Starting chemo January 2018
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Hurray Gigicommon! Did you do everything dose dense??? WOW!!!!
Eschindler - the good news is you are getting the Taxol! Sorry about the 5 hours..... do you also have a long wait prior to infusion for bloods and all that jazz? I get in my clinic at 8 -- do some paper shuffling and signing and by the time the infusion actually starts (after blood draw and 5 minutes with doctor) it's just about 12:30. I hope you have good books to read and movies to watch!
Paisley -- how are you doing post 4th taxol? Did the doctor answer all your questions?
Dxat37 - did you get your chest X-ray? Are you feeling any better? It took almost two solid months for my weird cough to go away .... the body is being slammed around on these drugs. Are you blood counts doing ok?
Olesya -- I hope you are enjoying your Mom's visit!
I think I am running on adrenaline --- in general. I cannot sleep and finally took a sleeping pill last night and still had trouble actually getting to sleep (then slept like a rock!) I look at the calendar and count down the weeks. All those Monday left for Taxol seem so distant
4th Taxol today .... another 8.5 hours in the clinic -- this time alone. No one came with me. Does anyone else find herself unable to actually do anything at the clinic? I am so wound up that I can't concentrate on anything. Today I cut some fabric for a friend of mine (busy manual labor seems to be a good distraction), and then I didn't know what to do with myself. But .... because I could, I booked a pedicure in my room! My clinic has a "spa" (ok, estheticians) and they do mani/pedis, facials, waxing, makeup, massage and a whole host of various treatments that are tailored to oncology patients. So, today I had a pedicure while my infusion was being done. Why not, right? I think I'm going to be booking weekly appointments for some tlc.
Can I honestly say that I am afraid of EMFs? I spent last summer with my phone in my left hand while on wi-fi to let my son watch feature length movies! - not to mention all the phone holding I just do because that is what we do these days .... does anyone limit time with phone in hand thinking it is probably the right thing to do to avoid all that excess who-knows-what?
I have a friend coming to stay with me for a few nights this week.... I haven't told her anything. Should I give a fair warning prior or try to pass myself off as "normal" (the morning look is a bit horrifying until I put something on my head...). I just want to appear normal ... and I really don't. Sigh...
xx to everyone!!
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Not chemo related, but I finally started rads today! I'm so happy to just get it moving. Congrats to all of you as you move toward the end of chemo. We're doing it!
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Hi Everyone, I finished my TC chemo, 4 doses over 12 wks. It’s been 3 wks and starting to feel better but just started Femara 4 days ago. We will see how it goes. I still have brows and lashes but I heard I could lose them up to 8 wks after chemo! Hair stull looking about the same but maybe the slightest of growth. Anyone else post chemowanting to give a hair report?
Amelia01 I’d definitely tell your friend. I went to brunch with some friends and I tried not to sayanything but it just felt too weird. It’s a huge focus in your life and it would be so hard to try to have a conversation that had any honesty. Plus she will probably be very upset when she eventually find out. Friends want to be there for you when you’re having a difficult time. Good luck!
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Hello Ladies!
Wow! It's so great to hear how some of us are making it to the finish line with this chemo and moving on to the next phase of treatment!
Amelia - Taxol #4 has been the easiest so far! I'm not sure what the heck is going on with me - maybe my body is adjusting to it? I had NO pain this time around and actually had a lot more energy this past weekend - although I may have overdone it, because I ended up taking a 3 hour nap today! I really hope this continues for me....I like the no pain thing! I asked my doc all my questions and he said OFF would be fine to use. He also said gardening is fine too - he said to make sure I keep doing the things that I enjoy. So, I may just throw some rubber gloves on under my gardening gloves to be extra careful. I know the OFF is strong, but we have such a horrible tick problem where I live (and a super high Lyme disease count in the area) that I don't want to chance getting sick from a tick, so I'll use it. Lesser of the two evils?
I met with my Radiation Oncologist last week for the first time. He said I am in a gray area - of course! Nothing is ever easy or straightforward! Basically, it comes down to surgery/pathology results to determine whether or not I need rads. But, he said because of my age (43), the aggressiveness of the cancer (grade 3), and the large size of my tumor, that my risk for recurrence is higher and rads may be a good idea. At this point, I'm almost afraid NOT to do rads. I just want to do everything I possibly can to beat this thing and to prevent it from coming back. So, I've decided to not do immediate reconstruction. I've decided to just have the DMX at the end of June and that way, I'm all set for radiation if needed. He said, immediate recon can interfere with rads and can ruin the recon as well. He said best results for recon tend to be if you wait until after all healed up from rads. So, as difficult as it is for me to think about going flat for up to 9 months, I think I'm more comfortable with it and feeling less pressured to make reconstruction decisions at this point.
