Chemo starting April 2018
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So sorry that happened to you, DJT. The climate in this country is so confrontational these days. We see something like that on the news almost every day. You were right to say to him that not everything is visible.
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Thanks, Engine. I so agree, the climate of confrontation is a dangerous climb to violence. The main thing here, is that it's a children's camp, no place for acting a fool.
My significant other has one leg. He uses his prosthesis well, but some days are better than others. You would not believe the dirty stares he gets, until he gets out and then people can actually visually see the leg. If only people could assume with kindness, not judge with anger.
Hope you both have a SE FREE weekend.
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Wow, so sorry, DJT. I think I'd have whipped my wig off and shown him my bald head. Yes, we all should look first with kindness, but kindness seems to be sadly missing from some people these days. Wishing you a better pick up for this afternoon (and I think, personally, I would go and tell the wheelchair lady that I was going through cancer treatment, hence the hc hangtag. Kindly. But that's just me).
Wishing you a peaceful weekend!
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GAW...OMG, YOU REALLY MADE ME laugh with whip the wig off,.....haha yep, that would have done it for sure!! in the past I would have flipped on him, but now well....I just move on, my energy goes only for things very necessary, and I know we all understand that concept! Enjoy your weekend!
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My dad used to get the same looks. He had a handicapped placard due to a serious heart condition (One that eventually killed him). He looked fine, but in reality he wasn't, but people made assumptions.
On the other hand, my stepmom continued to use my dad's placard for a few years after he passed and there is absolutely nothing wrong with her.. Don't get me started on that
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Well crap looks like I am getting an infusion today called Zomeda. Suppose to help with my bones with the pill I will be taking. Anastrozole. For th he next 10 years. Have to get this infusion every 6 months. Staying at mom and dads tonight in Denver. Was looking forward to having a nice relaxing visit. This causes joint pain and naseua. Ugg!!! Oh well.
Gawarrior they were telling my to watch my teeth. This medicine affect you jaw bone in some ppl. Ever heard of it?
Also asked him about immunity shots. Explained that if I was getting chem for bone cancer then he would say yes you would need to get some shots again but this type and short term treatment it is not necessary.
DJT. He said exhaustion is quite normal. Still excirsise to the best of your ability and we will start feeling our energy coming back along with other side effects. Also said neuropathy se can take a couple of months to subside.
Been struggling with taking the anxiety pill for help with sleep. Really expressed that I need to to get the sleep I need to bounce back quicker. Suggested I try it.
Well sitting here getting my infusion for zomeda. Guess i will take as nap.
Have a great weekend!
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LIFE, yes, Zometa is a bisphosphonate drug (a bone builder). Here's a link to info: http://chemocare.com/chemotherapy/drug-info/Zometa...
It won't give you problems with your teeth (that I know of), but you must be VERY careful with your oral homecare while you're on it. Floss, floss, floss - brush very thoroughly, avoid sucking on sugared candy (sugar-free ONLY!) and "grazing" (eating between meal snacks). If you do this, finish the snack quickly, then brush your teeth or at least rinse with Listerine and/or water to get everything off your teeth. Avoid sodas, sports drinks, lemonades, acidic drinks, except with a meal. The worry is developing cavities and then having those cavities turn into infected teeth that might need to be extracted. Bisphosphonate drugs have been linked to osteonecrosis of the jaw after tooth extractions (essentially, the bone in the jaw dies!), especially if given intravenously.
"Osteonecrosis of the jaw has been reported rarely in patients with cancer receiving treatment regimens including bisphosphonates. Many of the reported cases were associated with dental procedures such as removal of a tooth. Many had signs of local infection including infection in the bone. A dental examination with appropriate preventative dentistry should be considered prior to treatment with bisphosphonates particularly in patients with additional risk factors (e.g. cancer, chemotherapy, corticosteroids, poor oral hygiene). Invasive dental procedures should be avoided during treatment."
**Note: I was told bisphosphantes should NOT be used for more than 5 years as they can start to break down the bone after that time. In fact, I've discussed this with several of my patients whom I've noted have been on similar drugs like Fosamax and Boniva for more than 5 years and have asked them to relay this to their physicians. Wonder of wonders, they've all been taken off the drugs once the docs realized they'd kept the person on the drugs too long. You wouldn't think the lowly dental hygienist should have to explain this to the docs...grr. Keep it in mind -5 years only!
