2005 ROCK-TOBER CHEMO GIRLS

Anonymous

Graycie, I am sure hoping its the meds that are making me depressed because I keep thinking that I have Stage 1 turning into automatic mets and Stage 4. I cry so much lately.

debbie444

Ravdeb - good to hear from you!
Sorry you are having a bit of a battle - thinking of you this side of the atlantic.
Take care
Debbie xx

maryannecb

Welcome back Ravdeb,
the fever is probably why you felt so so down, hope with antibiotics you come up, up up!
Day6 post FAC ,feel bloated, have constant heartburn and spent last 24 hours on couch. Hope tomorrow is better.
The wind is howling , the temp is -2C, it is cccccold.
HopePeople starting Taxol do better than they fear and let us know how you get through.
Fists up!

Anonymous

Ravdeb,
It's great that you're feeling better enough to be back with us! Did you ever find out anything more about the cysts? While you were in the hospital, I posted to you regarding this (back on 11/30). Just wondering because I have them too. Any info. would be appreciated. Thanks,
Laura (GTO)

Anonymous

Graycie,
It's called PARANOIA! I hate it! But, I don't get the hiccups, and my symptoms aren't as bad as what you've described. If you haven't, you should talk to your Dr. about it. Good luck next Monday! If you feel up to it, let us know how it goes.
Laura (GTO)

MrsBee

Hi, everyone!

I haven't been checking in here regularly, and I apologize for that. Had my third infusion last Friday, Dec. 2, and went today for the Neulasta. It's pretty much "same song, third verse" for me. Feeling kinda yucky today. Came home from the doctor's office and crashed for a few hours and am beginning to feel more like myself now. Give me another couple of days and I'll be my old self again. Or, as much as I can be under the circumstances.

TracySeattle

I am finding that I have a bad week right after treatment and then a good week right befoer the next one, so I sm just starting to plan for that right off. The bad week is when I am taking the decadron - I cant focus on any thing,I ma jittery, can't type very well--UGH! It makes me crazy. Once I am off the decadron come about Thrus or Fri of that week, I start to feel back to normal. Guess this is what it is going to be about until I am done w/treatment!!!1

ake

is anyone else starting taxol this week? my first treatment is on thursday! i'm nervous about sitting there for a 3 hour infusion....that is so long!! my oncologist says that taxol is usually very easy and the bone pain is treated easily with advil or tylenol, but i'm nervous. anything new is scary.

-amy

TracyNY

My first Taxol is next week Thursday. I have to go to the hospital to get it just in case of an allergic reaction. I've been told its easier on the body than AC which I am looking forward to because I have never been this devoid of energy in my life. Tired or exhausted aren't words to describe this feeling.

I reckon I'll take the portable DVD player and doze through a movie for the three hours. Four more sessions and this leg of the journey will be over for me. I'm hanging on by a thread!!

Graycie

I go next Monday....I guess you are first Amy.....I am scared too but I am happy that I am done with AC...You will have to let us know how it goes....Graycie

sherryhaire

Anyone here taking Taxatere instead of Taxol? After AC tomorrow this is my next step

maryannecb

Yes , Sherry I am up for Taxotere. Start in Jan, have one more FAC to go.
I feel gross this week. Have never been this heavy, feel disfigured and am sick of it all. Couldn't sleep last night, my body is aching. I could eat a horse but know I shouldn't. Today it is -5C, too windy for a walk so don't know how I will get out of this funk today.
I hate this, last week I felt so good. When I feel bad I get scared too. I imagine all my aches and pains are mets. I know I have to do something to cheer up but basically I feel like crawling back to bed and staying there...

marymelodi

Tracy: I am like you. One bad week, one good week. This is the first time I have had the decadron jitters. Today I feel like I could jump out of my skin and everyone and everything is getting on my nerves. I have had more digestive upset this time also.

Amy: Yes, it looks like you are the "pioneer" of this group. You are going to be the first on Taxol. I am scheduled for that one on Dec 29. I have one more A/C on Dec 15. I have followed your experiences all along as a guide for what to expect. I sure hope that the Taxol is easier for you and that you will feel better once you get going.

I also plan to take a portable DVD player and watch some movies I haven't been able to see earlier this year. I already have a list of some that I want to rent with a couple of Blockbuster gift cards that were given to me at the time of my surgery.

Best wishes to everyone.
marymelodi

paiger

Hello All. I'm new here though I began my Chemo in(late) October like all of you. I came here to find information on Taxol vs. Taxotere and found a great resource in this discussion forum. I have lots to read and catch up on(34 pages?! yipes!!) but was hoping I could "join" the group about half-way thru our respective treatments...ok with you??? I see definite similarities in what you're all going thru and hope to relate more in the coming weeks, months...

