Getting ready for Chemo

TX66

Just saw my onc again and got my chemo plan.

I am 41 now had my first dx almost 6 years ago. Triple neg. Had lumpectomy, chemo and radiation then.

Now reoccuring, same right breast Grade 3, IDC , 0.7 cm no lymph ----

Had a billateral mas on March 6th with abd trans flap

ANyways now onc recommended CHemo TAXOTERE and CYTOXAN.

If any of you have received this type of chemo, could you please let me know how bad the side effects are. He also mentioned the use of steroids before each treatment, will this make me gain a lot of weight?

Thanks for your help

Sadie-Rose

Hi TX66,

I was treated with Taxotere and Carboplatinum for six rounds.  I had three rounds of AC before that, but we switched cocktails because the AC wasn't working for me.  I just mentioned this because it is hard to divide the side effects apart.  The TC combination was a little easier for me.  I wasn't as nauseated.  I had an allergic reaction to it though, so we had to increase the steroids and add additional Benadryl.  They had to slow down the chemo drip, so it took me a full day for each treatment.

I had neuropathy for a while afterwards.  It is mostly gone now. It is doable. I worked the whole time, but I was able to go home mid-day and take a rest. I hope you here from some others too.

Warmly,

Sadie

FloridaLady

As Sadie said these are very doable chemos.  What chemo's did you have your first go around?  Usually the first ones include Taxotere or Taxol.  I did ACT and worked pretty much full time...with a late afternoon nap of course.  I surprised your doctor is not picking up a third chemo due to the fact your TN and a recurrence...

Hopefully your treatment will go fast with little side effects.  I'm sorry you have to go through this again.  You must of been shocked with this recurrences after so long.

Flalady

dhettish

Hi TX66,

Sorry about your 2nd dx. But you are in the right place. 

I took Adriamycin and Cytoxin and did not have too many problems other than fatigue and low blood counts toward the end which left me very fatigued and breathless. I was given Aloxi and Decodron for nausea and had absolutely none. I did gain some weight because when I came home, I ate EVERYTHING because of the decadron. I learned to stock the fridge and pantry with tasty, healthy, and low cal snacks. It was the winter and Clementines were in and I could eat 5 at time!

I was told Taxotere would be easier and for most women it is. I, however, had all the side effects and found it very difficult. I was unprepared for all the SE and so it really threw me for a loop. Almost immediately I lost my sense of taste and got mouth sores. I was living on sugar free banana pops and noticed my pants did not fit. I was getting severe edema and gained 27 lbs in 6 weeks. I also had excessive eye tearing, severe leg pains, and my nails began to separate from the nail bed. The fatigue was incredible. I could barely hold a conversation or walk for 5 minutes. I had to hold off from my last treatment due to the SE. The majority of SE were gone in 6 weeks (weight gain, eye tearing, leg pains). I still do not have my energy back but it is getting better.

All said and done, I would do it again. I have read that Taxotere is very effective for TN patients. Yes, it was very hard but I got through it. I cried and screamed, felt like giving up but come time for the next tx I was there. I took Xanax for the anxiety and Lortab for the leg pains. I had begun taking Prevacid after my first round of AC due to severe acid indigestion. I now take it every 3 days. 

I hope you have an easy time as the majority of women do. But if you are like me, just know you will get through it. I just turned 50 and had my last chemo 3/11/08. At age 28, I had Adriamycin, Cisplatin, and DTIC for bone cancer. So my marrow was very succeptable to low counts even with Neulasta and Aranesp. Because I went over the lifetime max of Adriamycin, I was put on Zenicard which is a heart protectant.

Keep on the boards and you will find experience, strength, and hope to get you through your darkest days. I know I did and in spite of everything, I was able to laugh. I lost all the weight and then my taste came back and I pigged out eating everything so I now have a few lbs to lose but I know it can be done if I put my mind to it. Summer is here with lots of fresh veggies and fruits from the garden. 

Keep us informed and let us know how you are doing.

Debbie 

Sadie-Rose

Debbie,

I totally forgot about some of the side effects I had.  It is like after you have a baby, you forget what that last month and the birth was like.  I had my large toe nails lift.  TX66- My oncologist suggested TeaTree oil to protect my nails.  I put it on every day and didn't lose any finger nails.  I also lost my sense of taste.  My face got rounder.  I stayed the same weight, but I was puffy. 

