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Cytoxan Taxotere Chemo Ladies- February/March 2013

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Comments

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited November 2015

    Thank you! Yes, I can exhale now!

  • jabe
    jabe Member Posts: 165
    edited November 2015

    anyone experience hives from taxotere or other allergic reactions? I had one reaction in the infusion chair after round 2 (flushing and started to have trouble breathing) and massive hives a week after round 3. MO is comfortable going forward for final round next week but I'm concerned and seeing allergist today on the advice of 2nd opinion MO at s major cancer center elsewhere. Other experiences? Thoughts

  • keepthefaith
    keepthefaith Member Posts: 856
    edited November 2015

    jabe, I had a minor reaction to Taxotere. I had my MO reduce my last dose of the Taxotere infusion. Are they giving you sterioids or Benadryl?

  • jabe
    jabe Member Posts: 165
    edited November 2015

    I've gotten it all and saw an allergist this morning. She's going to consult with my MO, weighing risk/benefits. It's never straightforward, huh

  • Marksgirl
    Marksgirl Member Posts: 20
    edited November 2015


    Huge hives - my eyelids, everywhere.   Here is a link to the discussion.   The good news is a combo of meds really really helps.   Here is a link to the topic, Peanut323 in the middle of the page states to try Zyrtek and Pepsid.   I just took Zyrtek and it saved me.   I took it in advance for my next infusions and avoided the rash!!!!!!!

    https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/69/topics/769465?page=1

    I ended up having to decrease my last dose of Taxotere because my liver enzymes elevated too high but no hives thanks to the Zyrtek for a few days before and a week after.    Hang in there!   The hives were my lowest point on chemo but Zyrtek may help!!!  Hugs to you Jabe

  • jabe
    jabe Member Posts: 165
    edited November 2015

    thank you Marksgirl!!

  • TeamKim
    TeamKim Member Posts: 301
    edited December 2015

    I had the terrible hives as well -- they would start in my crotch (nice) and each treatment they got worse. When they appeared on the palms of my hands, my onco said that was enough -- my last infusion was only Cytoxan, no Taxotere. It was explained to me that my allergy might be to the medium in which the drug is suspended, not the drug itself (not that I cared what was causing my misery!). I was blending topical Benadryl with Vagisil for my crotch, and using the Benedryl gel everywhere else. Tried oral Benedryl too, but that didn't help. Onco said the allergic reaction could be dangerous, because once you get to the severe hives point, you could have life-threatening reaction which would affect breathing. So be careful, and keep in touch with your doc and chemo nurses to help you and advise you.

  • gakristi
    gakristi Member Posts: 21
    edited December 2015

    Hi gang, and thanks to CatsRus for pointing me to this thread from my initial post here here.

    I am a newbie on TC, first infusion was yesterday (12/9/15). Feeling okay today and anxious about the coming weeks. I'll have 4 treatments (total) at 3 week intervals.

    Thank you to all of you for sharing your experiences. It really helps us newbies as we get started.

    Kristi

  • TeamKim
    TeamKim Member Posts: 301
    edited December 2015

    Hi gakristi -- welcome to TC (where none of us ever wanted to be, but there you are!)... This board really got me through chemo, and I can't say enough about the benefit of being in the virtual space with others who have or are experiencing it. Read lots through the thread for plenty of advice, and keep us posted on how it goes -- fingers crossed for easy bounce back from your first treatment

  • CatsRus
    CatsRus Member Posts: 98
    edited December 2015

    glad you found the thread, Grkristi. I found this thread very helpful and the women supportive when I went through chemo. Good luck to you

  • Lyra10
    Lyra10 Member Posts: 3
    edited December 2015

    I did my first treatment today and so far I feel like I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. I am trying to plan and so instead of having the hair fall out I've made an appointment to shave my head followed by a wig fitting.

    My HUGE question is will I have to give up coffee?

    Any and all advice is accepted

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    Not sure about coffee, but hair...!

