Who is starting chemo in September 2016?
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Hi everyone-
Sorry to hear about the insurance mess and the SEs. I've got a call into my insurance to see how much they'll cover of the zarxio shots - when my husband filled the script it was $300 😖
I'm 14 days out and shedding a lot - finally got a pixie cut which feels so much better but honestly I kinda wish it would go ahead and fall out!
I was wondering if anyone is having nail problems?my fingernails are splitting so easily and yesterday (gross alert up ahead!) I was wearing good leather closed toed shoes and barely hit my big toe w a door and it split my nail down the middle and tore 1/2 of it off. It hurts like a mother and I keep slathering it w neosporin. And I bet it won't grow back any time soon!
Here's to a healing weekend for you all
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Zarxio hasn't been mentioned thus far in any discussions for my TCHP treatment regimen.
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I haven't noticed anything with my nails yet. But when I had the MO check-in before treatment #2, he said he thought he saw some purpling around the nails that looked to him like the start of problems. Hoping not and maybe my fingers are just pale and purple normally lol.
Feeling a bit better today. Some brief bouts of queasiness and the metal-mouth is not helping. But able to eat a bit. Weighed in tonight, lost 8 or 9 lbs since last weekend. Will blame that on not eating/keeping things down, since D has not been an ongoing problem this time except early this week on one day.
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ACS...of course hydrocodone will be perfect! Somehow I left my brain in auto pilot this afternoon and didn't think. It is working......just gives me insomnia ( the opposite SE to everyone else I think!!).
HAhlyn, I receive Neupogen for 7 days. Same drug as Zarxio just different street name. I'm on day 3 of that.
B
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I start my chemo on the 29th. I'm getting pretty nervous but at the same time I am axioms to get started. I just got my port put in 2 days ago and it feels much better today. Hopefully the SE are not too bad but I'm scared just the same ugh!!!!
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Hi everyone. I just started chemo treatment this past wed-9/21/16. Currently dealing
with the side effects. I'm on the THCP treatment-1/6, before surgery. Is anyone else
on this treatment cycle?
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LynnC1968 I have my second infusion on the 29th so I'll be with you in spirit. xoxo
I have a bald spot and honestly, I too wish it would just fall out already at this point. I am tired of dealing with it.
I am still tired but otherwise doing okay for the most part. I don't own a scale so I am not sure about weight loss but I think maybe a few pounds.
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I woke up like this. Even though I've been anticipating it, it is still unnerving. I loved my silver hair. I tried on grey wigs but they looked fake so I got some brown thing that looks nice but it's not me.
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I am sorry Bagsharon xoxo
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Hello
Well I gave myself that zarxio shot last night. Hand to God that was the worse...I was having heart palpitations I was warm the pain was intense I wasn't sure what was going on. It only lasted about hour but it was rough. I have to take this shot for 4 more days..I'm scared. Out of my first chemo treatment, This zarxio shot was by far the most traumatic.
I'm going to get on the Horn with my oncologist this morning to see if the side effects are normal maybe they can lower dose...I dont know but thats an experience I don't want to go thru again.
Have great day and weekend!
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Bagsharon, sorry ...
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Hi bkc16 and LynneC1968-
Welcome to BCO! We hope your treatment goes well and goes easy on the both of you. You've come to the right place for support!
The Mods
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That sounds like my plan I will be starting next week. I will have surgery after my 6 treatments of Tchp. How are your SE so far? I hope your doing well.
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bkc16 I'm on the TCHP treatment as well. 6 cycles. I started on 9/21. Today I went into work for a few hours. I'm sore today but believe it's from the zarxio shot. Prior to.taking the shot last night I was doing okay. I just feel this shot has really done me in.
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I am doing TCHP for 6 cycles and I started 9/8, my next infusion is 9/29
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I start chemo on 9/29, and realized today that I need to buy shampoo. Really? I find that a little bit insulting.
In other hair news, I ordered a free hat/wrap from each of the websites that offer them for free. (Found on the tips page, maybe?) First I thought that it really isn't for me. Then I realized that it is exactly meant for me, and I should take them up on free stuff.
A couple of weeks ago, I ordered 3-4 things from https://www.headcovers.com/ A couple of bandanas for work, and a couple of other items. I think I might like the bendini the best, but we will see. I also ordered a set of the removable eyebrow tatoos. Has anyone tried these yet? I figure I'm going to be bad at drawing on eyebrows, and these might be a good option. They go on like the kid tatoos and last 2-3 days. I figure if my husband gives me any problems, I can put them on crooked and "give him the eyebrow".
