Cytoxan Taxotere Chemo Ladies- February/March 2013
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MIMomma - yes, I'm meeting w radiation oncologist next Thursday and will start mid-April. We're actually going to Florida for Easter break. A well deserved vacation for me, hubby and 3 kiddos. We visit family each year down there ...just never imagined such a stumbling block before we would leave. I guess I could say good planning ... 3 weeks after last treatment! Ugh. Yes, most definitely looking forward to sumner and having this all behind me! SE haven't been bad at all. Just fatigue and got a little worse this round but only one extra day. Snapping out of it today. Yay. Hope you are doing well and again best of luck on Thursday. One more down... yay for you
hope the hair is doing ok!! take care ♡Kim 0 -
Goldenpaws--Enjoy the sun and the sand! You do deserve it! --Bethany
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Sjacobs, What was the drug that you were told caused leukemia?
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Hi ladies,
Thanks for all the advice, etc on this thread. I join your ranks on Monday. I'm at times relieved to get this going and other times really scared. "Luckily" I've been unemployed for a bit and my daughters are grown so I have time for cancer. I give multiple kudos to the ladies w/ little ones or work demands.
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3 days post infusion #3. Never been so tired. Zofran gave me a headache so doing Arivan and Compazine. Sleep an hour - awake 20 min. Allen 90 min. Awake 39. Feel like a zombie but it keeps the nausea away .
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mysunshine4 - I believe the regimen that you may be referring to is AC+T. Adriamycin is know to cause heart damage, which can lead to heart failure and there is a risk of developing leukemia. They say the percentage of this happening is very low. The heart problems that it may cause is the reason I opted to go with TC regimen. I have extremely high blood pressure which is controlled, but did not want to take the chance of adding heart damage. Hope this helps.
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ThinkingPositive, mysunshine4, Adriamycin is exactly the drug that my MO said may possibly cause leukemia. Talk about the cure being worse than the disease! Low possibility, but enough to concern my MO.
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Didn't get the metallic taste or dry skin till this cycle. Skin on head got sore again. All splotchy. Yikes what a difference! I spoke too soon saying my SEs were minimal.
Face looks like I live in the desert. So tired it's an effort to walk to the mail box. Didn't feel up to yoga and my chest scars are talking back in protest. Mouth taste is so bad have no idea what to try to eat. Sweets are out. Toast is ok. Sure hope it goes away when the chemo is done.
Rant is over! Hang in there ladies. This too shall pass.
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Hi all! Sounds like everyone is hanging in there and doing their best to cope with their treatments. For those getting ready to embark on this journey please check back on this forum and ask questions about your SE s. Excellent feedback !
I am happy to report that today was my final round of chemo! I am pretty emotional because I have come to the end of that particular journey. I do realize I am not done...a brief time off and I head into 35 radiation treatments coupled with hormone therapy....so not looking forward to THAT.
I just want to say that I never really fully understood the bravery and strength we all have during this time. I am cheering each of you on! Even though the chemo journey is over I know I am not likely to forget about it anytime soon.
Hugs to all...
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twinky mom, congrats! Rads is a piece of cake compared to chemo
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Yay Twinky mom! Chemo is all done for you. Hugs to you for the rest of your journey.0 -
Hurray for Twinkiemom. You reached the finish line!!!!
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Twinkymom- Congrats and welcome to the other side of chemoland!!!! Hope your side effects from the chemo start to diminish soon!!! Wishing you the best with what lies ahead for you!!! HUGS!!!!
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Hi taxotere ladies,
Just finished my thretment on 19 this month I am so stressed and anxious. Hot flashes and sweats are killing me and I will start tamoxifen in days any advice ??? Any supplements can help with them ??
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Sorry, I don't have any advice, but the hot flashes have started to wake me up at night, and keep me awake for hours. I'll be looking for the same words of wisdom. roby7, will you not have to do rads? They wont be starting me on tamoxifen until after I'm done with rads, at least that is my understanding.
