Starting Chemo in February 2019

Hello! My first treatment is February 5, 2019. 4x TCy.

Hi, I have been reading all of the posts since being diagnosed in December. This is my first post. I am so happy to have found this community. I had a lumpectomy 1/14/19 and I am going back 2/4/19 for more surgery to get clearer margins. I will also be getting a port installed and starting chemo 2/7/19. I will be on 4 rounds each of AC & Taxol and then radiation.

Happy Friday everyone. Just got home from my first infusion of TCHP. What a long day. They also used my port for the first time since having it put in which was weird but not as bad as I thought. They did prescribe me lidocaine to put on the port about an hour before going in that way I won’t feel a thing. Figured why not give it a try. Nervous to see what my body has in store for me the next few days. Also I’ve read to stay on top of the anti nausea meds, should I take one before bed even though I feel ok? Thank you!

February Warriors:

Hopping in from the August chemo group to tout the benefits of a brief fast or semi-fast alongside chemo to make the SEs a lot less intense. Fasting tells your healthy cells to go quiescent, and save energy, while also stressing your cancer cells and making them vulnerable. Your chemo day is in the middle of the fast. If doing fasting mimicking, you start 2 days before chemo day for 5 days, and if doing a water-only fast you go for 3 days w chemo day in the middle.

As the fast ends, and your appetite returns, you rebuild by eating nutrient dense foods. During the worst of your digestive system shutting down you basically have very little food in there so it is not uncomfortable.

This fasting plan was developed by a doctor -- Valter Longo at USC. You can look up info on google and youtube. Basically the fasting mimicking is 1,100 cals on day one, and 800 cals per day thereafter. You can eat about 100 cals of protein per day (egg, nuts, meat, etc) and the rest of the calories 50/50, above ground veggies and healthy fats (avocado, cocoanut oil, etc). Unlimited water, tea, bone broth.

There are other posts on this site about it. For me, it was the single biggest help to chemo side effects. My chemos actually got easier not harder as I got better at timing my fast. And I had a superb response to chemo. I think the cancer-killing assist of the fasting might have been important to me as I had a bad cancer (TNBC). But also the protection to healthy cells seems to have worked. I had no fingernail, skin, or mouth issues. Just fatigue.

I also applied heat to my palpable tumor and lymph node - several times per week, an hour+ each time, with a very hot hot water bottle - as heat also stresses/kills cancer cells and spares healthy cells. My boob is still pinkish from the mild burns I got applying all that heat. But I talked to a hyperthermia specialist who said that I surely did myself good by doing this. Again my tumor was easy to feel and near the surface where the heat could penetrate.

Last, exercise. It's counter intuitive but taking a walk when you feel like crap will make you feel a lot less crappy, faster. The integrative MD I consulted with emphasized how important it is for your lean muscle tissue and your heart to be in "building" mode not giving up mode. Your body should think you are in training. He proposed interval training which only takes 18 mins: 3 mins of 30 second intervals, alternating high intensity and moderate intensity (can be jog, bike, elliptical, etc), then a 3 minute rest. Do this three times total.

Good luck!!

Hello everyone! There is so much information on this site. A great resource. My first treatment will be Thursday, the 7th. Hoping the side effects won't be so terrible. I'm scheduled for 4 months of chemo every 2 weeks. The first half AC and then Taxol for the second half. After that will be surgery and then radiation. Good luck to all on this journey.

Starting chemo Feb 28, for recurrence of lobular cancer in one lymph node in my axilla. Cyclophosphamide and Taxotere. Not looking forward to it but trying to focus on getting through it and getting treatment behind me. I'm hoping the side effects will not be too severe and am encouraged by a friend who has just been through it and was actually able to continue working throughout most of her chemo treatments. Curious if others are also getting Neulasta and whether they are tolerating it well, without the bone pain that is common.

Good to have a place to come for support and information, I thank all of the ladies here in advance for helping me through this!

Toni S,

I’m also facing recurrent breast cancer. I was 11.5 years out when my mammogram showed a local recurrence in November. My mastectomy was 3.5 weeks ago and chemo starts for me on 2/22. I, too, hope that I will be able to work during my upcoming treatment. I did do neulasta back in 2007 and the bone pain was tough, but if I recall, it didn't last too long...aybe a day(?)

Let’s-do -this,Recurrence has been more difficult for me to deal with than my original diagnosis. You must be particularly hit hard after 11 years. But one step at a time, we'll get through this!