Starting chemo February 2018
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CBOK- l love the fun colors. What a way to tackle the hair issue
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I'm now scheduled for round 1 on Monday the 5th. Also found out that I'll be doing radiation eventually.
Laurie, I have had several "armchair oncologists" come at me with that bs. Depending on who it is and what I think their intentions are I either politely ignore them or aggressively educate them to the point where they will probably never speak to me again.
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CBOK- your hair colors are awesome. You look great. What a way to tackle the hair issue!
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I'm starting my dose dense chemo on the 7th. I too chopped my hair 15 inches off! My hair hasn't been this short since 98! I'm doing 8 rounds every two weeks then hopefully surgery before I go 12 rounds every week. I too have 24 month old and 10 year old. I'm worried I won't have energy to attend to my toddler.
Has anyone else after there needle biopsy caused pain like dull burning and achy and severe nasaua?
All I know is triple negative breast cancer and oncologist guessing based on the pet scan report and a physical examination stage 3. Exact stage 3A 3B 3c is unknown until surgery.
Good Luck to all of us, I know we're all fighting a long battle.
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I want to encourage you all. Lots of you are just starting your first chemo, and I’m getting ready to do my last. When I started I was like you all, but treatment by treatment I got the chemo part finished. You can do it!! It was NOT as bad as imagined Take all the drugs they offer, they really help. Rest. Call in your support team. And be gentle with yourself. Chemo is not fun. But it’s absolutejy doable. You’ve got this February ladies 💜.
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rockcity- thanks for the reply, yes I'm filling my Amazon cart right now with things I might need.. I'm gonna add the cold socks and ice packs for hands.. atleast it's only an hour. I plan to freeze the whole time🤣. Good luck with your 1st one and to your hubs #truelove really shines through during this time. Let us know how it goes❤
Pbello- my kids was one of the reasons I'm trying cold capping too( 1,3,7 yr olds).
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So glad you're all here, I have my first chemo a week from today, hoping for the best for all of us,
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Welcome, Annieg67! We hope you find the support you need here!
The Mods
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indahood: you're starting today! Good luck and thinking of you!
CBOK: LOVE the look!
I start Feb 9th!
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Have you guys been given any specific instructions about what to eat/not eat before chemo?
I guess I got used to tests/procedures that laid out explicit do this/don't do that and haven't heard other than anti-nausea med.
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Rockcity- I will be thinking of you and sending my prayers to you as I have mine done. Keep me posted on how your doing. ❤ we have a long year ahead of us. #this2shallpass. Good luck my friend😊
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I also had the genetic test done and I had no mutated gene...apparently I just get breast cancer lol. After my chemo treatments are complete (mid June) I will have my tissue expanders swapped out for implants and about 2-3 weeks after that I will start 5 weeks of radiation. Looking to be done with everything hopefully by September. That would be a great bday present.
My tumor was only 2.4cm big and my final diagnosis was Stage 2B grade 2....all this chemo and radiation seems like so much for early stage cancer, and I don't know if I have fully accepted it yet. I have literal melt downs about every 2 weeks were I just sit and cry. The though of my kids (7 & 12) seeing me sick or just drained breaks my heart...im always there for them and it scares me that i wont be able to once everything starts. So, every time I get in my funk, i just keep reminding myself, I'm incredibly lucky I caught this early, I am not going to die & This to shall pass 🌻
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! Welcome all you all.
I also did the hair and started my chemo today. I iced, the hospital provided ice bags for feet and hands, it was not over the top painful, you can take your hands out every once in a while then back in. They had zip lock ice bags with pockets on the sides for your feet and hands, good system.
Great job CBOK, I love your new look. I think i even like it better even though you did have very beautiful long hair. Here's my new look. Shaved everywhere else.
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Cbok: I'm not allowed to eat Grapefruit.
This too shall pass: I feel you and your worries about not being able to be as there for your children. Man we mothers worry don't we, and it doesn't stop. My 27 year old son who was living with me moved out on his own the same day I started chemo and I was so relieved. I just thought, ahhh this isn't fun living with your mom during chemo. But I do have to say, as a teacher of your children's ages, I know how resilient they can be. They can also see and process in a quiet kid way more than maybe you think they do. They know what kind of wonderful mom you already are and will learn about strength and hope watching what you are going through. You will still be giving, just in a different way than expected. Love and support to you.
