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Chemo starting January 2019

B74
B74 Member Posts: 43
edited August 2020 in Chemotherapy - Before, During, and After

I think I'm the first in this boat?? Starting 4 x AC then 12 x T on 4 Jan.

I'm keen to meet others starting their new year in a similar way!

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UPDATE: Our Jan (& almost Jan) starters group includes (in order of start date):

27 Dec - Netiseret (TCa + H)

2 - kaylajane (6 x TCa + H)

3 - Gigi71 (12 x Taxol + H)

3 - Ngai (4 x ACy + Taxol)

3 - Salsa_dancer_Shannon (4 x TCy)

3 - Kstinekd (4 x AC + 4 x Taxol)

3 - Sentha (TC)

4 - B74 (4 x ACy + 12 x Taxol)

4 - RdhJoy (4 x TCy)

7 - mnsotamom74

9 - Mariett (4 x ACy + 12 x Taxol)

9 - Mgm0712 (4 x TCy)

9 - MLAnne (Abraxane/Cy)

14 - Jenkins00 (4 x TCy)

15 - NO1FIGHTSALONE (12 x Taxol + H)

15 - Mylife42 (ACy + Taxol)

15 - Gkidsnana (ACy + T)

15 - Ruffian188 (TCa)

17 - Skygirl44 (4 x ACy + 4 x Taxol)

17 - Nanomom11 (4 x ACy + 12 x Taxol)

18 - Kathy03 (TCy)

18 - rrshannon (4 x TCy)

25 - ErinMFerrell (4 x ACy + 12 x Taxol)

25 - Caiti2067 (12 x Taxol + H)

31 - Mncteach (ACy + Taxol)


? - Imagine923 (4 x ACy + 12 x Taxol)

? - Rosie24

T = Taxotere (docetaxel)

Ca = Carboplatin (paraplatin)

H = Herceptin (trastuzumab)

Taxol (paclitaxel)

A = Adriamycin (doxorubicin)

Cy = Cytoxan (cyclophosphamide)


«134567…17

Comments

  • Juleseyes
    Juleseyes Member Posts: 1

    my mom will start sometime in January. She doesn’t “Internet” but I can keep you posted because I am heavily invested in this process with her.

  • Sentha
    Sentha Member Posts: 8

    Hi B74, I am sorry to hear that you are in this boat too. I am also starting mid January. Scared a little but I know our good God will lead the way and we will come out of it successfully. I just got those results yesterday and immediately I went to color my hair (which I never really done before) and will be cutting my hair bold just before my 1st Chemo session just to deny this little devil opportunity to take my hair from me 😀. Good luck and stay blessed.

  • Maggie0626
    Maggie0626 Member Posts: 11

    B74,

    I just had my first AC treatment today. I will be going through the same number and medicine as you are. Let’s kerp each other motivated!! :). I keep telling myself that this is only temporary.

  • B74
    B74 Member Posts: 43

    Hi Juleseyes, Sentha & Maggie! Nice to ‘meet’ you even though the circumstances could be better.

    Juleseyes - do you know yet what treatment your mum will be getting?

    Sentha - when I found out I had to have chemo I went straight out and got a radical haircut! I’ve had longish hair for ages & it seemed a good excuse to do something drastic (with little to lose) while also denying chemo at least some of my hair.

    Maggie - how did the first infusion go? Were you terrified? I’ve read WAY too much about side effects but it seems to be a spectrum, I really hope you (& all of us) are on the lower end. And at least you should be feeling better in time for Christmas!

    Personally I’m a bit nervous about the delay (I was diagnosed in Oct & had surgery in Nov) but my kids are very relieved that we can still go away to the in-laws’ for Christmas.

  • Maggie0626
    Maggie0626 Member Posts: 11

    B74,

    Yesterday, even though I should have felt well on my 1st day, I, for lack of a better description, I felt like I had a bad hangover. Lol I’m 43 so I don’t often drink that much because I hate that feeling. I have an amazing family that I don’t have to worry about laying down when I don’t feel well. I am hoping things will ease up in the next few days. We can get through these next few months.

    I was terrified going into my first treatment because of the unknown. Once I was there I was relaxed. The nurses were amazing and I didn’t even feel the needle going into my port. I thought it was pretty cool.

