Neoadjuvant TCHP - Post Results Here
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For those that had ALND, is radiation to the armpit after ALND routine?
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I had radiation to my arm pit even though they did an ALND and nodes were clear .. I had 1 positive node before chem
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I had rads to armpit after ALND too. Though I don't think they were directly targeting that area, it just fell in the area of treatment while they were hitting the four angles in my treatment plan. The nodes up by the clavicle were targeted for certain.
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Runningcello I am also from michigan! I am doing my treatment at henry ford In macomb I thought about getting a 2nd opinion but so far from what I researched they are doing everything I would want them to do except the SNB I wanted that was my surgeon she said if there were any cancer in them she would have to take them out before chemo even though chemo would get rid of the cancer in there I had a pet scan instead that showed no lymph involvement still bothers me I'm very thin 108 and 5'5" they said if my nodes were affected they would be able to feel them all they feel are ribs lol.. and I love my oncologist she straight up tells me how it is and makes me feel so much better whenever I talk to her.. I have a very good friend who works atkarmanos she is a dietician there and gave me some great tips on what to eat when your not feeling too great..day 2 I'm feeling tired but I had a hard time sleeping thinking it's from the dexamethasone maybe
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SugarCakes - I had chemo, ALND surgery and then rads. My MO & the tumor board said no way around it for me due to the HER2+.
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stephmoen, that's so neat. We're close to each other. I had a positive node that they found through a biopsy but you do not have to remove right away. It was done when I had my lumpectomy a month after chemo ended. I did not have a positive node when they did my sentinel node dissection during surgery.. But they still extract a few to ensure its clear.
Usually my symptoms appeared two days after chemo. The day after chemo I was able to go out and do a lot. But stay hydrated! 5 more to go
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Day 3 and feeling good a little GI upset is all.. Has anyone ever done this regimen every 2 weeks instead of 3 if I could get don't 6 weeks earlier that would be great
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and another thing I noticed today my lump is already smaller it's still there for sure don't get me wrong..but that must be a good sign right??
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Steph--yep, good sign. Long story, but I was sent for an MRI one week after my first treatment. They were really excited because they could already see shrinkage in my tumor. So glad you are doing so well.
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Stephmoen - sometimes doses of some chemicals are cut down and given every two weeks, but I don't remember seeing many cases. Also cutting the dose might mean you'd have to go a longer time for the same benefit. And I really think with TCHP that most people need the entire 3 weeks to manage to be ready for the next one - if not the SEs at least things like the white blood count. And you are HER2+ so the chemo is important. So glad you are doing OK so far. Take the time in between to rest & get ready for the next one. After chemo will you have surgery & radiation?
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stephmoen, you may feel great now but as the cycles continue it'll take longer to recover from each treatment. It's better to spread them out to give yourself time to recover, especially with the diarrhea that is often seen from perjeta. You will need a good 1-2 weeks to hydrate yourself from that.
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Nothing like some 2 am diarrhea to put you back in your place I spoke too soon..sorry for the TMI everyone!
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Hi Stephmoen...I too was hoping to speed things along with my treatments. After week one, I really did feel like I bounced back just fine, with week 2 and 3 pretty much symptom-free. Or nothing unmanageable, I should say! I thought if I just moved each of my treatment days up by one day, I'd be done a week ahead of schedule. Thankfully I double-checked and was warned that not only did my body need the time to fully recover, but there might be an issue with the insurance coverage if the standard 3 week protocol was not followed. (You know how if you go and try and pick up an Rx before it's "due" for a refill and your insurance won't cover it?) Seriously, didn't need that headache to deal with!!
I take Imodium for the first 4 days or so and it seems to do the trick.
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thanks Lorrie I do think I will stick with every 3 weeks I was getting ahead of myself I'm just eager to move on I know we all are! My worst syptoms right now other than GI upset is my hands they are terrible a horrible rash on them I keep putting lotion on
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is a rash an indication of an allergic reaction to the medicineor am I wrong?
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not sure i will double check with my nurse maybe call I've always had dry hands and I wash them a lot so maybe they are extremely dry it's almost like I have eczema now on my hands only
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Don't forget to take a good quality probiotic ladies. It will help with all the GI upsets like diarrhea and help minimize the tummy troubles.
Runningcello--definitely ask your doc about the rash. Can I ask where it is? I got a rash at my tumor site that my doc wasn't worried about. I decided it was the treatment breaking down the tumor.
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mombiezombie, I was referring to stephmoen for that because mentioned a rash on her hand post chemo treatment so I thought maybe she was having a reaction to the chemo
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Runningcello--Sorry, I got confused when I posted. I meant to refer to Stephmoen too. I still claim a bit of chemo brain. LOL
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haha does chemo brain ever really leave? Lo
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Runningcello--I'm in two other support-type groups on facebook. In talking to all of those women and the ones here in the BC.org threads, I've pretty much concluded that chemo-brain is permanent, but is never as bad as when you are on the treatments. Ugh. But it's a handy disclaimer when I do things like burn a pile of mushrooms followed by burning potatoes in the oven for six hours!! Yep, that was my Friday. I had to burn smelly candles and leave the windows open all weekend to get the burnt potato smell out of my house! LOL
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My chemobrain subsided after I stopped Herceptin and after my period returned. I wasn't ER+ so I don't require hormonal therapy. I'm not back to 100% but I'm not noticing big f-ups as much as I was even a month ago (I stopped herceptin almost three months ago). I have been taking UBQH (COQ10), acetyl-l-carnitine and a bunch of other supplements through my chinese medicine doc and naturopathic oncologist, customized to my body based on bloodwork.