    Regarding hair... My hair didn't fall out until Day 28, so don't rush to get it shaved off! Instead, my advice is to have it cut very, very short into a pixie so you can experiment what a short modern cut is like so you won't be stressed out when it starts to grow back. I LOVED my pixie, and now that my hair is growing back, I'm going to do the Jamie Lee Curtis cut that someone posted in another thread. I'll try to find a picture of it and post it here.

  • Italychick
    Italychick Member Posts: 527
    edited December 2015

    here it is.

    image

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    Get a cute, fun short cut is my advice. It'll fall out in 2-4 weeks, but try something new. Don't rush bald because it's going to happen in a few weeks. You are only 44, so look at some modern cuts! I'm 10 weeks post CT chemo, and I'm going to wear this short style for a while!

    image

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    Italychick - Thank you! I had to go back to your post to find it! haha! I love this cut. I sent it to my hair stylist after you posted it, and said, "This is what I want when I get hair again!"

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    I also love this cut, but it's many months away for me!

    image

  • octogirl
    octogirl Member Posts: 2,434
    edited December 2015

    I have not, and would not, give up my coffee!

    I didn't shave my head either, snd agree with Sloan's advice. and I did go for a shorter cut. Unlike Sloan, I didn't get a wig. Now that I am so impatiently waiting for the hair to come back, there is a big part of me that wishes I had....

    Octogirl

  • jabe
    jabe Member Posts: 165
    edited December 2015

    I got a wig and wish I hadn't. I wore it once. My gut said (before I got it) that I wasn't going to feel like me in a wig. I should have trusted my gut. While I don't love how I look in scarves and beanies, I still feel like me. Hard to explain

  • gakristi
    gakristi Member Posts: 21
    edited December 2015

    My plan is to try on some wigs / scarves / hats and take some photos before my hair starts coming out so I can think about them and get some feedback from friends and family (and maybe here too :) ) so when I'm ready to take that step, I'm not rushing into something I'll regret.

    I had a teensy bit of nausea last night and this morning, but manageable (now 3 days after treatment 1).

    Taking it a day at a time...

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    I thought I'd wear more scarves (since I love scarves and hats), but once my lashes and eyebrows started coming out, I found wigs made me feel less (and look less) like a cancer patient. I mean, yes, I'm a cancer patient, but I didn't want cancer to define me. I wear nothing at home or wear a soft slouch cap beanie when it's cold. I also found that the wigs were sooooo easy. With the scarves, you had to get the height right, the knot right, etc. You just pull on a wig and brush the bangs to the side. Yep, you'll decide what's best for you. I'm telling you this because I bought a lot of things that I never used.... Trying things out for a while is a good idea.

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    Here is my son and me with my wig. You can see how thin my brows are. (They fall out at the END of chemo. What an insult, huh?)

    The second pic is me in a scarf as my hair STARTED falling out. The scarf look is cute, but once my bangs, lashes and brows went, I didn't like the look. (There is brow-dust for making brows btw).


    image

    image

  • Sloan15
    Sloan15 Member Posts: 845
    edited December 2015

    Imagine that scarf pic without bangs, brows and lashes...

    Now that my hair is coming in -all 1/2 inch- I either don't wear a wig, wear it, or wear scarves again. I really learned to love short no-hassle hair!


  • minustwo
    minustwo Member Posts: 13,389
    edited December 2015

    Lyra - I second the advice not to shave your hair. Get it cut short. I can't post pictures, but another cute, even shorter cut is Annie Lennox. You can google her. Even when it all starts to fall out, I was told to get a short buzz & not shave, since the stubs can be prickly & irritating.

    I had a wig but mostly wore Buffs - a great tube type of scarf. The link below shows some of the ways you can use. I got mine at Academy & REI. http://buffusa.com/buff-products/tubular/merino-wo... My head was usuallty cold so I did buy a soft cap w/no seams sleeping.