Liver function test came back better today. Haven't talked to the doctor yet about what he thinks is the cause. Have to have another blood draw on Tuesday to make sure liver is okay for Thursday.
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Just got my port in yesterday. Very sore neck all night and most of today. Ibuprofen seemed to help more than the percosets they gave me. Got mine on the left side chest , right in the line of the car seat belt😖
Lynn--good luck with your first treatment. My first will be the 30th. They are saying over 5 hours the first time. Getting anxious to just get it done, but scared too! I really need to be able to work during this, and that really worries me.
Nottheboss- -very interesting about those tattoo eyebrows. Never even thought about dealing with that! 😦
Nayda- sorry to hear about your port problem. You have so much to deal with everything else going on- so not fair to have something like that go wrong.😟
I've always been a healthy person, until now, and never had to deal with Drs much. I am amazed at how much direct phone contact I have with my Drs. They call me personally in the evenings to give me test results and such. Is this how it is for everyone? My husband had esophageal cancer 15 years ago and I handled all the "business" end of things : call Drs , making appts. I don't remember ever speaking on the phone to any of them personally. And everything seemed to take so long...to get appts, test results. I'm just amazed at how swiftly and efficiently everything is happening for me and how in touch the Drs have been. Thankful for th little things, among the big scary things.
Bet wishes to everyone having treatment and fight s/e's. Stay strong!
~❤️
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Bagsharon-Hang in there. I'm right behind you. Mine is falling out more with each passing second it seems, but I am fortunate that I do have very thick hair so it isn't very noticeable except to me and those very close to me.
Hahlyn-I hope the SE's ease off.
HopefulYogi-I think you may be the exception. My doctors call if I call them first after hours, but other than that I don't hear from them until my appointments. I'm happy everything is going smoothly for you and I hope it continues!
As far as weight loss, I was down 9 pounds since treatment, but since being put on steroids I'm back up 3-4, it fluctuates. I'm sure that's mostly water as I feel swollen.
Nayda-Hope you were able to get your port bill resolved.
Have a wonderful night ladies and a minimal SE weekend!
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bkc16, I'm also on the TCHP neoadjuvant program, one cycle ahead of you
HopefulYogi, that's good that your team is calling you. I was quite surprised that after going through the treatment day and two extra days for IV fluids and Neulasta, they just turned me loose until my prep appointment for round 2 two weeks later - without even a call to see how I'm doing. Even my dog gets a call from the vet's office after she goes for a vaccine lol. And there are so many questions in this process one may want to ask about as the SEs start to run their course.
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Spoke too soon about being coming out of the D and nausea issues from round 2, had both today on day 9 from treatment, ugh. At least I made it into work for a few hours, and back to the hospital to do my second of the echocardiogram follow-ups.
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AC round 2 done! Half way through this stuff! Infusion was fairly quick this time. Had a worry with the port again. The first nurse tried 3 times and couldn't access it. Thank goodness for numbing cream! She called in a second nurse and she got it the first try and seemed kind of irritated with the first one that she couldn't get it. I thought sure it had flipped again, but thank goodness it hadn't. I finally asked the first nurse if she was new because she didn't seem like she knew what she was doing with several things. She said no but that she had just come back from taking a year off and she had to "relearn everything". Yikes--don't be relearning on me thank you very much! Feeling ok this morning. Woke up really early with a slight headache. No nausea meds so far. The steroids I have to take at home were cut in half so hopefully that takes care of the problem I had with that last time. Planning on going shopping with my daughter today. Hope that can happen. Have a great weekend everyone!
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Seq-50%! Woohoo!! I hope your SE's are minimal.
So the shedding is much worse, I washed my hair and it looked like I'd murdered a shih tzu in my bath tub. I'm thinking it may be time for my son and husband to give me a buzz cut, but my husband is a bit resistant. So much in my life has changed in the past few months, I have changed physically and mentally. I know that my hair will come back and that I'll be stronger at the end of all of this, but today I'm just a little sad.
Have a good weekend ladies. Stay strong.
