Chemo starting April 2018
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Still waiting for MO to call with scan results. But how have spent my 2nd morning of vacation?? Fixing a leak in underground irrigation with my mother who is 24 hourspost op (knee surgery). Oh and did I mention it was 8:30 am and already 104 degrees. I had to take many breaks. It only took us 20-30 minutes. Mom’s doing great. I’m exhausted and am barely starting to cool down after a cool shower and now sitting with an ice pack on my back.
I needed to b**ch and moan for a moment. Carry on ladies. Hope you’re all having a good day.
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FDwithfurkids, glad your on vaca!! Rough day with the irrigation fix, but amidst your discomfort, i read lots of smiling satisfaction in a job well done, especially with your mom . Hope the rest of your time is calmer and fun! Best on those test results.
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Deb, Ingerp,GAW, and Engine...thankyou all for you kind words, and suggestions. Very helpful.
All, I wanted to say I looked waaay back, at us all, Remember? April group. We have all come so far. I like engines motto about looking at all the way we have traveled, and its a long way indeed. We came through bouts of diahrrea, not being able to sip water, and what pill does what, calling in our problems to our mo's, and fighting our way from one day to the next....our weaknesses have started to turn around! To you ladies still facing surgery, i can't imaging how scary it must seem. That's what has consistently scared me the most...all the "firsts". I know you can and WILL do it, and do it famously.
A good friend of. Mine found she had cancer in both breasts, she found out, as she had spotted blood, as she breast fed her newborn daughter. She was 28. Having a new born and a 5 year old, also as a single mom who just got her own business off the ground! She had a double mastectomy, intense chemo 2xs and radiation. She never lost her smile, or her push forward. I remember bringing her family a meal when she was released after her mastectomy, and she was puttering around the kitchen! Drains, and newborn and all on her own. This girl is now 5 years past that eventful day, cancer free and loving every day of her life. I think of her daily, as I don't think I had half her strength through my lesser battle, at twice her age. anyway, we all somehow, someway, get through the daily challenges of this bump in our road.
Just sharing. Have a good rest of this week.
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Wow, that is inspirational, DJT. Thanks for sharing that story.
I'd like to believe that I could be as brave as my wife and all of you on here. I hope so, anyway. You are all an inspiration.
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Djt, thats a lovely story, thank you for sharing.
Taxol 9 day 3.
Feeling better than last week. I feel the zoladex shot was the main culprit. My next Zoladex is on the day I take my 12th Taxol. That week will kick my behind. We will see when I get to that.
So, I met my BS today and am equal parts informed and confused. And believe it or not my worry is around radiation. It seems radiation is bit risky on the left side. I feel like I should meet up with the RO before I make any decisions regarding mastectomy or partial mastectomy.
She did mention 1 interesting thing. Use of any opioid type of painkiller after surgery for pain management is controversial as there are some studies coming up that say they might lead to mets.
I will have an MRI couple of weeks after I finish chemo and we will take it from there. She wants me to keep my port in until after the surgery and path results on the off chance that the report on the tumor comes back Her2+. This was the first I heard of this. My BS mentioned its rare but has happenned.
All the best to all you lovely ladies and Engine.
Edit: Surgery dates will be around 6 th sept or 13 th sep
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Hang in there Frog!! For some reason three weeks left sounded like a long time, but once I got to two, it started feeling like I am <finally, actually> almost through this. I'm down to nine days until my last T. I'm wondering at what point I start counting the hours. ;-)
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hello, hope everyone is doing well and minimal SE's.. I found out today from my MO that yes Im starting to regrow my fuzzy hair.. other than that Im doing well and schedule to finish chemo Aug 23rd.
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Congrats, Urdrago71. That is great news.
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Urdrago, that is great news. I wish I could say the same about mine.
My eyebrows are 60% gone. So new daily routine is face wash, moisturize, do eyebrows then brush. I feel looking okay/normal makes me feel okayish as well. I am doing better this week than last. Some aches here and there. I went for a walk yesterday after giving myself a break for few days. It was good, but I think I over did it. I hope you guys have a good weekend.