Question for you ladies - have any of you had a mastectomy without immediate reconstruction? Are you doing rads? Have you thought about or started the reconstruction process yet - and if so, which way did you choose? I'm at a loss. I don't like any of the options - they all scare me, but I definitely want breasts again at some point.....
Ladies beginning rads - I hope you will stay on here and keep us posted on how you are doing!
OkKate - how was the first time going for rads? Please keep us updated!
Good luck to everyone this week! Just keep swimming!
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Amelia - Yep. I had chemo every other week for four months. It was quite the experience (particularly the AC). 🙄
Okkate - Tell us all about your rads experience! You appear to be the first in our group to begin this leg of the journey.
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amelia01- that is awesome your clinic has a spa! I wish mine did, but that is such a great idea for a clinic to offer that! I say book appointments every week!
Paisley- I had a tissue expander put in during my mastectomy. Not the most fun, but now that my chemo is over and the radiation oncologist said no rads, I see my plastic surgeon at the end of this month. I can’t wait to get this frankenboob out and a real implant in! My oncologist said having surgery in between my herceptin treatments would be fine.
Good luck to you ladies as you continue chemo, start rads, or go onto surgery!!
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Hello, ladies!
Haven't been here for a while -been busy enjoying a visit with my mommy
She arrived on time before the big ice storm hit Ontario. When she left Ukraine, it was +17 there!
I have a new development of events. 3rd week post chemo my legs started to swell, left foot more than right. Oncologist suggested to go to er to do the ultrasound to ruLe out clots. So I did that. Since i went in the evening, the ultrasoubd department was already closed.I was only assesed, given the blood thinners,and ultrasoubd was scheduled for the following day.
Yhe nect day after ultrasound the doctor checked my legs and abdomen,and the blood work was ordered. They did the general chemistry /blood count, liver blood and how thin my blood is.
Well according to the results now i need to do the ultrasound on my liver.they wanted to do it tomorrow but I gave herceptin infusion, so on Thursday.
I didn't ask any questions. I was calm until my hubby began to worry.now I am too....
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Oh Olesya, don't worry right now! No worrying allowed unless worrying is called for. The taxanes can be in the body up to a year and it is just doing creepy things and then it will all be ok. Let them check all the corners and nooks and crannies just to be on the safe side.
Sending you a huge hug!
Keep us posted
xx
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Sending love, Olesya! And don't borrow worry, if you can help it. Sending good vibes your way!
Update from radiation: I'm starting to get into a groove, and that feels good.
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hi Ladies, how are you doing?
I had my 7/8 chemo on Wed (3/4 DD taxol) and of course I am not feeling too hot.
I had a reaction (again) to chemo (since there is no port to protect my veins due to blood clot) so my last chemo will be with PICC line. Has anyone have any experience with that?
Also, I do have an appt w my RO on May 30th and should start the rads right after..
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Dx I'm one treatment and a day behind you. Just had 6th of 8 chemo, 2 of 4 dose dense taxol- perjeta- herceptin. Still pretty jacked on the dex from my pre-meds, but I know I'll be in your shoes tomorrow, especially after the Neulasta kicks in. Not sure what I'd do without a port- that sounds brutal. I had a mental meltdown yesterday in infusion room: it's easy to forget or gloss over how serious this mess is, and the IV bags remind you pretty quick. I'm so ready to be done, moving on to the next phase. Good for you for your RO appointment already set up.
But spring is finally here in the Tetons, it's our first warm weekend, and I got this. Glad you all are here- you've been a great help so far.
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Paisley- I had TE placed after my mastectomy, but I lost one to an infection that coincided with my first chemo ever (TC). So, I spent a year with only one side reconstructed, after which time I had what's called a lat flap reconstruction. This means they swung part of my latissimus muscle around onto my chest so they could place an expander underneath healthy tissue. That was in May 2016, and then I underwent expansion for about four months, finally switching out for permanent implants in Dec. 2016. During the time when I was not fully reconstructed, I wore prosthetics, and you really couldn't tell at all.
Cut to now, I had a recurrence, and now I have to have rads (28) in the same area as my lat flap. I'm told the rads can cause the lat flap to shrink a bit, and affect the symmetry of my reconstruction. So, what might end up happening is after the rads are over, I will have my left implant replaced with a smaller one to match the one that's shrinking up. It won't ever be perfect- for me it's just important to be able to wear normal bras and shirts. I've learned to accept my naked body the way it is, three years later!