Butterfly Lilly, thanks for noticing. Yes all went well. I'm a bit stoked up now on the steriods I have to take the 3 days surrounding chemo. I'll keep you all posted since I'm the first feb baby. Thanks for your support.
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Indahood love the hair. Good luck to the first of the Feb. ladies the beast is going down!
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Debsmisto- I too have started chemo with no port, so will be curious how you hold up. I have had 2 treatments so far and no major SE yet. My vein is slightly swollen after the 2nd treatment. My chemo days are on Thursdays too. Good luck on the 8th.... you can do this!
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Hi Ladies! For those of you who started treatment this past week, I hope you are all doing well. For those starting this week, good luck & stay strong! The rest of us will soon be There with you all
CBOk & indahood - I LOVE your hair cuts!!! You both look fabulous!
Jlove1821 - I’m there with you about the cold caps. Having young kids makes these decisions hard for me (I’m sure it would too if they were older). I’m worried about them more than myself. How will they take it? I’d hair falls, will they freak out? Will they feel I don’t care as much as I will be too tired to give them my 100%? Yet, the other side of this is that they (and my husband) are the reason I find my strength. I want to kick this in the a#**# so I can be there for my family in the long run. I want to watch my kids grow, I want to be there for them. They need me and I can’t let them down.
I finally got my treatment options from my MO yesterday. He basically gave me two options: dose dense (adriamycin/cytoxan for 4 cycles every two weeks followed by taxol 4 cycles every two weeks) or I can do the taxotere/cytoxan treatment for 4 cycles every 3 weeks.
I’m currently trying to decide which one to do. The shorter treatment sure looks more enticing - less time and the cold cap have a much better effect on this treatment. Yet the dose dense treatment gives me about 2-3% better reduction to recurrence risk given my Oncotype. The Mastectomy vc lumpectomy decision was much easier for me tha this! Once I tell him which medicine to go with, the MO said we can start immediately. I have a port and did the ecco. I’m all set to go.
Though all our circumstances suck, it’s so great to have you all on this chat group. Looking forward to sharing all the good and bad that this will bring me.
Hugs to you all ladies!
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Just stopping in to say stay strong! One year ago yesterday was my 1st Chemo treatment. I can't believe it's been a year and it was so hard to see this far out when I was just starting.You'll all get there!
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indahood, love it!
I think from now on when I see anyone with short wild colored hair I'm probably going to wonder if they're starting chemo soon.
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hi ladies,
So glad to find you. I’m starting AC Thursday (2/8).
This was not the original plan, but MRI results Friday showed most likely it’s in my lymph nodes. At first we didn’t think it was. So, starting 8 weeks of AC with treatments every other Thursday (so four treatments).
After that, the current plan is to do 12 weeks of taxol and herceptin, possibly with perjeta. But as we all know, that could change with the wind. All this is before surgery. Apparently that’s common when your HER2 positive.
I was very upset to find it is most likely in the nodes. Really was praying it wasn’t. Tumor is less than 2cm, but it’s HER2+ and I’m young, so as my dr says, cancer can be sneaky. It was diagnosed grade one but she said that could be wrong. Biggest fear with all that of course is—if it’s in the nodes, has it already gone somewhere else? Trying really hard not to ruminate. Going to get a pet scan as soon as insurance approves it to check. Also another node biopsy Monday (joy) to try and get 100% answer about the node dx
Anyhow, I have a ton of long hair, and I’ve got two littles of my own (9 and 5) and I’m an elementary teacher, so losing it should be interesting. I’ve NEVER had even remotely short hair. I love all the cuts and colors I’m seeing-I’m gonna have to do this!!
Thankful to find you all even more though it sucks to be here. Wishing you all the best of luck in this journey!!
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indahood-loving the feisty hair. I hope chemo went well and you are feeling pretty good.
This2shallpass- I meltdown every day. You are way ahead of me with toughness. Tuesday will be here soon for us both. Let me know how your chemo goes. I’ll be thinking of you.
Colleens80-I am also HER2+ with nodal involvement. That unfortunately buys us chemo and radiation, and herceptin. The doc also mentioned tamoxifen etc after all of that. It’s a lot of treatment but we got to start somewhere. Hang in there.
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Hey Rockcity-have you had a pet scan? Or did they determine it hadn’t spread since it was only in two nodes?
