TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP
Comments
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shawntez cancer treatment is a time suck but you'll get through it and return to your life. I'm sure you've helped others when they needed it. Don't be uncomfortable with letting them help you when you need it. Talk to your onc about the mood swings. I'm sure both diagnosis, "vacation" from your normal life and chemo is doing a job on your ovaries are wreaking havoc. S/he might be able to suggest something. Also are you having sleep issues? That might also add to it. Let the doctor know.
I see you are quitting smoking… that probably has a lot to do with it. It's hard but I know you'll do it.
You will get through this. ♥
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Welcome shawntez,
There are so many SE's from treatment and having mood swings is just one. I believe they result from physiological, chemical and hormonal factors. You are likely getting steroids before, during and/ or after your infusions and as you have likely heard, they can cause bouts of anger . Tell your mo about all of your symptoms. They have meds and advice that will ease most SE's.
And although no one wants to join this club I believe you'll find it is filled with amazing women!
Come here and vent. We understand.
Btw..I'm still struggling to understand this too.0 -
Welcome, Shantez. And sorry. Sigh.
You will get through it, it hits everyone differently. Ask for help, that's the hard part. So are the various waiting times! Hang in there. I found a new quote from Winston Churchill I am going go use on my signature. " When you find yourself going through Hell, KEEP GOING! " LOL Much love.0 -
Thanks Lago.....
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Dana, my BMX was scheduled for four weeks after my Dx. My chemo for 6 weeks after that. Then I got an infection, and started 4 weeks after that.
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AA,
Hey, I was doing some research on testosterone, and stumbled upon this. IT was written 3 days ago.
Male sex hormones 'drive breast cancer'
US scientists say they have found a new target to beat breast cancer - male sex hormones, or androgens.
The University of Colorado team discovered that many breast cancers possess androgen receptors on their surface, and that male hormones like testosterone fuel the tumour's growth.
Drugs to block these receptors could offer another way to fight the disease, a meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research heard.
They plan clinical trials to test this.
Dr Jennifer Richer and colleagues say more than three-quarters of all breast cancers possess androgen receptors and therefore might benefit from anti-androgen therapy.
This type of treatment is already used for prostate cancer.
Hormones
Experts already know that some breast cancers grow under the influence of female hormones, like oestrogen and progesterone.
The widely-used breast cancer drug Tamoxifen works by blocking oestrogen receptors to halt these cancers.
Dr Richer's research suggests male hormones are also important drivers.
Hormones and breast cancer
- Some breast cancer cells have receptors, which allow particular types of hormones or proteins to attach to the cancer cell
- Tumours that posses oestrogen receptors are known as oestrogen-receptor positive or ER positive breast cancer and respond well to hormone treatments like Tamoxifen
- Some cancers have receptors for the protein HER2 (human epidermal growth factor 2) and respond well to a drug called Herceptin (trastuzumab)
- Scientists are increasingly interested in drugs that block androgens as a potential therapy for androgen-receptor positive breast cancer
And adding anti-androgen drugs to our armoury against breast cancer could improve treatment success.
They found many breast tumours possessed both oestrogen and androgen receptors.
These responded to anti-androgen therapy in the laboratory.
Patients who who relapse while on Tamoxifen but who also have androgen receptors might have the most to gain from this new type of treatment, according to Dr Richer.
She said: "We are excited to move towards clinical trials of anti-androgen therapies in breast cancer."
Dr Emma Smith of Cancer Research UK said: "It's still early days for this research but there's growing interest in the androgen receptor's role in breast cancer as a potential new route to tackle the disease.
"Cancer Research UK scientists are among those working on whether targeting this receptor could help treat both those women who develop resistance to other treatments and those who have fewer treatment options"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-22076692
Have you heard any of this? If so, what does your Onc say? What do you think?
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Um, yeah...don't know what happened there
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BTW if you have more testosterone in your body don't you risk higher levels of DHT… which can lead to hair loss?
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I had to google that Lago. This stuff is Greek to me.
I'm so confused.
Androgens and testosterone. I've read studies released in 2012 that say androgens help suppress breast cancer. I know testosterone is of the Androgen family, but that's about as much as I've really looked into it.
Does anyone here know the primary difference between the two in the way our cells, specifically cancer cells, respond to them?
IF so, can you give me the "hormone for dummies" version?
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Thanks Moonflwr...my bmx is also scheduled exactly 4 weeks after my dx...surgery is this Thursday...getting very anxious. Does chemo come first before radiation?
I know this might sound CRAZY to some, but I have 2 vacations scheduled ...one for the week of Memorial Day (oldest daughter's college graduation present) and then the second vacation scheduled for week of June 21-28..Alaskan Cruise (family vacation with 20 people)....I don't want to miss either and worried my tx will start!? UGH0 -
272588220 Radiation is usually after chemo. Regarding vacations… discuss with your doctor. As mentioned best time to start chemo seems to be between 3-8 weeks post surgery but that isn't written in stone. I doubt your onc will agree to waiting till July. Some of us don't feel that bad but it's hard to know. You may have to rethink that Alaskan Cruise though since you will be much further into treatment. I wasn't flu tired but I definitely had less energy. You may also need to see how often you get treatments.
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Dana, what Lago said about the cruise. Also, not everyone gets a lot of nausea with chemo (I didn't), but if you do, maybe being on a ship for a week isn't such a good idea. Also you will probably find certain foods palatable and others not at all, and you will be more prone to infection. You might not want to be that far from a hospital.... but it is an Alaska cruise, so maybe it's doable? The thing is, you might be fine with it but you won't know how you're going to react to chemo until you've started.