    In terms of Christmas, those were my thoughts exactly. My boys are 13/8 and I don’t want to miss a beat. My 2nd round will be on the 28th. I am a school counselor and my district doesn’t go back until the following Thursday so I have almost a full week to recover from my 2nd round before returning to work. That makes me so relieved.

    I will be having a double mastectomy after chemo. My genetic testing came back with 2 gene mutations...no braca gene mutation...just 2 other ones that put me at a higher risk for breast cancer. I am certainly not going through this again in the future.

    I’m happy we found one another!!!

  • MLAnne
    MLAnne Member Posts: 65

    *Waves "hi" at the group.*

    I have my first treatment January 2nd. Happy New Year! Yeah right.

    I am having the port placement surgery this coming Wednesday, December 19th but I really didn't want to start the treatments until that heals. I guess I am a bit of a baby when it comes to pain and medical care. I will be getting Taxotere and Cytoxan every 3 weeks for a total of 6 treatments (assuming I can last that long.)

    I have been lurking around the November and December groups to try and get an idea of what to expect. I took treatment day and the following two days off work. And I've asked to be reduced to 32-36 hours a week (about 4 days a week) on non-treatment weeks. I am hoping I can maintain that schedule but I am seriously worried about managing side effects.

  • B74
    B74 Member Posts: 43

    👋👋 👋 MLAnne!!! Yeah “happy new year” - just how I feel! No one has spoken to me about a port so I assume they’re just going to find a new vein every time - ugh. I hope the surgery & recovery goes well for you.

    Maggie - I’m 44, so very similar to you, & have 3 kids aged 13 (girl), 11 (boy) & 7 (girl). I hope my family is as good as yours at letting me rest, but I’m a bit worried, the younger two have so much energy & never stop talking.

    I feel very vey fortunate with work, my manager has been very supportive and said I don’t need to make any decisions at this stage but can wait & see how it affects me before deciding whether to work or take sick leave. MLAnne - I’m not sure how bad the side effects are from Taxotere & Cytoxan (??)but have been researching AC & am pretty nervous!

  • Maggie0626
    Maggie0626 Member Posts: 11

    B74, yes, very similar treatments. My port placement went off without a problem. I saw my dr this past Tuesday and insisted that I had my port placed and I start chemo on Friday (this past Friday). I wasn't waiting any longer. My diagnosis was Nov 5th and I was waany longer. To tell you the truth, Friday I didn't feel so well, just kind of like a hangover for lack of better words, and the past few days have been just fine. I plan on going into work tomorrow. Fingers crossed. My boys are 13/8, so full of energy, but they understand my perdidicament and have been letting me rest when needed.

    MlAnne, I hope your port placement flies as well as mine did. The only thing I didn't like was my port was put in around 1:00 and I wasn't able to eat or drink after midnight the night before, butnjust a minor inconvenience.

  • MLAnne
    MLAnne Member Posts: 65

    Maggie~ Port placement was this morning and it went off just fine. Finding a vein beforehand was another story. After multiple tries with one hand resulting in me getting dizzy and nauseous, they opted to wait til the operating room. The other hand was only slightly easier so I sporting some fairly substantial bruising on both hands. Coming out of surgery was so much easier than when they used the general anesthesia for my lumpectomy. I am very surprised how normal I feel. Now a short break in the action before I start infusions on January 2.

  • santabarbarian
    santabarbarian Member Posts: 2,311

    Hi Group,

    I am visiting from the August 2018 Chemo group to say, #1, you can do it!!!! #2, fasting or "fasting mimicking" prior to chemo was a big help to several people in the August group, so I wanted to alert you guys to this technique. If you search my posts for "fasting mimicking" you will see more info about it. Developed by Dr Valter Longo at USC, can google him for info. Lowers side effects of chemo and boosts immune system in one fell swoop.

    Cheers!

    Santabarbarian

  • B74
    B74 Member Posts: 43

    Hi Santabarbarian, yes I am planning on fasting (48 hrs before, 24 hrs after) & have already done two 48 hour practice fasts. I find fasting quite tough (maybe because I don’t have a lot of fat to burn!) so I really hope it’s worth it & helps me with side effects. I’ve read a lot of very positive stories but also a couple that didn’t think it made much difference.

  • Ruffian188
    Ruffian188 Member Posts: 11

    I will be in this group.  Not sure when my first infusion is.  Had to have re-excision on 12/17 and port placement. Waiting on pathology.   Will need to heal a bit first.  Good luck to everyone.

