Starting Chemo in July 2017
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obviously I should not have written something that only thing in my mind is last chemo.
Please let me try one more time.
1. Both my hands and feet are somewhat discolored/browned from 7 and soon to be 8 DD 4 AC and 4 TAxol
2. I mixed my favorite brand of epsom salt w a bit of water to make some glob. It should look like a thick soup of sorts.
3. Put handful in socks. Put those and try to distribute the salt glob or paste all over your feet. Walk around the shower a bit. I did not walk bc i sit on a chair to plaster paste all over my body. Doing so, due to foot pressue, your feet are bound to soak whatever they are surrounded. In this case the paste inside my socks.
4. Rinse all off. Did I mention my beautifully exfoliated, moisturized and milky and lightly pink feet?
Mimi
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Dodgersgirl - thank you for posting all the info,the tried and true things that help and that you're making it through. I've been lurking on the chemo threads for the last month and you gals have been so great sharing all the nitty gritty, even the stuff we normally don't discuss, which is what makes it so valuable to those next in the pipeline. Thank you
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Mimi - very good description and idea. HAHa! I need to do it now as who doesn't need beautiful silky smooth feet! Thank you. Also thank you for taking the time to post and help us as we prepare for the start of our chemo. Congrats on having your last one today. Woot! Woot! How I long for that day to get here!
Theresa
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Hi there! I'm getting my port this Thursday and scans too. I'm starting chemo AC (4 rounds every two weeks) on Monday, July 3. Then taxol for 12 weeks strait.
Seeing a counselor weekly and getting ready for the hair loss.
Thank you for the great tips and advice.
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She1212 - glad you wanted to join us, sorry you're here though. Good luck on the port placement. I'm sure it's fairly easy, at least that's what I'm counting on. I go Friday.
Theresa
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Welcome, she1212... I have my port done on Thursday too, with my 2D echo on Friday, then up to the cottage for a long, relaxing weekend.
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I start chemo on the 10th. Get my port on the 7th. I ordered a couple of inexpensive wigs - one blonde and one red. I also ordered a couple of cute hats.
My oncologist does not want me going back to work until after my first round of chemo. I'm having a hard time with that. I'm a middle school science teacher. I get that I don't need to around kids that may be carrying lots of germs but I hate to miss the beginning of the school year. I'm hoping the school system will let my mom, a retired science teacher, be my substitute.
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Janeway - I'm sorry you have to miss the start of school. It's hard to be compliant sometimes, I know I've struggled a couple times with my Dr's instructions. When does school start? Our new year starts here after Labor Day. Sounds like our school systems have very different schedules.
Are you getting your AC every 2 or 3 weeks.
I woke up this morning and decided I need to get going on my wig. I think I'll hate it as I don't like hats, but I really want to fly under the radar in public.
Theresa
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The reality of the impact chemo has on day to day life is settling in when I put my chemo calendar together. Taking my daughter back to college, going to the other's soccer games, and even just taking the smallest to school in the morning. Relying on others to run my business. I just don't know how the next phase will look like and I have to be ok with letting go of the control. Will I be sick all the time? Isolated because of risk of germs?
The wig thing----im looking into getting one as well. Me bald running around with 3 kids the sad eyes and sympathy stares all the while appreciated I'm not comfortable (yet) with the attention of it all. The wig will give you some relief from stares I hope. My friends said I should get 10 cheap wigs and go from style to style and have fun with it.
--she
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she1212- is your AC dose dense (every 2 weeks) or every 3 weeks ? Typically, starting the 2nd week you may feel quite normal and during the 3rd week feel fine. So, depending on your SE (each of us is different), you could feel ok (just bald) for a week or more at a time.
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she1212 - I'm heading shopping for a wig today... I debated about it, since I won't likely lose my hair until closer to the end of the month, but I return to work just before my second treatment (after being off for 7 weeks), so the wig may be less of a shock if I just show up with it from the start.
All that presumes I find something I can tolerate! Otherwise, it'll be caps and scarves. That's tough, because I have never been a hat person.
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She - yes you've certainly hit it on the head with yhe uncertainty of this whole thing. It's enough to drive us all crazy with wondering how we'll do, cope and in what shape we'll end up.
Im dreading this like no other thing I've ever done. However I'm at the point I want to get on with it, I'm sick of the worry.
Jen - I hate hats also and that s why I'm dragging my feet on the wig thing. Sigh. Maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised.
On the bright side, my daughter finishes her summer semester and comes home Saturday so we'll go together and that'll be fun
Just came from acupuncture, have to honest I was very skeptical but I've had an amazing energy boost after my first one last week. I'll take it whatever the cause.
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check your local American Cancer Society as many have a free wig, scarf, hat program.
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the wig experience was really good... I went to a local boutique owned by a cancer nurse and breast cancer survivor. Very personalized experience and found something really really close to what I have now. I'll go back when my hair starts to fall out and they'll shave me, give me a massage, fit the wig and trim it up however I want. All part of the price of the wig.
I also picked up a few caps and a sun hat... shit just got real.
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hi all! This is my first post ever!