Ingerp, number 11 for you... woohooo
InnaB , you start Taxol today right? Take your premeds on time.
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Frog, I start Taxol tomorrow. I have to take steroids twice before treatment. Scared out of my head... I hope I won’t be allergic to it.
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innaB2016. Good Luck tomorrow with your taxel! Let me know how ya do. I will be thinking about you.
Also. I was scared too. It is the newbies that are scary. Sending good thoughts your way that your going to be ok!
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Taxol 6, day 2 - doing well because the steroids are still working, lol. My rbcs dropped again this week, down to 7.8 now. I saw the 2nd MO in the practice before my chemo this week and she mentioned holding chemo for a week to let my blood counts come back up. NO! Thankfully, my primary MO okayed #6. Really hoping I don't lose ground again next week. I'm tired, but I really just want to get this over with and not be held a week. And I'm really trying to avoid a transfusion. I've read that transfusions can accelerate cancer growth and/or recurrence, so who needs that?
Urdrago, great news that your tumor has shrunk and lymph nodes, too. When they did my genetic testing, they tested 28 genes, but I see that ptpn12 wasn't one of them. Which other ones will they test you for? Glad your hair is growing back. You are 2 Ts ahead of me so now I can look forward to that in a couple of weeks.
DebAL, thanks for the aspirin info and the info on direct to implants. I didn't know it might make you smaller! At this point, though, I just want to be higher, lol (less saggy). It's good to know about not going back to work before 6 weeks - I think I should do that, too. You're right, it isn't worth compromising my results.
Maggie2, thanks for your info on direct to implants. I guess I don't understand why they would bother with expanders for prepectoral and not just stick an implant in the empty skin from where the breast tissue was taken. Maybe the weight of the implant impedes healing? Clearly, I need to do more research!
Frog, I'm glad you are feeling better this week. Interesting about the opiod pain killers and mets, thanks for sharing. As I mentioned in a prior post, I am reading about using the ketorolac NSAID and a nerve block during surgery, to help avoid mets. It makes you wonder what else they think might lead to mets...
Engine, how is Janice doing after round #3?
InnaB - yes, it would be nice if the entire medical community was on the same page. Good luck with that, lol. You'll do fine with the icing. It hurts like heck for the first 15-20 minutes until everything gets numb, then it's not bad (until you switch to the next ice pack and start the numbing all over again.) My gel packs might be different than yours - the ones for my feet last about 30 minutes each, the ones for my fingers about 10 minutes, so I've been wearing very light socks on my hands and just sticking them in a tupperware bowl full of ice. That works well and my fingers stay cold the whole time.
Fdwithfurkids, enjoy your vacation with your mom now that the irrigation is taken care of. Relax!!
djt, thanks for sharing the story about your friend being 5 years cancer-free. Sometimes even a year from now seems so far away. We have been through a lot and look at how strong we all are! We rock,
Ingerp, 8 days to go now, yay for you!
Wishing you all a great, SE-free weekend. Hugs!
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Life, GAWarrior, thanks for the good vibes! Wishing everyone a great weekend!
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Engine. Thank u ..how is ur wife doing this week? How are u holding up as well?
Life/Inna, it was a bit scary switching to a different drug during infusion. But I tried to stay bnb positive and remember my MO saying it will be easier than AC.. sending good vibes to u both.
Frog/ Gawarrior, I wull send details of additional testing when office calls me to schedule next apt at surgery. Btw. I might have 3 lashes left of each eye. Grrr. Why when I get head fuzzy i lose eyelashes??
Also additional treatments after radiation I asked about today for TNBC. MO said if there tumors still left after chemo, over 1cm than yes its worth doing and most are trials. Well we see what my results are during my surgery.
Also immunotherapy is being used for treatments were I getting infusions, which I beleive is good news for future..