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DxAt37- I had a PICC line, but not for chemo. I had several infections, and after trying to get antibiotics peripherally, and this after getting chemo (TC) peripherally, my veins were shot. So, I had a PICC line for one round of antibiotics, and then I had a midline for another. The midline was easier, but I don't know if it only works for antibiotics, or if you can also get chemo through one. It might be worth asking about.
It sucks that your port isn't working! I am so grateful for mine after all of the shenanigans I've been through with different manors of delivery. Best of luck on this last treatment!!
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update: no clots in kegs and liver is fine, too. Just a normal reaction to chemo treatment.
Was told to walk more, eat less salt.
Radiation mapping is done on Friday. Got 5 tiny tattoo dots.
Picked up my Tamoxifen but haven't started it yet.
Herceptin made me extremely tired on the day of treatmetment, and the whole body felt like lead. The next day I felt fine.
Sending hugs to all of you!
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Eschindler, thank you so much for sharing your experience! I really hope I can go thru my last tx without any hickups.
Olesya, good luck to you!Please let us know how is radiation.
Does anybody is past the “peach fuzz” and have so real hair growing in? My peach fuzz is probably 1/2 inch already, even though i am still on taxol but there is absolutely no real hair, just thin white fuz
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Homemadesalsa,
I usually have meltdowns a day after, i think these darn hormons are doing a number on me!
I am trying to be super brave and act like its a walk in a park but it's not.
Do any of you ladies gain weight?
I gained like 4-5lbs so far- but I am so swollen and feel so ugly now! My mo says it will pass once all the steroids are out of the system... i am really hoping thats true
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That's great news, Olesya! I'm seeing my MO on Tuesday for the 6 week visit and expect will start Tamoxifen next week.
No real hair here either, DxAt37. A lot of peach fuzz and soooo much white:( Maybe I had a lot of grey before but couldn't tell because I coloured my hair frequently, or maybe it's the chemo. Who knows... I'm 5 weeks post my last infusion and hope to see some real hair soon. And hopefully more eyebrows.
I also gained weight. Now that the spring is finally here I'll take my bike out, go for a jog. Today I'm going rollerblading with my daughter. Hopefully will shed some of this steroid weight
Hope everybody is doing well.
XO
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I gained about 15 lbs since the beginning of chemo. I had such a huge appetite and I’m sure some of it was stress eating too. I even cut out sodas and drank mostly water. I still have until mid June until I can really work out hard and get sweaty since I cold capped and am still trying to keep my hair. Im so anxious to get moving again! It makes me mad because the weight gain wasn’t from something good like pregnancy or amazing food, it’s not even due to the aging process, but to cancer.
And I did keep a lot of my hair from cold capping, but half of my brows are gone, and I’m bad at filling them in, so when I do most days I have a very surprised look! Ha ha!!
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DXat37: I'm 7wks post RX and have white fuzz as halo around head (think Monk's hair) with white bristles on top of head. Interesting combination and have NO idea how this is going to turn out!
No weight gain so far but crave and eating carbs and fat. Tai Chi/yoga must be keeping weight gain at bay...
Laura
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daxat37: have also gained about 5lbs and just feel bloated and blah, still have two docetaxils left but my hair is growing - we will see if it continues after my next session.
I am having a lot of toe pain. Mostly in my big toe, feels a little like putting a nail thru my toe. Definitely uncomfortable.
Just moved back into my newly renovated house after spending the last 4 months living with friends/family. The house is amazing so it’s been an awesome day!!
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Coach, congrats on the house! I am so happy you’re done with remodeling. I will be starting in June, urghhh!
I too have pains and aches, esp in one heel-they said they might adjust taxol dose for my last chemo so it won’t be as disturbing... other than that, jabbing pains on top of “flu-like” pains.
Hang in there
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I recently scheduled my exchange surgery for May 24th! I’m actually so excited to get this tissue expander out! I never thought I would be excited about surgery. It puts a damper on our Memorial Day plans but at least I should be able to swim this summer. One more thing down in this long breast cancer journey! Now I just want to finish up herceptin and get this port out, then all I’ll have to deal with is the never ending anxiety of yearly scans and fear of recurrence, but hopefully I’ll just be able to live my life and not think about it too much.
I hope everyone is doing well
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Erob321- Congrats on the exchange surgery! It's nice to have that chapter done and over with. I hope it goes smoothly.
Has anyone else gotten sick while on chemo? I have a respiratory thing (lost my voice, bad cough, cold symptoms but no fever), and I've now gone through two weekly taxols with this going on. I'm really ready to not be sick on top of sick! I had a chest X-ray last week that didn't show anything abnormal, so that's a good thing. But, I have never been so tired in my life! Like can't get out of bed very much! So, I thought I'd see if anyone else has had this, and if so, did you end up taking antibiotics? Waiting it out?