Did anyone try fasting during treatment?
What about ovarian suppression during chemo?
Were you able to work through treatment or not? By round three I was too much of a wreck to put in time at the office. It wasn't until after I healed from rads that I returned to more regular office hours but it is still part-time and frequently disrupted by rehabilitation appointments.
If anyone is preparing for neoadjuvant treatment, big hugs, hang tight. Also, if you can participate in a research study monitoring how tumors respond to neoadjuvant chemo that would help contribute towards scientific understanding. I was offered the chance to participate in such a study but I was so overwhelmed at the time and I didn't like the study organizer at the center where that I didn't do it. I wish that I had because I know how much having access to that information would have helped me as a patient going through treatment.
This time last year I was getting ready for my third dose of TCHP. I can't believe how much better things are compared to then. My recent blood labs done by my naturopathic oncologist still show low magnesium, zinc and iron, low hemoglobin and lymphocytes but my inflammation markers and copper levels are low which is what we were working towards. Try to find someone to work with on the nutritional stuff if you can, I had to search it out on my own but it has been essential to my healing. Cancer treatment is about combatting a malignant cell line but it has nothing to do with trying to heal the conditions in the body that led towards the cancer formation.
PeaceAnn
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Agness - good post but I had to laugh about fasting. I wasn't able to eat much of anything during TCHP and lost 60 lbs, which I really couldn't afford to lose. I started gaining back once I was on Herceptin only.
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Minus--That's a scary amount of weight loss. You poor thing. My sister came to take care of me and my family for six months while I was doing chemo. I never stood a chance to lose weight. No matter how sick I felt, she was there pushing food at me and making me anything and everything. I mean that in a good way though. Did your doctor get on your case about the loss? My doctor didn't want me losing even the 15 pounds I lost and I was overweight! She wanted me to stay heavy during the chemo because it allows them to throw a higher doseage at the cancer.
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I had zoladex injected into me during my chemo sessions for ovary suppression. Still awaiting the return of my period as chemo ended back in september. I could have basically fasted during chemo considering the very little I ate the week of recovering from chemo. I swear, there was one day i did not put a drop of food or water in my system, thankfully I was at the hospital receiving IV fluids to make up for it. I weighed 126 at diagnosis and during treatment I would drop to like 120 or so and have to work to regain the weight because I'm already pretty thin.
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Runningcello--I would have been more like you (needing IVs) if not for people chasing me around. I really didn't want anything. But my sister was terrified of losing me, so I ate what she pushed at me for her sake. It would have been easier to not eat. LOL
If chemo wasn't so horrible, I'd wish I was still unable to eat. My naturopath wants me to lose 20 pounds. That will put me at what I'm supposed to be. I'm 43 and I've had four kids. Losing weight isn't easy anymore.
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I started tamoxifen 3 months ago and I refused to allow myself to gain weight from it. Many say its a placebo and the weight gain is because we assume we will gain weight from it.. regardless, I am being extra cautious of my food intake to ensure I don't gain any weight.
Truthfully, I refused to eat and drink almost everything during treatment and almost nobody could change that. I would sometimes suck on popsicles but that's about it. It got so bad I refused to take my zofran and dexamathesone on days 2 and 3 of treatment, lol.. so I was really on strike from life. I would just lay in bed and watch tv until I needed to puke my lungs out.. when that happened and I started to puke air, I realized it was time to go to the ER. I was probably the worst cancer patient ever because I would admit myself to the ER for iv fluids rather than sucking it up and hydrating myself. lol. I will admit, the weight loss was nice.. but at the time it was scary because I was so fragile
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ugh girls I was so cocky the first 3 days after chemo well it's hit me and hit me hard the night of day 3 when will the diarrhea stop it's been 5 days straight can I take Imodium that long? I haven't been taking it in fear that I will get constipated and my mouth is so sore it tastes and feels like I burnt all my taste buds off it's miserable I can't afford to loose any weight I'm already underweight I guess it will be a good excuse to eat lots of ice cream..I just hope I canmake it through this 😞
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Stephmoen--I took Imodium as long as I needed to. The first couple of rounds I did take it a full week (because I was afraid to not take it). I have never had an issue with constipation. I think with Perjeta, diarrhea is the more common SE. I'm on cycle #5 and this is the first time I've NOT had diarrhea problems. (hope I didn't just jinx myself!!!)
--Lorie
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Steph, take the Imodium. And let your MO/nurses know, too.
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