I have my fourth AC tomorrow and will be moving on to taxotere. I'd love to find more out about this drug. I work as an artist and the doc was concerned about neuropathy (sp?) (which, I guess... is some possible nerve damage to finger tips/feet?!) and taxotere might have less of an effect than taxol. Anyone else know anything about this?!

Here are my intro "stats":
diagnosed late August 05/age38
stage 1, grade 3, no nodes, ER/PR+, her2-
4 AC, 4 taxotere, rads...etc

Wishing you all the best,
~paige

sherryhaire

Well here I go today my last AC treatment yea!!!I am glad I am taking it two weeks before Christmas maybe I'll be feeling ok by then. Next treatment is Xeloda and Taxatere starting on Dec 29th. My thoughts to all of you and your treatments this week Hang in there Hope you are all well Welcome Paige!!

debbie444

Welcome Paige!
Sorry you had to join us but welcome to our select little club ( or funny farm whichever way you look at it!)

I am not having the tax drugs - just FEC , gues thats how they do it over here.
Debbie

Anonymous

Hi Sherryhaire,
I was wondering the same (although I will be starting Taxol soon). Below is an explanation I found on the web.

"Both Taxol and Taxotere are members of the same family of drugs, called the Taxanes. As such they have many similarities, their mechanism of action against the tumor is similar and their side effect profiles are similar. Chemically, however, they are different drugs. This means that in any given situation one drug might work better than another - not necessarily predictably. In the field of breast cancer, trials are ongoing to see if one or the other drug is better, both in terms of efficacy and tolerance." (I found this sight by typing in Taxol vs. Taxotere on the web.) It may simply be whichever one each Onc. knows more about.?.

BTW - I think I am just a few days behind you in treatment. I had my last of 4 A/C's yesterday (yippy) and will have my 1st. of 4 Taxol's in 2 weeks (boooooo).

Graycie

Hi Laura, How was your last A/C? Maybe I should ask you in a few days...HA...Atleast that is behind us now...I will let you know how the Taxol goes on Monday, if you don't hear from me you know it wasn't good, Just kidding........Graycie

Anonymous

Hi Graycie,
Last A/C went well. This morning, wow, I am feeling pretty good. Hope this is indicative of what the rest of today and the next few days will be like. Who knows, maybe! And, yes, the first half IS behind us (yippy). You are very funny -"if you don't hear from me you know it wasn't good". I laughed hard at that one. And if it isn't good, just crawl to the computer and let us know. LOL. LOL. Make the most of this weekend. Best to you on Monday.
Laura (GTO)

maryannecb

I also heard taxotere is better tolerated and has less incidence of neuropathy. Studies are ongoing to which is superior.
Feeling better today, thank goodness. When I feel bad makes me instantly depressed.
My first tax is not til Early Jan so keep posting so I know what to expect.
The veins of my chemo arm are red and sore. Had third red flare with third FAC. Anyone else have sore veins? Have a portacath for next round but last time took a lot of stuff to get it working. Now have to get it flushed 1/week instaed of every 3.
Hi Paige, I didn't find this website until few weeks ago so joined late too. It is great all round. There are a lot of women with much experience to help and it is a nice place to vent when your family can't quite get what you are feeling.
I think I gained another 2 pounds...arrrgh!

chumfry

Since I started dose-dense AC on Oct 6, I may be the first of our October group to start Taxol. <grin> My first treatment was Thursday, Dec. 1. It took less than four hours, but the first hour was just anti-allergy meds (steroids, benedryl and pepcid, I think) in the drip.

They're very worried about allergic reactions to the Taxol, so they watch you very, very closely on your first treatment. I didn't get sleepy, but many people do with the benedryl. I took a book and read. Dozed a little. Took a nap when I got home.

I felt great until about 11 p.m. on Saturday, when my bones started to ache. (And this is *without* a Neulasta shot!) The pain got pretty bad Sunday and Monday, so I finally took two Percocet and then freaked out when they didn't seem to be working. After I calmed myself down, the meds kicked in.

By Tuesday, I was feeling OK. By Wednesday, I was feeling great! Much better than at the same time in the process on AC. I *do* have tingly hands and feet, but it's not been too bad. We'll see how it goes.