  • MLAnne
    MLAnne Member Posts: 65

    Welcome to the group, Ruffian. Re-excision? May I ask why?

  • Ruffian188
    Ruffian188 Member Posts: 11

    Re-excision to get clean margin. I had synchronous BC. Had bilateral lumpectomies on 11/26. Right was clean, node negative. Left side went from DCIS to IBC. Had to do SNB on the left with re-excision and implant port. Hope to get pathology report today.

  • ajbclan
    ajbclan Member Posts: 396

    I always enjoyed hearing from folks that went through it, so when I saw your group I wanted to say Hi and tell you- yeah it sucks, but with each others supports, ideas, hints, etc you can do it. I honestly can't believe I'm 2 years out now....you will all get there! Your hair will come back! Take one treatment, side effect, thing at a time. Find what works for you and your body....and keep each other going.

    All my best to you all....Kelly

  • Mariett
    Mariett Member Posts: 9

    Hi all, i had my bmx on November 23 and was due to start chemo in December but I had to go back for a re-excision yesterday because of a positive margin. I start chemo Jan 9th. Looking forward to getting treatment started and finished. Good luck to everyone here

  • Ruffian188
    Ruffian188 Member Posts: 11

    Anyone else in the January 2019 group HER2 positive?


  • Mncteach
    Mncteach Member Posts: 241

    I am scheduled to get my port the 30th and first chemo on the 31st! Meet with the nurse on the 8th to go through things and answer my millions of questions.

  • B74
    B74 Member Posts: 43

    Hi Mncteach - are you starting 31 Jan or Dec? Either way - welcome to the group!

    Ruffian188 - not sure about the others but I’m HER2-. So no Herceptin, ‘just’ aggressive chemo + radiation

    I might update the first post with start dates if that's possible. What treatment is everyone getting?

    Hope you all have nice plans for Christmas & New Year, before we start the next (scary) phase of this journey. I’m at the in-laws for a week & BC seems unreal during the day but then I go to bed & start thinking about it again.... I’m not getting much sleep!

  • Mncteach
    Mncteach Member Posts: 241

    I am starting January 31st.

  • MLAnne
    MLAnne Member Posts: 65

    B74 - I think that would be a great idea to update the first posts with our group, dates and what treatment.

    I am starting January 2

    Cytoxan and Taxotere every 3 weeks for 6 treatments.

  • Mariett
    Mariett Member Posts: 9

    I'm starting Jan 9th. AC x 4 + T x 12

  • Mgm0712
    Mgm0712 Member Posts: 12

    Hi. First infusion is the 9th. I'm petrified!!

  • Mgm0712
    Mgm0712 Member Posts: 12

    I start the same day.

  • Gigi71
    Gigi71 Member Posts: 47

    I start January 3rd, 2019..Taxol..weekly for 12 weeks! Herceptin too, not sure if it will be along w/ the Taxol or after. Anyone taking this? Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas! 2019 is going to be a whole new world! Scary stuff! I have chemo class at 8:30 and 1st treatment at 10:45. Trying to read up on what to eat the first day to try to avoid being sick. Although, my Dr said mine will be very, very mild! We will see! And I still have my drain in from my left breast mastectomy from Dec 4th...:(!

  • kaylajane
    kaylajane Member Posts: 39

    I am starting January 2, getting nervous, but has been kind of nice having the holiday as a distraction.

    I will have 6 cycles of Taxotere and carboplatin, and Herceptin for a year. Ruffian, I am another HER2+.

    Looking at websites of wigs, but it's so hard for me to comprehend that hair loss is really going to happen!

    I know others have done it and I can too.

  • moderators
    moderators Posts: 8,736

    Hi Kayla, and welcome to Breastcancer.org!

    We're so sorry for the reasons that bring you here, but we're really glad you've found us. We know it's tough facing chemo, but rest assured you've found a great group here who will be happy to support you and share with you through treatment and beyond.

    We look forward to hearing more from you soon!

    --The Mods

  • B74
    B74 Member Posts: 43

    I've updated the first post with everyone's start dates (those who already have one) - let me know if I've missed anyone.

  • MLAnne
    MLAnne Member Posts: 65

    B74, one small correction. I am Taxotere and Cytoxan not Carboplatin.

    Six days and counting....eeek!

  • B74
    B74 Member Posts: 43

    Oh sorry, these drug names are such a headache

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