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Undrago71 I am with you on the eyelashes/eyebrows! I finished chemo 4 weeks ago. I'm starting to get fuzzies on my head where they no longer feel like whiskers. But there is not been one day that I have not found an eyelash either hanging on my cheek or stuck in my eye or in my sink. And my eyebrows are getting thinner by the day. GRRRRR
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Congrats Life, how are you feeling and what have u noticed as far as changes back to the normal you? Better and Stronger you...
I also started taking biotin tablets to support my hair grow.. Ive got four more weeks of Taxol before Im done. I think it's a bit weird, but MO confirmed and all the nurses with," awwww u got ur fuzzy's ". Not really sure why the eyelash and brows are last to fall out.. maybe i should of iced them!!
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My neighbor lost a lot of hair when she was on 2 years of steroids for polymyalgia. She swears that Viviscal Professional Strength supplements brought her hair back to normal very quickly. She made me write it down for after I'm done with chemo. Here's an Amazon link if you're interested: https://www.amazon.com/Viviscal-Professional-Strength-Supplement-tablets/dp/B0094IUIKQ
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GAWarrior—thanks for the shoutout. I love this group! Heading out for #11 this morning and then seven days til last chemo. WOOT WOOT!!
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Ingerp, go you! Good luck today - wishing you no SEs and a great weekend!
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Happy Friday All!
I finally feel almost back to normal after last round. Last weekend I just kept telling myself only one more only one more only one more.
Ingerp-Congrats on being so close to last round. I also have a countdown. 11 days !😁
GAWarrior - How's your protein intake? It took me quite awhile to bring up my RBC because I really do struggle with eating protein so I focused on iron rich veggies as much as possible.
Urdrago- did UofM have an estimate on your tumor size? I know you mentioned reconstruction following your lumpectomy. My tumor was 1.9cm with clear margins but I am very large breasted and won't need reconstruction unless radiation causes issues.
Engine - I hope your wife's 3rd round is uncomplicated
Have a great weekend !
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duffyzmom. Yes tumor @10 ovlovk area was 2cm x .8 x 1.5 cm and reduced now 1 cm x .6x 1cm. Also largest node was 1.9 cm , now reduced 1.1 cm . I have two areas level one and level 2 lymph node involvement..
The current tumor was found on benign bicopy lump removal scar tissue from 2003. So ive already had some fat/tissue removed once. Also I will be have lymph node removal in that armpit. Long term Im still considering mastectomy as Im TNBC and have increased chances of reoccurance. Hope that explains back ground with reasoning for reconstruction.
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Hi everyone,
Janice is feeling pretty well right now. She still doesn't have much energy, but chemo has a cumulative effect, right?
Actually, next week will be the 4th round. Depending on what the oncologist says, it could be either the last one or she'll have two more to go. As you know, six is the usual number of rounds of TC, unless the SEs are too bad.
I hope you all have a pleasant and SE-free weekend!
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Hello all, I hope everyone has a good weekend. Its exciting to hear everyone is on the homestretch with chemo. As far as the hair I am doing well there. I take biotin and a plant based hair skin and nail vitamin that I found at Walmart. Be sure you are using a shampoo that cleanses your scalp and keeps it clean so the follicles aren't clogged. That's very important. No shampoo can really make your hair grow. I used Nioxin throughout chemo and to be honest my hair grew ever since the buzz. I will be 8 weeks out from last chemo this Monday. Scalp is totally covered. I'm already ditching the scarves more often. Ask your hairdresser for advice if needed. Engine, I'm glad your wife is feeling better. Take care everyone. Hugs.
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Sorry I've been out of the loop, with the start of a new school year. I was 4 minutes away from getting into the shower and heading to my CT/simulation for rads yesterday when the RO called (herself, on her cell phone, so that was something) to apologize for an emergency procedure she had to attend. I've been rescheduled for the simulation on the 6th, and I don't know if I'll get rads then or later or....nothing. This is causing so much havoc at work (not knowing when I'll be there) that I've been non-functional and rather out of my mind. I wish I'd had a mastectomy now. I'd be done and honestly wouldn't have so much worry about recurrence. But that is a very individual choice, and I know others wish they were in my shoes.