Everybody reacts differently to these drugs, but I found Taxol (at least the first dose) very do-able. I was afraid that the pain would last longer than just a few days. If you want more info on Taxol, check out the "Worried about Taxol" thread on the "Help me get through treatment" board.

maryannecb

Cindy how bad was the pain on a a scale of 1 to 10? As bad as labor? Did you try Tylenol or Advil? Was it constant? Where was the pain?
I hate pain so will try to do what I can to keep it away.
Are you on any steroids post Tax?
I know lots of questions but it may help when it is our turn.
Thanks
Fists up
Mary-Anne

chumfry

For me, the pain was a constant ache of a fairly steady 7 or 8 (on a scale of 1-10) with the occasional electric ZAP. It sort of felt like someone had a voodoo doll of me and jabbed it every so often. I've never had children, but I am sure it didn't hurt as bad as labor. Heck, childbirth would probably rank a 15 or 20 on my pain scale of 1-10! LOL

I tried Tylenol, but that didn't help. My doc warned me off Naproxen (my OTC of choice) because she's worried about my platelets. But ibuprofin probably would have helped quite a bit. I also should share the fact that I have quite a bit of arthritis in my joints, so that may have contributed.

The pain was mostly in my legs, knees and hips. My ankles and wrists hurt just a little. Another oddity, which may only pertain to me, is that my hips and knees somehow felt loose and wobbly. As if they didn't want to hold me up. That didn't stop until yesterday, but I'm still walking very carefully. I seemed a little more prone to trip, too.

ake

Hi Ladies,

I had my first Taxol today too. What a long infusion!!!! I was very nervous to have an allergic reaction, but didn't, thank goodness. I found that the Benadryl was the worst part of it all. It burned when it went into my IV...the nurse said that is normal. I felt the reaction from it to be very quick...I felt fine and then all of a sudden, I was loopy, beyond tired, and felt like I couldn't move. Felt very lightheaded as well. It was a creepy feeling. I waited for the nurse to start the Taxol and immediately fell asleep. It just was too long an infusion to stay awake with. I feel fine though and I'm so excited to not have to take any anti-naseua medications. The 20mg of decadron last night was not that bad and I was able to sleep throughout the night.

Has anyone premenopausal started the chemopause? I'm having nightly hot flashes and night sweats and I hate it. What can I do for that?

Good luck to everyone finishing AC...I'm so excited we all made it!!!!!!

-Amy

RoseMarie

Hi all,
Amy - not sure if I've started chemopause or not. I've had one very light "sort-of" period that lasted 2 days, I've had the some hot flashes but wonder if it's the wig or whatever is on my head at the time. I hope I do become menopausal through all this but I guess I won't know till the end.

Thanks for the insight on the Taxol ladies!! I keep getting excited knowing that there is an end in sight!! I have one more A/C treatment next Wednesday!!! The hardest part right now is that my husband is out of town until next Friday!!! That means I'm all alone with the 3 kids. It's been a bear trying to get out the door every morning and I'm not looking forward to next week when I'll be doing all of this AND trying to recoop from the A/C!!
UGH!
Hope all are feeling well going into the weekend!!

TracyNY

I'm in chemopause right now. I had my last period in October just before I started chemo. I throw off the covers a couple of times a night and get a flush of heat from the back of my bald head to the front. Its not too debilitating.

I've never been a fan of menstruation but I resent it being taken away from me so abruptly! I was hoping it would get on my nerves and I would be glad to see the back of it, not this mess right here!!

maryannecb

Cindy that doesn't sound too pleasant, oh well still have some Dilaudid leftover.
Amy 1 down 3 to go.Now you are 2 ahead of me lucky dog. Still had my period last month and feel like I ovulated this week, no hot flashes. So nope no menopause yet.Soy products , tofu supposed to help with hotflashes I think.

Anonymous

I admire every one of you ladies. Congratulations on finishing (or almost finishing) A/C and starting Taxol or Taxotere. I don't have to take the T part, but I will go on to radiation in January. It sounds like we are not as depressed this week as we were last week. Wasn't that weird? And it seemed like it was happening to everyone at the same time!

I will have my last A/C on the 19th of Dec. Hip hip hooray!

Graycie

Laura, Glad to hear eveything went well with your last AC....Atleast we are done with that..Yipee is right...OK, I might be crawling but I will let you know how I do on the Taxol, good or bad......HA...I am glad to see I still have a sense of Humor....lol...Graycie

Graycie

Cindy and Amy....Thanks for your imput on the Taxol. Atleast now we know what we can expect. I think my biggest fear is having an allergic reaction because I have a lot of allergies...

Roemarie..I am sorry to hear your husband is out of town, that has to be hard. Hang in there.....

For you ladies going through Chemopause I am sorry I can't help. I went through menopause a couple years ago so no chemopause for me.....Thank Goodness......Graycie