I was Dx almost 5 years ago did a BMX and took Tamixifen and now discovered a local recurrence. Just did Lx last month but oncotype came back at 24. My first TC chemo was yesterday. 3 to go! I also did the the artic caps! So scared they won't work. Anyone with experience/ tips on the capps?
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my friend just had long conversation with me. I am a bit type A, and run all schedules in the house while working full time! Her comment was: this will be your time for healing! Learn to medicate, rest! Your body needs it! At first, I was blah blah! Just had my first chemo, I am so tired! This is day two, I am supposed to be well until the mess kick in. Tonight neulasta will inject, nurse said this will help with my white blood cell not getting so low. Be careful with germs, getting to close to ppl, not crazy about it!! I think it will take time to get used to our new selves! Slow deep breath! House doesn't need to perfect now! My dining room has all the artic caps drying on it!!
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Jen - wow, your experience makes me want to get going on this. However not sure anything like your experience can be found anywhere else. My insurance is covering it and the allowance is pretty generous so I hope to get a nice one.
Mari - yup, I've already started letting my standards slip as I can't nag my husband as he's trying so hard to be my everything right now, and I haven't even started chemo yet.
Theresa
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Hello all,
I will be starting my chemo on the 7th July. Just had my first ovary suppression shot yesterday, and kinda been waiting for menopause to hit me. Anyone also had experience with leuprolide shots? I am feeling SUPER lethargic today though. Am going to the hospital for my heart test at 8 am (too early!!!) probably will go home and rest after this, even though I am supposed to head to the office. But hey, I should listen to my body, right?
My medical Onco is out of town, but she is keen to start my treatment soon, hence she got a fellow doctor to run through the information with me, so I can start asap. There has been a delay of about two months since my first surgery, due to a second surgery to remove more lymph nodes and me wanting to go through a mammaprint test to see if chemo is really necessary.
The lab somehow delayed my tissue samples, which caused the whole process to take a little longer than expected, and my medical Onco seems rather uncomfortable with waiting any further. Now that we know chemo is necessary, everything is moving quickly. I hope I have time to prepare everything before next Friday!
I see most of you have or are getting ports placed. Is this something mandated by the hospital? The stand in Doctor told me briefly about it, but said I don't have to decide now. Great, even more decisions. Meh.
Happy to hear any opinions or experiences! Hope everyone's chemo goes well! Happy, healthy lives awaits!
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Matryoshka - it wasn't mandated for me... the med onc just said to get it done. I've heard from friends that if given the choice, take the port. It's way easier and comfortable than the alternative. Plus, I had lymphnodes removed, so they'd be limited to my right side for draws and infusions, which could be tough.
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Teese,
Pre planning actually starts this year on July 28. Which is weird because that's a Friday.
My treatments will be every 3 weeks.
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Jane - We may have one of the last states that takes the whole summer off, for better or worse. When did your year end? My kids are grown, youngest starting her senior year at college, so I don't know the day they finished up here but I'm thinking it was maybe 10 days ago.
Theresa
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Hello ladies! I am in the July group. A date hasn't been set yet but it will be probably the 2nd to last week of the month.
I am waiting for insurance to approve my 2nd opinion since I've had other oncologists say I may not need chemo. A friend of mine works for a pharma co that is working on a BC drug so she works with oncologists. She shared my path results with a couple of them. Bust since they may not have the whole picture I want to get an official 2nd opinion.
I have no family history nor have friends that have gone through this, so I am relying on these boards and my medical team for their experience. Can I just opt to do tamoxifen and not chemo? I just keep going back and forth in my mind that if I don't do chemo now, will I regret it if I have a recurrence later?
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sunnyjay - and this is the hard part, I know I never felt I had a choice of chemo or not, but I did have a choice in the type and the frequency. I had done a lot of searching and reading so I'm comfortable with my choice.
Your question is asked a bit, so don't feel alone, use the search and see what others have said. Maybe you can find someone who's discussing this right now or recently to private message with.
If you do decide to go ahead with it, stay here with us as several of us will have started and will keep you up to date with what to expect and when.
Good luck,
Theresa
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sunnyjay take a look here, I didn't read this but I remember seeing it. https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/69/topics...
Hope this helps
Theresa
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SunnyjayI was told because my local recurrence is a 1cm and my oncotype 24 they advise chemo. Have you checked on oncotype? It's a genome health test that they do on your tumor to see how it would react to chemo.
I did almost 5 years of tamoxifen and BMx and I am back here with a recurrence. Do everything you can!
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Mari, how did you find your recurrence since you had BMX? So sorry you have to go through this again!
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I start chemo on July 14th after a BMX on June 5th. I will have it every 3 weeks for 6 sessions, taking me through to the end of October.
When I walk in my 8th Avon Walk in Santa Barbara this Sept... i've be missing some hair! LOL
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hi Buuzbee! I'm right after you... 7/12. I walk in the Komen 3-Day in San Diego (November) and really, really hoping to make it this year. My taxol will be ending around then... not sure how I'll feel
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Jen- hope port placement goes well today, Good wishes and hugs sent your way. Let us know how you feel when you can.
Theresa
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Mari - you're on post chemo day 3 I think. How are you doing? Hoping for few and manageable SE's. Keep us informed if you feel up to it.
Theresa
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