    My infusion center always had a coffee pot going. Yes, the standard advice is to cut down on caffeine, but I drank nothing but coke during chemo & rads. Everything else was less then appealing (even nauseating) & my MO said it was much more important to get down the liquid than to worry about the cokes. So maybe cut back but you shouldn't have to give coffee up.

    Sloan - cute picts.

  • CatsRus
    CatsRus Member Posts: 98
    edited December 2015

    I was lucky, the first wig I put on I loved and felt like me in it. I've tried on many many wigs since and hated them. I have that first one, then I bought two identical ones that my hairdresser cut for me in similar styles butone shorter than the other. I interchange the three so people must think my hair grows really fast..haha..I have another which I rarely wear, I don't hate it but I don't like it as much as the others. I have 2 good coverages and think I'll be buying again in the new year..they are so easy. I don't wear them in the house, just when I'm out. Very few people know I've had cancer and wear a wig. Good luck, it all a matter of finding what's right for you be it a wig, a scarf/hat, or nothing at all.

    I love Jamie's haircut, I'm aiming for that soon.

    Sloan15...you look great

  • Smurfette26
    Smurfette26 Member Posts: 269
    edited December 2015

    Sloan15 they are gorgeous pics.

    I hired a wig from the Cancer Council here in Australia. I can keep it for as long as I like or change it as often as I want. Was only $50 and the money goes back into providing more resources. While I quite like it and it's very similar to my own hair I haven't worn it.

    Mostly because it is summer here and it's just so hot. Cotton bandannas have been my "go to" headwear though I do hate the pitying looks I get as I'm so obviously identified as a cancer patient.

    Hope you continue to feel well gakristi

  • Lyra10
    Lyra10 Member Posts: 3
    edited December 2015

    thanks for all your advice on the hair. I have a pretty high profile job so I cannot do scarfs or hats and I've already tried the wigs and love them! Hell I figure I get an extra half an hour of sleep each morning. Plus my 2 week mark for the hair loss is Christmas so that's not a present I wish to give my 3 year old.


  • Suzanne50
    Suzanne50 Member Posts: 221
    edited December 2015

    I bought a wig but never had to use it. I was lucky enough to be able to use the Penguin Cold Caps. They saved my hair! Many people don't even know about them. My MO's office had them available to me. They were a bit of a pain to use but so worth it to not have the stress of hair loss, wigs, etc. Good luck to you!

  • gakristi
    gakristi Member Posts: 21
    edited December 2015

    Good morning gang - it's Sunday morning and my days of little to no side effects ended. Muscle / joint aches started late yesterday afternoon and it's been pretty uncomfortable. Unfortunately, I cannot take nsaids so I took some Tylenol and it helped some. My MO also put me on a stronger iron supplement than the one I was taking, but he wanted me to hold off starting it until today because it can cause nausea and he didn't want there to be any confusion between the nausea from the iron and the chemo.

    I did go out about midday yesterday to try some wigs. The shop I went to does not stock scarves, only wigs and turbans. Most of the wigs they had in stock to try on are for average sized heads and mine is large. But, here are the photos from what we did try. Let me know what you think. The first 2 are the same wig, just front and side shots.

    image

    image

  • octogirl
    octogirl Member Posts: 2,434
    edited December 2015

    gakristi, sometimes it is hard to tell from a photo, but if you are asking for opinions on which to choose: while you are really cute in all of them, I like the blonde one best...not sure (from your avatar) that it is your natural hair color, but it looks like you to me (even though I don't know you :-)). I'd go for blonde...

    I've noticed with other women (Sloan being one) that shorter wigs seem to look more natural, at least to me. Anyway, you rock all of them, so you can't go wrong!

    Can you take claritin? It really helped me with joint aches. Just the regular OTC stuff, and not Claritin D.

    Hugs

    Octogirl

  • CatsRus
    CatsRus Member Posts: 98
    edited December 2015
    I too think they all look great, gakristi, but if I had to choose just one, I think I like the long one. I think you should get the one you feel most comfortable in. Good luck, you look great.

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