Weekly Taxol group
Comments
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Thanks, Ingerp -- that's very encouraging to know. I'm still going to give icing a try because this one really does scare me and, if. it comes to that, I want to feel like I've done what I can. I've really appreciated your thoughtful replies on this thread and elsewhere, including when I was first diagnosed. Trying not to spin out too much. Ha!
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ARmom4 - I'm in Arkadelphia. I had a strange reaction to taxol - skin toxcity which looked like a cross between measles and poison ivy. I did have occasional breakouts on my face. MO said this was not unusual. I am SO glad your treatment went well!! Praying the next treatments go well!
Annie
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Thanks for the prayers Annie! They are appreciated. And prayers to you too. I read that it's probably the steriods causing the breakouts. Mine are actual pimples but they pop up for a week or so after treatment then go away til next time. I realized that I had these breakouts even when I was not getting chemo because of the reactions. So, makes sense to me.
Now, I have all these little sore bumps all over my scalp. These are not pimples. I'm thinking my hair's going to fall out soon. Maybe I should go ahead and buzz it?
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hey there all, I’ve just finished up the AC portion of my chemo so it’s off to weekly taxol in 4 weeks! I’m excited to be almost halfway done and am hoping the taxol can take down this beast for good.
Since looking through this forum I’ve decided to ice my hands and feet and have ordered some cooling socks and extra gel packs to help me with this. I’m also planning to just get some old-school refillable ice packs and sandwich my hands between them. If anyone has any further tips on icing I’d be more than happy to hear them.
My MO has given me the choice as to weather I want to add carboplatin to my regimen every 3 weeks or not. She says data is pretty 50:50 on whether it is recommended but would possibly hesitate since it may cause me to miss taxol infusions if the side effects are too much. Is anyone here on carbo as well as taxol that can share your experience with me? I’ve had no real noticeable symptoms on AC beyond hair loss but this may be because I’m pregnant (there is a theory that it’s almost a weird protective from chemo) and I won’t be when I start the taxol. I’ve got a little while to decide on the carbo and will be reading a lot of articles but any input would be appreciated.
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hawkvand, you may want to also ask your question in the triple negative subforum.
I was not offered carboplatin and honestly don't know if I could have had it - I had complications all through AC+T & just barely limped through that so at that time they probably would not have been able to add anything more.
BUT you're young, triple neg, Grade 3. Honestly, I would throw *everything* you can at it. You only get one shot. 50/50 might help to me sounds like something I'd leap at, but a lot of that is personal attitude and response to risk. Taxol is easier than AC imo.Consider getting a 2nd opinion from a different MO/cancer center as well.
best wishes
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Good Morning Ladies!
I just finished Taxol #7, with 5 more to go, yay!! (I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, praise Jesus!)
Overall, I have been handling Taxol pretty well. I did have severe reactions on Treatment 2 and 3, so my MO increased the steroids, which sucks, and the Benadryl. She also extended the infusion from 1 hour to 3. It has worked, no more reactions!!! But....good Lord....icing my hands and feet for 3 hours is horrible! I think I may have frostbite before all of this is over, lol!
Anyway, among a few of my side effects are nose bleeds. Every single day, multiple times a day. I think the last time I went without a nosebleed was 3 weeks ago? Both my MO and infusion nurse say this a pretty common side effect for Taxol. Do anyone of you have this issue? Have you found anything to help?0 -
etnasgrl- I can relate with the nose bleeds. They pretty much started half way thru taxol. So I had theme pretty much everyday I would gently pinch my nose to help the bleeding to stop. My MO encouraged me to spray nose with saline nasal spray and just not to blow too hard. I also used a humidifier in my room at night to help keep nasal passages moist. I hope this info helps!0
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Thanks ByUmom2! I do have some saline nasal spray and will try that, to see if it helps. The nosebleeds are more annoying than anything else. Thankfully, they are never very heavy. But they always seem to come on at the worst times, lol!
Once you completed Taxol, did they stop? Or did it take a while?0 -
etnasgrl- yes the nose bleeds went away about a week or so after my last taxol treatment... so that is Something to look forward to!😉0
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Um.... face breakouts on Taxol? Infusion #2 of 12 weekly was on Tuesday. Strangely red and bumpy last night and this morning. Not itchy, only on my face. Had I not looked in the mirror, I wouldn't have even known. Anybody else experience this? (Alt., I guess it could be the trastuzumab from the prior Tuesday. Am assuming it's a side effect from something or other.)
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I had increased redness to my cheeks weeks 2-12 of Taxol and another week or so after. Didn't get acne wth it though.
~Katie💗
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Thank you, Katie. I'm a little pink, too. I talked to the pharmacist for the chemotherapy program today and had a chance to ask. She said acne is an uncommon but not unheard of side effect of Taxol. Advised mild cleansers, such as with salicylic acid; avoid benzoyl peroxide. At last, I have something in common with my teenager...
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Unreal.. careful with things with salicylic acid as they can dry out your skin and make matters worse. Lol about the teenager comment.
~Katie💗
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I was prescribed gabapentin for Neuropathy. I don't know if I want to take it. I don't feel any pain. I just tend to drop things if I'm not mindful. Has anyone taken this medication and not had side effects? I have a 6 yr old at home I can't take medication that will make me sleep a lot. I had Taxol # 8 today and have 4 more rounds.
