost 4 months PFC, but are fine now
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Hey all, I'm having bad joint and muscle pain side effects from taxol. Does pepcid help with this pain? I'm taking ibuprofen, other than the pain I feel ok
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Gamb, I found a heating pad helped
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Gamb, pepcid is for gastric type problems like an ulcer or GERD. Won't help that Taxol pain. Ibuprofen or Tylenol. Rx strength ibuprofen is 600-800 mg, so you can take 3-4 of the OTC 200 mg tablets. That will cause gastric problems, so be sure and take it with food.
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I still have just a little bit of hair on my head as I hopefully have my 5th Taxol session tomorrow. My hair is pretty thin at this point but what is left was trimmed to about and inch last Friday. Prior to chemo my natural hair was medium brown with gray (white) around my temples and a little bit more but predominantly brown. My husband and I both noticed that what was left of my hair was mostly white and that the brown hair had fallen out. Then this evening we both noticed that my hair has changed color and is turning dark again. It is pretty wild! Did anyone else experience this?
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I just finished weekly Taxol #2 after having to take a two week break after Taxol #1 due to an infection that put me in the hospital for four days. The first week missed was because we wanted me to be truly over the infection. The second week missed because my liver enzymes had shot up while I was still on an oral antibiotic.
Hopefully, I am back on track. We have optimistically made infusion appointments to the end of the year. Which, if I stay on track, will leave three infusions remaining in a January. So far, Taxol is treating me much better than the AC cycles. Hope this continues. I have a great team of chemo nurses. Their goal is to keep me on schedule. All we can think was that the infection in a salivary gland was a fluke. I just got exposed to a bug and the wrong time.
Hoping treatments go well for all of us here with no glitches.
Marilyn0 -
Martaj ask if they have tested you for aplastic anaemia.....I was found to have this and it can be caused by chemo, as in my case.......it doesn't show up in iron levels.....
Hope this helps
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Martaj ask if they have tested you for aplastic anaemia.....I was found to have this and it can be caused by chemo, as in my case.......it doesn't show up in iron levels.....
Hope this helps
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Getting packed to go home (!!!) from the Mayo Clinic in MN. My MRI shows a positive response but there is still a mass of some type, could be IDC, could be DCIS or scar tissue. No real way of knowing.
Mayo oncologist is going to recommend to my home oncologist that we add Carboplatin to my Taxol as he feels my hormone receptor #s are so low that I'm technically triple negative.
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Cowgal - my hair was red before chemo - now it's a color that's hard to describe. It came in dark, changed to more grey and white with an odd light color - when it's wet, it looks like old fashion Christmas tinsel on top! I found myself being annoyed when I say it use to be red and people respond with "well, at least you have hair" or some form of that remark. I loved my red hair! I finally decided, after trying to analyze why those comments bothered me, it's because my new hair is part of my new normal, which I am still trying to get use to. And right now, I'm not wild about the new normal.
Annie
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