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chloesmom....you and I are on the exact same regimen and timetable. I had my third round on 3/17 as well and did not do well at all. I haven't had the nausea but the exhaustion hit me hard. Then 7 days post treatment I woke with hives and welts over my entire body. It got progressively worse despite the benedryl and prednisone my MO prescribed. I ended up in the ER once the hives and swelling were all over my face. Mv blood pressure got dangerously low...78/43 and I was admitted. I spent 5 days in the hospital with uncontrollable itching and hives. Finally it got better. Now the concern is what to do with this last treatment coming up next week. My MO is suggesting switching out the Taxotere for Adraimycin for this last one. I spoke with his nurse at length yesterday. I will see him on Thursday. She assures me that the efficacy rate is the same and it attacks the cells in the same way. Just more GI related side effects. I was worried about the heart issues but with only one treatment I feel better.
I have to say that I was very positive and feeling fairly good about my treatment. Now this set me back emotionally. I was not able to work last week and am still getting my strength back this week. Next week it starts all over. I am ready to be done with this leg of the journey. Trying to look at this Easter Week as a time of Hope and Renewal and forge ahead!
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roby7- Sorry that the hot flashes and sweats are frequently visiting you. I"ve been on Tamoxifen since September 2012. I still experience the hot flashes which is a part of being pushed in menopause during my time in chemoland,. Fortunately, I have what I call "not so hot" hot flashes. At every visit to the onco, I am asked about the hot flashes and my Tamox side effects. My side effects are not severe enough that I want to take anything for the hot flashes. I do know several BC survivors whose hot flashes were intolerable. Some are on a prescription drug Effexor which has helped them. I do not take any kind of supplements and do not take Effexor. I know some have gotten off of the Effexor and experienced withdrawal side effects from it. I would hope you have an onco appt soon and have the chance to talk to your onco about the hot flashes and sweats.
I do remember getting up in the middle of the night to get a glass of ice water and standing in front of the freezer with the freezer door open....... what a cool down!!!!
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Hello my name is alicia and i just found out i have to do the cytoxan taxotere chemo for nine weeks, could anyone share with me what to expect--i have four kids and my husband is away for work alot, and any advice would be greatly appreciated. How long into treat,ment is it until you lose your hair??? thanks so much!!
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Hi Alicia,
Sorry that you have to join this forum. I finished my 4 treatments of Cytoxan Taxotere 6 weeks ago. You will get a lot of good information on this forum. It helped me a lot to deal with the side effects. My advice to you would be to drink a lot of water from the day before your chemo, and after chemo - so that all that toxin is flushed out of your system. Also take your anti nausea meds from the morning of your next day of chemo, DON"T wait for nausea to start, then plan to take the med. You mentioned you have 4 kids, so this will help. Also plan to have meals frozen or ready on the week of chemo, after a week you might feel a little better till the next chemo.
Read this thread, you will get a lot of information. Wish you best. Once you start, nine weeks will go by very quickly.
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Alicia, welcome. So sorry that you are joining the club no one ever wants to be in, but let me tell you that the nicest people are in it.
I suggest looking at some of the other chemo threads as well, there are a lot of tips on getting through it.
What to expect... You will start losing your hair about 14 days after your first treatment. Is your husband able to stay close to home while you are undergoing treatment? If not, is there any family or friends that can help? How old are your children? I can tell you that there was no way I could have done it without my husband's help. He did all the cooking. Luckily I already had house cleaners. My husband and son do their own laundry. My son is 16 and my other son is in college, he is 19.
I had my treatments on a Friday, total of 4 treatments, 3 weeks apart. I usually felt pretty good on Saturday and Sunday, but by Monday I would start to feel really tired. By Tuedsay, nothing tastes good to me, and I experienced some intestinal distress. No nausea or vomiting, but terrible diarrhea. Some people get constipation. Your mileage may vary. The really bad side effects lasted about a week and a half. Then things would get better. The week before each treatment was usually pretty good. I could taste things normally again, and I had more energy.
You have to be very careful to avoid infection. I had two UTIs during treatment, and the second one landed me in the ER one night. If any of your children get sick, they will have to stay away from you.