Another thing is the cycles of chemo. The day and day after you get chemo, you probably won't feel too much. Usually days 3-5 are the worst. For me, by about a week after the tx, I felt fairly normalish. However, you are most susceptible to infection at the mid point of your cycle. By week 3 (I'm assuming you'll be on a every 3 weeks schedule x 6), I felt the most normal. So if you are going to try to go anyway, maybe you can schedule your regimen so the cruise is in the 3rd week?
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Rough decision. You would be pushing the boundries of what they want, talk to them. I know some people waited a bit, I was right at eight weeks, had surgery Dec 8, started Chemo Feb 16 because I was on Antibiotics till Feb 7.
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well, a little bump in the road... had emergency gall bladder surgery thursday afternoon. had no idea the thing was all fired up, but apparently it was seriously infected and maybe even gangrenous. had to reschedule first meet with MO and RO. wow, when it rains it pours, right? home from the hospital and feeling a lot better, so i guess now we get back to getting this BC zapped.
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Karenrm, hoping you heal pretty fast. Sucks. Much love.
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karenm, what a bumpy ride you are having! Hope things smooth out for you....
TonLee, I knew that testosterone was used years ago as a tx for mets, so perhaps it helped those who didn't have much in the way of androgen receptors. Thanks for the info, as I had not seen it yet. I am so dreadfully completely genderless that I have no idea whether I would have lots of androgen receptors but no androgen, or vice-versa.
Chemo is different today from when I did it in 2002, taking CAFx6. There is no way on earth I could have done a cruise on that regimen, much less enjoyed it. Just doing chemo is a time of high anxiety and introspection. The large cruise ships have medical personnel on board but you'd have to confirm that they would have the ability to obtain and mix any chemo for you, and I suspect that would be a liability they would rather not take on because of reactions and long distances between ports from major medical facilities.
A.A.
P.S. I started my chemo at 12 weeks after surgery although I think my PCP was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable about waiting any longer.
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Thank you so much Gratitude. I'm hungry for any info I can get.
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Just came across this and I thought it was cute, and that we could relate even though these ladies do not have BC, especially if you are a "Real Housewives" fan!
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Thanks everyone for the good points on the cruise timing and tx.....glad I have the insurance....besides being a family cruise...I am also the travel agent that organized it...Travel With Your Travel Agent....I hope my husband can handle being the new Leader......:(
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Thanks, kayb. I kind of wish nuts were the problem. I've tried eliminating everything I can think of, short of food period..... and possibly, the dog... and now and then, my sweetie...
Happy trails, DanaM! Here's the one that sounds neat to me:
http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2012/08/02/taking-kids-on-different-kind-alaska-cruise/
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Thank you, ladies, for the insight and the welcome.
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Ok...some fun news today...my friends threw me a Princess Party...tons of comfort food, mimosas, presents and "Team Dana" t-shirts.....it was AWESOME!!!
http://db.tt/KkxNj9FJ0 -
shawntez - welcome!
dana - sounds like you have some great friends - and I am glad you had some fun!
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Joined the ranks of the baldies today...harder on hubby than me because he did the actual clipping while I tried to take pictures! ...although I forgot about it during the day and just as I was brushing my teeth glanced in the mirror and startled myself! LOL. According to first treatment notes I took this should have been a sucky day for me...but wasn't...yeah! Fingers crossed for next couple days!
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SpecialK....thanks much...best part was that no one cried! I am a very upbeat happy person all the time....so that rubs off on everyone....now my family is a bit terrified most of the time...I continue to joke and laugh...they will catch on.....sooner than later hopefully
Ps...rivercottage....just cut my long hair really short in anticipation of joining your new group...lol
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rivercottage - sorry you had to lose the hair, but that is a temporary thing. Much like chemo I found the anticipation worse than the event. Once the hair was gone it was on to the next. Glad you are doing well, hopefully that continues.
dana - I think many of us chose humor to get us through - it is often a laugh or cry situation, electing to laugh helps!
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Welcome Shawn--and like everyone said tlk to u'r Dr. about u'r moods and talk to u'r husband too--it will settle down.
Karen I had the GB operation--oh heal quickly what a start.
Dana U would be the travel guide, just make just u totslly take care of u.
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rivercottage I wasn't as upset about the hair loss. Not happy but not upset. More worried about losing my eyebrows. They thinned but I never lost them completely… and I never had thick eyebrows.
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DANA; GOOD CHOICE YOU ARE DOING BMX. THERE IS NO POINT IN KEEPING A CANCER PRODUCING ORGAN/GLAND IN YOUR BODY ONCE IT HAS BETRAYED YOU!!. YOU SAY YOU ARE STAGE 2 EVEN WITH SUCH SMALL TUMOR. YOU MUST HAD ONE OR 2 NODES INVOLVED? IF SO CHECK OUT IF YOU ARE HAVING RADIATION, HOPE NOT. ALL MY FREINDS WHO HAD IT, LOST THEIR EXPANDERS AND WENT THRU HELL WITH RECONSTRUCTION. RADIATION AND EXPNADERS DO NOT MIX. I LOST MY EXPANDERS DUE TO THE CHEMO , DID NOT HAVE RADS, I ALSO HAD BMX, CHEMO AND HERCEPTIN,. ASK YOUR ONC ABOUT NEUPOGEN SHOTS. I HAD THEM AFTER I LOST THEM DUE TO LOW WHITE CELL COUNT FROM CHEMO. IM DOING WELL NOW 2.5 YRS AND MY NEW BREAST ARE GREAT(SILICONE). THIS IS THE LITTLE CRAP YOU LEARN AS YOU GO.
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i may have been a little optimistic in saying i was feeling a lot better. i have been dealing with constipation from all the pain meds. finally better with that. the port is kind of sore still. i think things will really seem better when i don't feel that port. dana, a princess party sounds like fun-comfort food and mimosas, how wonderful....
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