I did got to Herceptin-alone round 2 in the afternoon. I will say that I had side effects, but since I expected and prepared for them, it was better than Herceptin-alone round 1. I got the headache, some bone aches, and a new one (nausea). So, next time, I know to take Zofran before infusion along with Tylenol. All have been manageable. They are still pushing it in 30 minutes, no budging on that. Liver function was much better, WBC are great, but there is still some anemia, though hemoglobin was normal for the first time in weeks.
Hope everyone is doing well so far and not experiencing too many side effects!
Dee
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Good afternoon! Haven't posted in a while so here's my update:
Because of the extent of my neuropathy, especially in my feet, my MO is having me stop taxol at 8 weeks instead of 12. Yesterday was #7, so I'll be done with chemo on Thursday - 8/2! He is pretty convincing that not doing the last 4 is not that big of an issue, and I trust him.
Hair growth: my hair is growing back on my head. My understanding is that the AC causes head hair loss (and all the other places that we've all experienced) while T causes the eyelash/eyebrow loss. So I was hoping that hair would start to grow once AC stopped. It took a while to notice the hair, and much of it is very white, but now I can see tints of brown on my head. It's probably 3/8" long. But very sparse on the top front of my head, so I won't be going to work without the wig for a while.
Here's what's next for me: I do need the mastectomy - still probably unilateral and probably the first week of September. I'm meeting with a different PS than the one who did my lumpectomy reconstruction and breast reduction. The old PS doesn't do any of the microsurgery, and recommended a latissimus dorsi flap - that messes with your latissimus dorsi muscle in your back. So the new PS does DIEP - and that's the route I'm hoping to go. The big unknown is whether the new PS will do the DIEP at the same time as the mastectomy since I need radiation also. There are studies that show that radiation doesn't affect autologous reconstruction as much as it does implant reconstruction. I sure would love to have one less surgery. That appointment is on 8/6. Lots of anxiety still....
So chemo ending 8/2, surgery around 9/4, 4 weeks to recover then 6 weeks of radiation. Still a long road. I'd so love to be done before my birthday on 11/17 - what a great birthday present that would be!8
Physically, I'm doing fine re the chemo - my SEs have been minimal. Emotionally, most days are ok, other days are rough. I'm really trying to take back control of my diet, and making sure I get some exercise in every day. But dealing with the long term aspects of cancer is rough. For the first time, I'm looking at how scary and stressful it will be to have the mammograms and scans after this is all over. This became more of a reality when my MO told me he wouldn't need to see me until November, and that I will need a bone density screening before I see him. And so it begins.
Oh and I'll be back on anastrozole starting 8/8. I was on it before as part of the clinical trial, but this will be the beginning of 5-10 years.
Hope everyone has a good weekend. I value reading all your posts.
Linda
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Well, surprise, surprise, the only two viable veins seem to have closed, so after waiting for 5 hours I was sent home with 3 new holes in my arm and no Taxol. I cried. Seriously. Have to be back on Monday, though. They will try again, and if unsuccessful, I'll have to add a port for 4 Taxols. I am so frustrated and upset, I can't even talk. Or write
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Oh, no, InnaB!! I am so very sorry!
dee
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Well <swear word> Inna. That r-e-a-l-l-y sucks. It's occasionally taken a couple of sticks but so far (knock on some wood around here) they haven't had a problem finding a vein. It's usually in my forearm, although today was in my hand. I assume you/they are doing all the right things before they try? Drinking plenty of fluids and they're warming the area?
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Wow, Linda, I would be overwhelmed! I hope your PS will work with you to give you good results. I'm glad that your oncologist feels that 8 treatments will be a satisfactory choice. I did make it through 12, BUT I only had Taxol and Herceptin (no AC), so you had a lot more than I did. Hope you have a good weekend!
dee
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InnaB. Im so sorry. I know the feeling when u miss a chemo and wanna be done. Maybe ur body just needs a break and everything will be okay next week. Staying positive and be kind to urself.. higs...
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