Good luck with your sleep. Maybe just resign yourself to using the anxiety meds temporarily (a couple of months)? I resisted anti-depressants for my out of control IBS a few years ago and finally gave in. It was nothing short of a miracle. I took them for about 2 years, then weaned myself off and haven't had the problem since.
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Gawarrier Thank you! Very informative. I am going to make an opt with dentist to have him check out my teeth since chemo treatments. I had an opt right before, teeth cleaning. Said everything looked good. I am scheduled to do infusions every 3 months for 3 years. I am scheduled to take as Anastrozole for 10 years. Told me it can cause joint pain. Said excirsise and eating heathly will help with that. I beginning to now understand this "new normal" life style that we have to take on.
As far as my teeth. I have a couple of false teeth from s car accident years ago that chemo has caused to start my gum to recede from one of th he false teeth. Wish I could have gotten to the dentist before my first treatment today. I dont have an opt till 3 weeks from now. Grrr. For the most part though I usually do get good reviews with my teeth.
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DJT. I read your post and all I could think was WOW!!! So many ppl out there are all about them and their world and to heck with the rest. It is very sad. I am so sorry that you were treated so wrong!! Dont you just love it when someone is having a bad day and you get to be the reciprocate of it? Hopefully you wont have to deal with that BS again.
Frog any news on you test? Hope it is all good!
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Ingerp, edibles work great! Two chocolate covered blueberries are keeping me side effects free for 5 hours now! Plus, I am in a good mood and smiling
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WOOHOOO!!
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InnaB2016. Yeah!!!! Glad to hear it! Maybe help you get thru the rest of chemo world a little easier. 😉
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InnaB that is so good, wow what a great discovery! Excellent!!
Life, thanks, i know, people.....The best part is, i rarely use the hc spots, only when I'm hurting.
Frog , duffysmom, INGERP, GAW, Engine, and all hope the weekend is treating you well, and the heat is bareable. Here in NY it's a drought, not to worry about grass mowing, it's dead!
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Happy Sunday All!
Actually had a nice weekend away with the hubby for a friend's 50th birthday party up in northern Michigan. I was able to enjoy most of the festivities although after a little hike yesterday the left arm started swelling again. Thankfully my prechemo MO appointment is tomorrow morning so I can talk to him a little more about it. I just don't understand if the Xarelto is making any difference. I can still see a visible lump where the jugular vein clot is located. This time the swelling went all the way down to my hand and caused some bruising I my wrist.
DJT dry and hot here too. Which is kind of good because I'm hoping to head back to Canada on Wednesday after my next round of chemo. I haven't been home in over 3 weeks and really need it. I think I can get by without mowing this week. Forecast looks like we are getting a cool down which will be a nice change.
LIFE - I also was concerned of starting a habit of taking the Xanax to help with sleep so I had my MO prescribe some Ambien. Honestly the Xanax works better for me so I switched back to it.
Good luck to all having infusions this week. I'm super excited to think after Tuesday I'll be down to just one more round of chemo.
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Wife was very tired today. She spent the day dozing on the couch. No SE's, other than the terrible fatigue, Thank God. I'm hoping this is the bottom of the cycle for this round and she'll start feeling better tomorrow.
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Engine - I've always found the drugs nadir to be fairly accurate. Taxotere is 5-9 days post treatment and Cytoxan is 10-14 so for your wife things should improve from day 14 or so.
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Hi Duffyzmom,
That puts us in the middle of the downside for Taxetere. The first two times, she started feeling better after a week or so. She didn't really get her appetite back until two weeks out, but had more energy, so maybe that is how the Cytoxan affects her?
She said she didn't feel this poorly the previous two rounds. I think that is because chemo's effect is cumulative, unfortunately.
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Engine - they are cumulative but maybe she'll get lucky my 3rd Round was the best but then SE were bad again at round #4. So I'm hopeful for round #5 tomorrow.
MO appt went so so. I'm having a repeat ultrasound on the clot since my arm was so bad this weekend. If clot is worse I'll have to have my port removed and then either just use vein access or PICC line for last rounds. I'm going to encourage MO to leave port in place and do chemo tomorrow anyway since I know they'll want me off of the blood thinners for awhile before removing it. The good news is he was planning to remove port for the Herceptin only portion of treatment anyway so not a huge change in plans.