I finished my last treatment on Dec. 29, but I started losing my fingernails and toenails at the end of February. I have to keep them very short so that they don't accidentally get torn off. My hair is growing back, I have peach fuzz all over now. Speaking of hair, one of the positives of chemo is that you won't have to worry about shaving, and if you ever thought of getting a Brazilian Wax, you'll have the same effect. Your period will most likely stop as well. I haven't gotten mine back yet, my doc says that I have a 50 50 shot at it coming back, probably six months post treatment
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up hereHi Alicia, glad you have joined BCO Forums and already received responses from our knowledgeable and helpful groups here. The advice here is from experience, not just theories.
We wish you the best, The Mods
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Welcome Alicia, to our group of strong and brave women. sjacobs has given you good sense of what to expect, but honestly, we are all different and the treatments effect us all differently. So prepare for the worst, and hope for the best:) I am half way thru my treatments, #3 is next week. I've been able to work the whole time, with just one day at home (the Monday after, as sjacobs mentions).
speechmom, I do hope you are feeling better. Here I was thinking that the next 2 rounds would be similar to what I have already been through. But guess you never know. I hope #4 goes better for you. And you will be all done, yeah!
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Alicia: The link below has tons of tips & lists for getting through chemo. Good luck.
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Alicia, You will lose your hair. I had my first cytoxan/taxotere treatment on December 19, cut my hair short on December 31, and shaved it a few days later when I purchased a wig (the wig store shaved it for me). Losing my hair, some fatigue, and some constipation were my issues. I did not get sick at all; however, my energy level was quite low days 4-5 after chemo and then for a few more days as well each cycle. I also had some issues with anxiety/depression....Celexa and Lorazapam were my new friends. I took Miralax every day which helped with the constipation. I am now doing radiation. It will go fast.... I also had four treatments over nine weeks. If you want to PM me, I am happy to compare notes with you! I think friends/family helping with meals, getting take out, helping with housework and laundry...... and if your kids are young.... some help with them would be a good idea (since you said your husband is gone a lot..lean on some friends)! This is doable. You will be looking back on this experience before you know it.
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Speechmom. Sorry you have been feeling so poorly. My BP was also way down but not as much as yours. My face got hot and red after any type of stress. Dad passed away the day after the last infusion so that didn't help. Am exhausted. The nails are so sore. Trying to reach into my purse hurts socks hurt. Tuesday is the final round. Had pre chemo blood test today Ring the bell
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Chloesmom - good luck next week. I know you're anxious to be FINISHED and ring that bell. Hope all goes well.
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Hello Ladies,
I am joining the TC Chemoland on April 15. Had a Chemo 101 session today and happened upon this site. Read soooo much of what I learned about today so I feel good that I have been adequately prepared, if that's even possible. NOT looking forward to losing the hair on my head but legs and pits, I'm good with that. I see so much about food not tasting the same, this will be hard, I LOVE food!!! Any tips???
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I tried last week to have my first infusion--turns out I am very allergic to Taxotere and had an anaphylactic reaction! I was so psyched up and ready to go!
The nurses were very calm while they were working with me so I was never scared...until AFTER!
I have an appointment with my MO on Friday to see about Plan B.
*sigh*
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The food issues for me come and go and are unpredictable. I had no problem this morning and tonight my mouth tastes like the inside of a tin can. When the metallic taste hits I diet do well with the blandest food like turkey breast, yogurt, oatmeal. Other times the best thing is spicey foods to ove ride the taste like tortilla veggie snacks. Have eaten a lot of walnuts to keep up the protein intake when my mouth feels yucky Yesterday I finished my TC infusions. Thought it would never happen. Hang in there!
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DebAnn - Welcome. below is a link for a good thread that has tips & lists for chemo. The one thing I know for sure, everyone reacts differently. Unfortunately I didn't really got my taste back for 6 months so I had lots of Carnation Instant Breakfast & added protein powder.
Look for the "April Chemo" or Spring Chemo in the active threads.
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