My dr also mentioned tamoxifen etc. after all this. Ugh. However, I say, kill it with fire! I’d rather overtreat than increase my risk of recurrence.
I hope Tuesday goes well for you
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Hello CollenS80, Welcome to the group. Like yourself it was decided that I would have Chemo before surgery, I still don't know my her2 status as the first one was inconclusive so the sample had to be sent of for further testing. I actually had a lymph node biopsy come back positive so understand you fear of that my MO said one is not as good as none but much better than having more than four. Should know for sure by Wednesday what my her2 status is. My MO explained to me that when you are her2+ they have great success shrinking the the tumors doing chemo first making it easier for the surgeon to get clean margins. I am also worried about if is has gone elsewhere but that is another reason for starting chemo first if it has they can begin nipping it in the bud, to use a very old fashioned phrase, right away. I actually have an aunt who was in one of the first trials of herceptin in the early 90's , it saved her life she is certain of that and she it still with us today. If I am her2 positive will have the same plan as yours with my surgery happening after about six months of the herceptin. Get my port on the 9th and no matter what my her2 status will start chemo on the 14th. If I am not her2 positive don't know when surgery will happen. Makes me think my MO is pretty sure it will be positive. Anyway stay strong and once again welcome!
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colleens80- I ended up insisting on scans to check for spreading after two of three nodes came back positive. They were not too concerned that I would have mets though and really didn't think the tests were needed. A few days ago I got a bone scan and a CT scan for about everything else. They found something on my liver the radiologist believes is just a benign growth. I have to get a contrast MRI to confirm it though. I'm starting chemo on Tuesday. I set up my MRI for two weeks from tomorrow so I have time to recover from chemo first. Yes I am very scared but for now I just have to wait. I'm a person who likes to really know where things stand. I did not get more than the three sentInal nodes removed so I will never know how many might be actually cancerous. I had a lumpectomy a few weeks ago with clear margins, but who knows about those nodes? The plan is to have the chemo and radiation kill any evils left under my armpit.
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Amburt and rockcity thanks for your responses! I sure hope we all end up clear of any metastasis. Waiting is the pits.
Amburt I hope your HER2 status comes back ok. As you said, my doctor said in many ways it can be looked at as a good thing if you DO have it-even though they are seen as more aggressive-she said the Herceptin is really good at just dissolving those tumors.
Rock city I don't blame you for insisting on the scans-I plan to do the same if it comes down to it
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Amburt- my Mo said that Herceptin is the great equalizer of breast cancer treatments it does such a good job with Her2+. I've also heard that it is well tolerated by most. Miracle drug for many.
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I have 2 mri's and bone scan this Wed, so scary. It is so comforting to come here and read all of your posts, knowing others are going thru the same thing I am going thru really helps, thank you all for being here.
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debsmisto, looks like we both start on Thursday! You’ll be in my thoughts. Praying your scans give you fantastic news.
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good luck all you girls, so many I can't wrap my head about mentioning everyone by name but my heart is with all of you.
I'm on day 2 after chemo, feeling very good but oddly a bit weak. Took the dogs out for an hour walk and my energy increased after an initial, "oh this is hard" . Beautiful snow falling in the trees. Keep keeping going, it's worth it. One foot in front of the other. Stay active. Anyway. I wanted to tell you that I am feeling pretty ok. I have AT, every 3 weeks if anyone is curious. I'll let you all know how tomorrow goes as the chemo nurse told me day 3, when you come off the steroid medication is usually hard for most people.
love to you all,
Laurie (indahood)
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Indahood thank you for keeping us still waiting to begin chemo up to date on how it is going for you. Makes it less fearful to hear of someone doing ok.
Rockcity I have been talking a lot over the phone with my Aunt lately. She talks about how blessed she feels for being picked to be in the trial of herceptin. You have to admire the courage of those who where willing to be test subjects so that others could have more time with those they love. She saw many she started in chemo with, with pretty much the same diagnoses as her not make it. Her2 positive not so long ago meant get your affairs in order do that bucket list, today you hear of those even with mets living product lives for years. Guess my insurance company approved the PET scan it is scheduled this week along with an Echo for my heart. Hate all these questions still up in the air I am one of those who hates disorder and chaos and right now it feels so much like chaos is in charge of my life.
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