I didn't get any mouth sores.  My dentist suggested I use Benetene tooth paste and mouth wash.  She gave me a fluoride treatment to use during treatment.  She also had me buy an electric toothbrush and a Water Pic.  I did all of those things and I just had my dental check up.  She said usually patients come in after chemotherapy have have poor gums and can have the roots to their teeth damaged.  She said I could be their poster patient.  I didn't have any root damage.

I would also suggest seeing an ophthalmologist too.  Just to check your eyes before treatment so you will know if there are changes afterwards.

I had fatigue and weak muscles.  I didn't exercise enough during treatment because I was working and when I came home I was protecting my energy.  I'd feel energetic and then the battery would just drain. I tried to keep up my yoga though.

That's all I can remember,  It seems so long ago.

Warmly,

Sadie

dhettish

Hi ,

Sadie is right. I forgot but I did have a dental checkup prior to chemo. I got some MI paste which is supposed to help a dry mouth. My first treatment I got an abcess tooth. My onc wanted me to wait until April to get it fixed because of my low counts. This was in October and I was in pain. I went my 3rd week for the root canal and everything went fine.

I still have trouble exercising. I can exercise but it uses up all my energy. I never thought about it, but I am protecting my energy. I do some yoga but due to a knee injury I cannot bend it to sit in a child's pose and it pops out of joint on some of the moves. But downward facing dog is great for stretching out my back and chest area after the mast.

Sadie, I had forgot that when the battery is drained, it is gone and there was no warning. All of a sudden, my energy would be gone, and I would just have to crawl into bed and recharge.

Debbie 

cheranthia

While I was getting ready to go on Taxotere, I read about a study in which participants wore frozen gloves to shrink blood vessels and prevent the chemo from reaching the fingertips and causing nail problems and neuropathy. The results were quite effective. Here is a link to an article about it.

http://www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/results/frozen-glove0805/print?page=&keyword= 

Anyway, I mentioned the study to my oncologist who said, "We're a little more low-tech around here. You can just put your fingers and toes in ice water during the infusion." The chemo nurses knew all about it and were completely prepared to set me up to do it. I had no problems with my nails or with neuropathy. It's not much fun having fingers and toes in ice water, but I think it's far preferable to losing your fingernails and having (sometimes permanent) nerve damage! Just something to consider and ask your doctor.

CalGal

Hi TX -

Although I haven't had that combo, I've done both Cytoxan and Taxotere.

First off, good to get a dental cleaning and any dental work done first.   I got that icky whitish stuff on my tongue - which brushing the tongue and Biotene mouthwash alleviated.  However, I didn't know until I asked the dentist, but with the Biotene, my white teeth weren't yellow, but they weren't white either.   Fortunately, a good dental cleaning once I was done w/the treatment & mouthwash got rid of it.   Biotene is OTC.  Oddly, I couldn't find it at drugstores, but found it at my grocery store.

Adriamycin & Cytoxan - Very effective for me.   The unavoidable traumatic hairloss with Adria.  As for SE, I did pretty well, but of course, had fatigue and nasuea.  Other than the hairloss, not sure how to split the SE's between A and C.  I kept my taste buds on this too.   However, I was very sensitive to smells .... perfume to cleaning products would make me nauseaus ...  Gained weight on the dex (plus a puffy and red face).  Also, my formerly oily skin was sucked dry.  I needed all new facial products.  My eyes were drier too, which made wearing my contacts difficult at times.

Taxotere & Carboplatin - Was already NED (for liver mets), but felt I needed to do a taxane.   Again, the hated dex ... and more weight gain.   I managed to work out on both this and the AC, but my cardio was down, my appetite was up, taste buds intact ... plus some comfort eating.   During this regimen, I used the cold caps, gloves & booties.   No neuropothy or nail-lifting for me!  (Both of which my mother suffered from when she did chemo).  I also saved my post-AC very short hair, so at least I didn't have to start over being bald!

Caution on Taxotere & Flying

If you fly, get compression stockings (these ugly, thick white things) and have lasix on hand.  I did not get fluid retention until AFTER I flew cross-country.   Unfortunately, it took over a month to completely go away.