My RO appt is Aug 2nd so I should be a go for radiation to start in August. I told MO I really want it all done by Canadian Thanksgiving and he thought that was perfectly doable.
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Duffysmom, good wishes and warm thoughts for you during tomorrow's treatment, you're getting there! I hope the clot and port s situation improves soon. You will be right behind me in the radiation schedule for August hoping for the best!
Engine ...hope the wife is gaining some strength and energy soon, i knows it was very cumulative for me, I'm still very weak from my last chemo, and it's 3 weeks tomorrow. My s.o. keeps telling me to eat and drink, but it is hard to take in good nutrition when taste and appetite is so far from normal. It's a little by little process. Iv been trying each day to gain a little more momentum.
Hoping for a great week for us all.
Deborah
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This afternoon the surgical incision started draining again from a small spot. It was quite a bit of fluid. It was clear and there is no redness, nor does she have any fever. I called the surgeon and they said it doesn't sound like an emergency and to keep an eye on it for any signs of infection. Hopefully, it will stop as her counts rise. Sigh.... We're three months out from surgery!
Otherwise, she seems to be feeling better than yesterday, so that is a good sign.
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Thanks Deborah- good results from repeat ultrasound. The clot is gone. So I'm guessing the arm swelling is just lymphedema from the chemo or a combination of that and the fluid retention SE from the taxotere. So thrilled that by this time tomorrow I'll be celebrating only 1 round to go.
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Hi everyone, im doing well. Have 7th taxol thursday. Than Monday the 23rd I've going to U of M for surgery consult.I will keep everyone updated with my options.. wishing wveryone good vibes!
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Engine. Sorry to hear that. Prayers that all is good and continues to get better.
Duffy That is really good news about your clot! Been thinking about you since your last post. One more to go! Yay!!
I was told today my liver enzymes are elevated. I wonder if that is why I am so tired this last treatment? Go back in 30 days for another test to see if it is getting better. Heading to dentist tomorrow to have my teeth check to make sure everything is ok. Going Thurs to get port out and I started my anastrozole today. That is
what I am up too.
Hope you all are doing well out there!
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LIFE - Congrats on your deportation. Hopefully your liver counts stabilize.
Urdrago- So glad your surgery is through UofM hopefully you will be pleased with care you receive.
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LIFE, sounds like great progress. I also start the anastrozole, as hormone pill in a few days. Hope no major SE from it. Did they talk about the possibility of hot flashes?
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DJT. So glad to hear that someone else on the board is going to be taking that as well. Yes. He talk to me about hot flashes and joint pain. Said that I needed to move every day for about 30 minutes and that would help with the joint pain. Of course I had to peek in on future boards and read how some women have insomnia and emotional mood changes as well as joint pain and hot flashes. I have chosen to take mine in the evening hours right after dinner as I take a Synthroid in the morning. However I also found on the board where women are taking it with minimal side effects. Let's hope we are one of those women! Now we get to compare our SE's with one another.
I also received a zometa infusion for bone protection. Will you be receiving those as well? I have to get one every 3 months for 3 years.
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Hi, everyone, sounds like most folks are just over the middle point or maybe even winding down...Who got their port out? I was wondering what that was like?
I'm exactly 3 weeks past Taxol #12 and starting to feel human again. The neuropathy is fading, so that's good. My appetite is, well, scary. For the first time in 4 months, I want vegetables! I gained 5 pounds, and I really didn't want to! But I am starting to walk more regularly, so hopefully it will go away. I get Herceptin only #2 on the 26th.
Hang in there, everyone--you are almost there!
Hugs,
dee
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Dee--how was your first H only? I'm seeing a mix of "no big deal" and "yikes--rougher than I expected". I gotta believe it'll be easier than getting the T/H, but maybe not quite as nothing as I've been hoping?
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Astynanax66. I will be getting my port out on Thursday. Will report back to you how it went and what it was like.
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LIFE and djt, I have been on my anastrozole for a month and so far so good!. Others that have been on it awhile insist exercise is key. I am back to my normal exercise routine and feel great. Some take glucosamine/ C to help with joint pain and I will if I need to. I actually just continued with claritin ever since chemo. Discussed with MO, if it works for neulasta pain hopefully it will help with this. She was fine with me staying on it. I had hot flashes on and off throughout chemo, still do , so I don't think it's the med. I take mine early evening and so far so good. Congrats on finishing chemo!
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