Six more treatments for me. Counting them down!!!
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Eschindler, I exhibited similar respiratory symptoms beginning with my third Taxotere treatment. Shortness of breath, bad cough, hard to talk. Also had clear chest x-ray. I think taxol induced inflammation of bronchioles. I didn't take antibiotics, but it took several weeks after completion of treatment to clear up. Same with loss of stamina/energy. There is an end to this! I'm now almost 2 mos post chemo and finally feeling normal again. Except for the bald head that is...
You'll soon be done with chemo and feeling good again!!!
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Thanks, lmurphy! They ended up giving me some antibiotics for a suspected sinus infection, and they are helping a bit. My main surprise is how short of breath I get, even doing things I was doing two weeks ago, like going up the stairs. Two weeks ago I was still exercising a bit, walking long distances, swimming, yoga, etc, but since this cold, those things feel less and less possible. Oh well- only six treatments left! Halfway through Taxol, and rounding the home stretch.
I hope everyone else is making it through ok.
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Hi everyone,
I finished my last chemo treatment on 3/26, but started experiencing itchy hands and feet just a few weeks ago. I'm told that this can't be a chemo reaction after this amount of time. Anyone else?
Thanks, Buttercup
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Hello Everyone,
I have an AC question. I had 12 taxol to start with, and now completed 2 of 4 DD ACs. The Taxols wereno fun but I'm finding the ACs much harder. This time, 4 days after the infusion, my heart was beating so hard I could count my pulse just lying on the couch listening to it. And my heartrate was (for me) fast, at 70 rather than in the 50's.
I called my MO nurse and was told to just wait it out. It is better, now a few days further out. But I'm worried about my next dose.
Did this happen to any of you? I was hoping for a repeat echocardiogram. Did any of you get one and was it useful?
Thanks
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Patartist - I never had any heart problems with EC (similar to AC) and had the echocardiogram prior to chemo and nothing afterwards. Do you think it is possible that some of the post drugs might be causing it? Are you taking dexamethasone? For assurance ask them to do another.
Buttercup - chemo can stay in the body for up to a year. If people are still shedding hair months after chemo, I wouldn't be surprised if there are also other side effects that can creep up afterwards too.
Eschindler - I got the flu during EC and it did a job on me for weeks! I still have a weird lingering cough (the doctors attribute it to poor digestion... hmmm) that is slowly going away but my voice is pretty much tired out after little talking. I am now in neutropenia mode after 5 Taxols and had to skip my 6th this past Monday. After having been super over active for the first 5 weeks, I am now exhausted but still don't sleep at night. I guess my body is screaming out that it is time to wind down and rest a bit. And here I thought I could be superwoman! My MO says no antibiotics unless fever. The Taxol is cumulative and sticks around in the body for up to a year. From what I've read on these forums people tend to drag through the second half of Taxol. And just when the weather was getting nice....
lmuprhy - how are you doing on the aromasin? Does it give aches and pains? That is what I will be given --- eventually.
Erob - how exciting to get the exchange surgery! I can't wait- Hate the expander. I'll have mine all summer long
Olesya -- any news from you?? Thinking about you!!!!
I'm just waiting out this week for next Monday's Taxol. I have no idea how to boost my immune system to get those neutrophils up but I guess I'll just stay home and rest. Its raining all week anyhow ... ho hum.
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Hi ladies - this is my first post. I've been stalking on here for months since my DX in Oct. Started chemo Jan 4th and am so happy have the 6 treatments behind me. Still a long road ahead, but it's all one step at a time, right?
Just finished the last chemo April 19th and am looking forward to moving along to surgery and rads. Well, maybe 'looking forward' is not the best way to express it, but I just want to put as much of this behind me like everyone else.
Please keep updates on rads - it will be good to see how everyone is faring! I will start mid to late June as I am looking at lumpectomy surgery May 14th.
Last week was my post chemo MRI and next week I go for an ultrasound. They saw 2 new lumps near my tumor on the left side and said my right side axilla looks questionable. What?! I understand MRI's are not the best diagnostic tool, so I am trying to stay calm.
Dxat37 - yes, I too have gained a bit of weight. Not happy about it but given the circumstances have accepted it. Steroids are so helpful, yet cause so many unwanted effects. I'm dealing with crazy eye twitching that I hope will subside soon as well.
Buttercup - I too experienced itchy hands and feet but it was after my 4th treatment of TCHP. It was unbearable and nothing helped. At one point it got so bad I had a meltdown just like a 2 year old! Not a proud moment for me.
The itching lasted about a week, thankfully subsided and did not return. Hopefully yours does not last long. I can completely sympathize. 0 -
have you asked about marinol
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