Best to you,

CalGal 

kmartin

Hi TX66,

I am new to this site...and am being treated for TN IDC, Stage II, Grade 3. I have been receiving TAC since 4/2/08 every 3 weeks. After round 3 developed fever (over 101), cough and shortness of breath. Was hospitalized and worked up by Infectious Disease and Pulmonologist who found "ground glass" infliltrates on chest CT.(Have any of you with shortness of breath had a chest CT?)...the long and short of it is it occurred again after round 4 and I was started on prednisone 60mg/day for at least 3 weeks. The docs all believe I have had a rare SE of the taxotere. Round 5 and 6 are AC only. Just finished # 5 1 week ago.

Have had many of the other SE mentioned: foul tasting mouth, few mouth sores, nose sores, mild fingernail changes, NO nausea ~ take Emend, profound fatigue, very low WBC counts, immediate menopause (age 48) with accompanying hot flashes, general deconditioning, consitpation, heartburn (Use Prilosec OTC with good result).

Good Luck, and this too will pass....K

TX66

Thank you so much for all your replys.

The CHemo i received 6 years ago was Adriamycin and Cytoxan. My onc explained, that I could only take the Adriamycin onces, but the Cytoxan more. I didn't to to bad on this. THe first dose was horrible, throwing up every 15 minutes. The treatments after that were not as bad, because they changed the nausea meds. I read through a lot of postings of people receiving the Taxotere and Cytoxan and I guess everyone handles it differently. I am having my mediport put in July 28th and will start chemo shortly after that. THanks ladys for all your help.

controlmydestiny

Hi CalGal

what is Adria,  how do you administer and prepare the cold caps and gloves?

charlene216

Hi Tx,

This week will be my 3rd cycle of cytoxan and taxotere. So far the side effects have been minimal. I take dexamethasone (steriod) 1 day prior, the day of, and the day after chemo to prevent any allergies to the regimen. Along w/ the cytoxan and taxotere, they infuse an anti-nausea medication. For the next couple of days after chemo, I take ondansetron (anti-nausea medication) to prevent nausea. So far, so good. The side effects I experienced were, hair loss, a white film on my tongue, loss of taste, slight fatigue, and now experiencing muscle weakness in my legs and some easy bruising.

For the white film on my tongue, the dr. told me to rinse with warm salt water when I brush my teeth, since I started doing that on my 2nd treatment, the white film last about 2 days and was gone.

I have a slight loss of taste, where my food taste bland, especially sweet foods. (that's a good thing.) I can't get the full flavor of my foods. This has been continual since my 2nd treatment 3 weeks ago.

I also get a Neulasta shot the day after chemo. This is to boost production of my white blood cells. From this I experience about 4 days of bone, joint and muscle pains. I try to go on without taking pain meds, but by the 2nd night, I need to take 600mg of Ibruprofen. This helps me get a nights sleep.

Other than that, I can't complain. My regimen consists of 4 cycles, 3 weeks apart. My tumor was 2.5 cm of DCIS and 2 cm of IDC. I had a mastectomy, negative nodes. After chemo, hormone therapy for 5 years is being recommended.

 No big weight gain yet. A little probably due to my own lack of exercise since I am staying home during my treatment.

One thing I am big on is drink lots of water to flush the chemo meds out.

Positive thoughts for a complete and successful recovery.

TX66

Charlene...

Thank you so much

Sounds like my treatment plan is about the same as yours.....4 cycles of cytoxan and taxotere 3 weeks appart. Had my first on Aug 1st and can't complain to much..tired, litttle nausea and some bone pains....did not take the Neulasta shot on Monday...( Thought I was though and didn't need it)..but had to make up for it ..white blood count was bad.... and received Neupogen shots on Thursday and Friday....which they seem to make me feel sick to my stomach and gave me some nasty pain in my lower back.....I have the film on my tongue and nothing tastes right....having a hard time finding something to drink...water tastes nasty..have been experiencing with different teas trying to find something that tastes right....it seems like all I want is sweets.....funny how that part is opposite of yours....so I have been hitting the ice cream bucket...I can almost taste that and it is nice and cool....I go back to work on Monday...see how that goes...my hair didn't fall out yet..but I'm sure it will here soon...That's ok I have done the bald look five years ago too and still have my bandana collection......My next treatment is on Aug 22 then I can say I am half way there...

Thank you