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ganapentin makes me very sleepy about 2h after I take it. My daytime dose means I nap pretty much every day. You could just take it at night.
Are you doing the other things for neuropathy already? Icing, b6, l-glutamine?
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UnrealTarHeel- I did get some bits of acne during treatment. My M.O. mentioned to me that it was most likely from the premed steroids. I switched to milder cleansers such at Cetaphil or Cerave. They seemed to help and it also did not dry out my skin as much. I still get a few bumps under my skin on my cheeks now & then, and I have been done with taxol since August...so maybe the Herceptin has something to do with it too. I just had my last Herceptin dose this week so maybe in a few weeks I will be able to tell if it had any connection with the pimple/bumps.0
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Ladies—question please. The first morning after this week’s first combo steriod-Benadryl-Pepcid-Herceptin-Taxol chemo combo my urine was very milky pale yellow color. For the next two days as long as I drank plenty water my urine was clear. Then this morning it was milky cloudy pale yellow again but to a much lesser degree. Is this normal? Am I eliminating chemo or is it chemo and cancer?
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j
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I'd want to rule out a UTI. Can you call on to your gp or the MO and ask them to fax a requisition to the lab? Quick midstream pee in a cup for routine & micro and culture & sensitivity and they'll be able to tell. UTIs can be kind of stealthy but can also move into kidney. Milky can mean white blood cells are in the bladder indicating infection
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moth — I can. Blessed with a great pcp relationship and the MO gave me an after hours number — lol — said “use it,” don’t be shy we want to stay ahead of things. Thanks for the tip. I was hoping I was getting rid of a heap of cancer cells.
Hope you are doing as well as you can.
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j
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@ByUmom2: Thanks for the tips. The pharmacist seemed to think it was related to the Taxol, but the steroids are an interesting question! (I've only had 1 Herceptin so far and that was 10 days ago, whereas the zits popped up within 48 hours of Taxol #2. But who really knows what's going on?!) Will see if I can pick up some gentle cleanser this weekend and ask about the steroid on Tuesday when I go back.
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I have been on gabapentin for a couple of months for foot neuropathy. No pain, just numbness. The medicine has helped some feelling to return and helped my mobility. I take only at night.
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Hi charbusho - Welcome to Breastcancer.org and thank you for sharing your experiences with gabapentin and neuropathy here in this wonderful group! We're sure you'll make great connections here, and we encourage you to stop by often, ask questions, and support others.
If you have any questions at any time, feel free to get in contact with us, we're always here.
Warmly,
The Mods
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Thank you, Mods!
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Hey there everyone! Thank you all for posting in this thread. I am currently getting my first taxol dose and have already learned a lot from all of your experiences. I iced my feet and hands per suggested and am hoping it will help. I’m also getting carboplatin with my taxol so it might be hard to tell which med is causing side effects if I have any. The only complaint I have is with the IV Benadryl they gave me before the taxol. Oh my goodness did it make me restless! Glad they won’t do that high of a dose next time. I’m super excited to be started on my final leg of chemo before surgery.
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I just had #7 of my 12 Taxol treatments. I have white fuzzy hair on my head. Will it continue to grow or is it too soon for hair to be coming back in AC/Taxol regimen?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts
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Hi TxMom3!
My hair started to grow on Taxol too. My MO said it would. I finished my AC +T on 7/17/19. Had a mastectomy on 8/8/19 and rads 10-11/19. I got my hair colored my last day of rads 11/13/19 and never wore my wig again (4 months after chemo ended). It may come in patchy at first, but it does grow back. It does happen! And you know what else? I had to look up some of those dates...which to me is almost more exciting, because I feel like I’m moving on.Hopefully, the reconstruction part will come soon if all the COVID mess clears up.
Happy new hair!
Lauren
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Hey amigas, wow everyone has been quiet!
question for anyone - Did ice in the mouth help once sores started or is it more of a preventative thing?
I've had 10/13 scheduled taxols (supposed to be 3 weeks on, 1 week off but I missed some - each for a different reason!) & now I'm getting sores on my tongue & back of mouth. Ugh! I'm icing feet and hands so I'm not sure how I can manage ice in my mouth during treatment as my hands are in big mitts. Would an iced drink with a straw that I kind of sip slowly and hold in my mouth work or does it have to be ice chips?I'm on taxol 'forever' - until side effects become unmanageable so I need to nip this in the bud.
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Moth I only had double dose taxol 4 times and icing my mouth helped, i did get some blisters before 3rd dose but the swish and swirl of nystatin help me alot, I used this every day mornings and before bed, peace and comfort to you.
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moth- sorry your having mouth sore issues!! I did not ice hands feet it mouth so I'm not sure how that would work. Have you tried the warm salt and baking soda mouth rinses?? Does the chemo center know about the sores? I really hope they go away quickly and aren't something you have to deal with for an indefinite amount of time!!
~Katie💗
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thx Gamb & ipenelope! I had my pre chemo check up today & got a prescription for the Magic mouth rinse. She added nystatin to the recipe in case there was something fungal lurking as I'm on prophylactic antibiotics all the time now.
I'm sure that will do the trick!0