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ACS--I'm right there with you. I'm getting ready to get in the shower and I'm afraid to see what happens with my hair. I've only been washing it every other day. I've been keeping it pulled back in a clip so it isn't dropping all over the place. I barely touch my head and I have a bunch in my hand. It is so depressing and I'm with you, I'm really sad. My hair isn't that thick anyway. Looks like you started chemo 2 days before me so we're about on the same timeline. I get so upset when people say "it's just hair, it will grow back" . They don't understand that it's MY hair and I am going to have to be the one who will be bald for several months. That seems like an eternity coming from someone who has never worn a hat, scarf, wig or anything else because I can't stand anything touching my head. My hair grows really slow so this is going to take forever! This is definitely the hardest part for me and it's really hard to stay strong. I'm sure you know what I mean.
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Seq- I get it. It's hard, it's unfair...it's also inevitable. I, too, am not a hat,scarf, wig person. I didn't own any of those items before last week. I don't know how I will react when I'm actually bald. I thought chopping off my breasts would be much more traumatic than it actually was for me. I know that may seem strange, but that part while devastating was not as hard to deal with as losing my hair has been so far. I am one of the few who opted to not rebuild right away, so I have the odd lump (or what I fondly call my uniboob, because it's kind of off center middle of my chest and the other is completely flat), I have the scars, and then I have the underarm flaps of what use to be my sideboob. all of that I have taken in stride, yet this-losing my hair turns me into a crybaby. I don't get it. Maybe, once the hair is gone I can proudly rock my bald head. I don't know, I've surprised myself thus far. I am discovering new things about myself each day and learning I am stronger than I ever thought possible. It's a journey, a challenge, a bump in the road(as my husband says) and I'm thankful that I have each of you to share it with.
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AS74, seq24 - wish you the best with the hair transition. I washed my hair the first morning I noticed shedding, wasn't too bad. By day 3, I was too scared to wash it for fear great swatches would come out. So left it pinned up and grungy and with a scarf over it until I had it buzzed down to a barely-there crew cut look that evening. It's still thinning but close to 30 days from my first treatment I still have some hair. .
I was holding up pretty good about that for the first stage of things. But these past few days when I've been at home not feeling great, I've been finding that it matters more than I thought what I'm wearing around the house and that when I look in the mirror i can see something back that doesn't look severe or depressing.
To go out I've been wearing the wig for work and other "occasions," and doing a little cap with a nice scarf over it for clinic days or errands. Both of those looks are decent, don't scare any kiddies, and feel fine to me. But they are too much to wear at home when I wind up intermittently napping so much of the time. The caps by themselves are comfortable but I've been feeling that they look really harsh esp when the color is too strong or dark.
I've have been experimenting to see what I may feel better about for at-home time and to sleep with. The Chemo Beanies with ruffles are a more forgiving style for me and come in a lot of colors. I ordered a couple of more in softer colors to see if those may feel better for day to day use and sleeptime. It's stupid, but even when I shouldn't care what i wear sleeping I don't want to wake up and see the severe look first thing to start the day lol.
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So, yesterday I went to a little festival in a neighboring town where I moved from last year. We stopped by our old house and chatted with the new owners. the new owner disclosed that she is also going through the whole breast cancer crap....same time frame as me except she does not need chemo or radiation. How odd. We are both fairly young (30s and 40s). We decided it was the house. She actually currently has it up for sale. We decided it wouldn't be a good selling point to mention that the last 2 women who lived there both have breast cancer. But, would that be a required disclosure? Wonder if there is something to it?
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ware, what a scary thought. With women who don't have a genetic mutation, some MO refer their BC cause as environmental. However, since it takes cancer cells several years to grow into detectable size, I think it's safe to assume she had it before she moved to the new house last year. I've been thinking about the cause for my own, and my MO said science doesn't have the answer yet. I nursed both kids, ate natural/organic dairy and meat and poultry, don't have extra weight and generally led a healthy life style in a relatively clean metropolis. Other than stress, I can't think of a reason/trigger for mine..
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Good morning,
I haven't posted in a while, so I thought I'd check in. Welcome to all our newcomers, sorry we're meeting this way. We're here for you!
Emily shares your hair loss grief. She wanted me to post a picture of her scalp 19 days post 1st chemo, so here you go:
Not too bad, but it is coming out more and more every day. After she showered this morning, it looked like a squirrel had built a nest in there. We picked up another wig and a couple of do-rag looking thingys yesterday. She wore the wig out of the shop and around town while we made several stops. Completely rocked it!
2nd round of chemo is Wednesday, labs on Tuesday. It'll be interesting to see if the SEs follow the same pattern. Hope so, because we're little better prepared this time. Emily has been feeling pretty "normal" for about the last week, minus the shedding of course. She never really had a lot of the taste bud issues some of you have had. I wonder if that is because she sucked on ice chips the whole time she was doing the Carboplatin. I know she plans to do that again. She lost a little weight early on, but regained it once the SEs subsided.
A couple of you had mentioned having heartburn problems earlier. One of the things Emily & I did at the advice of a doctor (a couple of years ago) was to lift the head of our bed off the floor about 4 inches, so that we sleep on a bit of an incline (we just used a couple of scrap pieces of 2X4 lumber). It has really helped a lot.
Seq - so glad you had a better port experience this time!
ACS - your husband is right, this will all be just a memory before you know it. Have you noticed how time seem to go by faster the older you get? I sure have.
Bcrohde - Emily has not noticed any nail problems yet. She is using the tea tree oil. Not sure if that is really why, because she has not been using it consistently (doesn't like the smell). She bought some baby oil yesterday to cut it with to see if that helps.
misslil - sending positive vibes your way. We're watching you close since you're on the same regimen and a bit ahead of Em. Hope your SEs are easier this go around.
Welp, I could sit here all day and write a novel, but that yard work isn't going to do itself. Our garden has turned into a jungle since all this started.
Wishing all a great day and mild SEs going forward!
Stay strong!
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My hair is coming out more and more every day. I have been feeling pretty good other than the heartburn I usually have. Before chemo, I rarely had a problem with it. I think I will check and see if I can get some Prilosec or something.
Sam - I am on the same treatment as Emily, only a day behind. I do my blood work and all on Thursday and I am planning on trying the ice chips this time. I hope it helps because I can't eat so many things anymore. I really can only eat stuff that has a sauce for the most part. Just strange.
I hope you have all had a good weekend. We had football yesterday and got some cider and donuts for the kids. Nicklas plays over an hour away next weekend, so we got a room and are driving down the night before. Should be fun!
Here is to a good week for all of us. xoxo
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shedding started in earnest day 12 after 1st infusion... Keep thinking 'I'm gina be ok, I'm Finns be ok' to psych myself up to what's to come...
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Hey everyone! It has been awhile since I have been on. Sounds like everyone is moving through.
Prior to my first treatment I decided to wake my 10 and 12 year old to have them shave my hair in to a Mohawk. They loved it! Gave them a little control.
My first chemo was 9/23/16. They did not put a port in. They felt like the veins in my left arm would handle it though I told them that phlebotomists always struggle with my left side. So naturally on Friday, they struggled. Two IV's later and we were up and running with a super sore arm. Chemo round 1 down.
I received the Nuelasta on body injector. This was a great alternative to a shot. My side effects so far are: body aches, headaches, hard to think, exhaustion (I slept for the first two days), shooting pain, weird taste, mouth/teeth pain (biotene helps), burning eyes, itchy head, anxious, fast heartbeat, stomach pain, insomnia, numbness in forehead, weakness, decreased appetite, nausea. I am so happy that I have decided to not work through all of this. I don't think I could handle that stress too. Hats off to those of you that are pushing through.
I bought some hats on Amazon: Cardini bamboo contoured and mod slouchy for $20-25. They are really soft. I, also, have a lot of back pain so I plan to buy the body back company on Amazon recommended by my supportive oncology team. I tried it office and found it very helpful. Wishing you all well and minimal symptoms. Much love
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Sam-Please tell Emily I am right there with her and I'm so sorry. This is day 18 for me an my hair is even thinner on top than hers. I keep saying I'm going to cut it all off but don't have the guts to do it. This is by far the hardest part of all of this! My husband even told me today that he noticed how thin mine was getting and for him to notice anything like that it must be bad. I know the end is near but I just can't accept it.
Day 4 after round 2 for me. I'm feeling tired today but that's all. No other side effects to report. I have not taken any nausea meds at all since infusion. Today was my last day of the steroids for this round. We'll see how it goes the rest of the week coming off of them. Dr. said if I have bad results again they would eliminate them all together for the next round. Otherwise, all is good. Now what to do about the hair.
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