Calling all TNs

Lovelyface

Bak - so sorry to hear that there was a 8 year gap.  My God, I was thinking of relaxing a little after 5 years but it seems like one can never relax after this thing strikes you once.  I am still not getting a mastectomy, but just getting some more breast tissues taken out.  When I had an excisional biopsy last time, the path. report indicated that I had those bad epithelial cells remaining at the surgical margin.  That is what the surgeon will try to slice out in addition to the enhanced clumped thing (scary).  They don't normally take those cells out by surgery, not even sure if insurance will authorize it, but they normally watch them closely.  They may become cancer or may never become cancer, I was told.  I don't know what it means to watch it closely.   I just want them sliced out and see if there is any possibility of getting clean margins this time.  My surgeon has agreed to do the surgery, so I think we are on the same understanding (I hope).  I have no idea how this is going to turn out.  Did I tell you guys that my mammo and ultrasound are very clean reports, there are no signs of any calcs, enhancements, nodules or anything.  My rad thinks that they are no longer dense and are at a very clean and good stage.  This doesn't make sense to me. How can the mammo and US be so clean, and yet there is an enhancement on the MRI.  I truly pray and hope it is false positive.  I am getting a clip put at the site, a mammo guided wire to be placed there and then surgery to remove a chunk.  She said it will heal pretty quickly. It is nothing like a lumpectomy.  The downtime will be just a few days, so I am hoping it will be something very small.  The scariest part is to hear the results of the pathalogy report.

christina1961

Lovelyface,

Sending you hugs, love, and support! I'm sorry you have to go through this and hopefully you will have all benign results!

Titan, I can't imagine running 2miles at this point, even at a snail's pace - but I did walk Sat and Sun 2 miles each day. I've been working too much this week to do it again but I'm going to tomorrow if I can.

I have my first mammogram on my remaining breast later this morning (it just turned midnight here) - it has been one year since my diagnosis. My daughter is going in to get her mammogram 15 minutes before me.  I'm anxious because I get all these twinges of pain in my breast and underarm on the non-cancer side with the chemo and I think from having the port. I check all the time and have loads of breast exams by every doctor I see and no one has felt anything, so hopefully everything is ok over there. I never had the problems with that breast that I had with the other - on the cancer breast I had cysts drained probably 3 times in my lifetime. Wish I'd known that was a risk factor, I might have caught it earlier.

Fighter_34

Lovelyface***HUGS***I know this is a scary time. We are all scared. I am just up and down with my emotions lately. This too shall pass.

TifJ-enjoy the concert.

mccrimmon324

Bak - so glad your feeling better.  I'm sure once your really get into the ACTIVE program you'll feel more and more like your old self. 

Lovelyface, I'm sorry you have to have another surgery but glad they are doing as you have requested.  I don't know, if all of your other tests came out clean, it sounds to me like it's a false positive on the MRI.  That's what I'm praying for! 

Good thing that happened to me today.  Today marks 1 year of being smoke free!  I can't believe in another 2 months to the day I'll be 1 year from diagnosis.   

TifJ

Thanks everyone- the concert is not until May- so that gives me time to relisten to all the songs and get the new ones! I can't believe at 46 I am excited about seeing Van Halen again!

CharB22

I finally found some information regarding recurrance rates for TN. It's from the American Society of Clinical Oncology and it's based on 1 study - The Georgia Cancer Specialist Database (2003-2004) was used. The study sample included 1,572 patients, with 26.3% (n = 414) being TN. Five-year recurrence rates were 18.8% for TN and 11.2% for non-TN groups.

This is not as large of a gap as I had originally thought. I thought our recurrence rates were much, much higher.

Here's a link to the paper: http://www.asco.org/ascov2/Meetings/Abstracts?&vmview=abst_detail_view&confID=74&abstractID=44218

Lovelyface

Thanks everyone for your good wishes and prayers.

Char - thanks for the study paper.  Yes, there isn't that much gap between the two types. I can't wait for my 5 years to be over.  At least that should give one some relief from worry, I hope.

Mccrimmon - Congratulations on being smoke free!  That is a huge accomplishment, yeah! I will count the the two months with you, one day at a time, it will be over very quickly, and then you would have crossed off one year out of the five, after which TN's are supposed to be at less risk.

Christina - We are waiting to hear the great results from yours and your  daughter's mammograms this morning.  I have all sorts of pain and twinges on my non-cancer side as well, not sure why.  One doc had advised patients to massage their breasts.  His theory is that toxins get lodged in our breast tissues, and by massaging you are giving it some circulation.  Since then I massage with pure coconut oil every night, at the same time I am able to feel it if there are any abnormalities.  How old is your daugther?  Also, please let me know how many images they take of each side.

Suze - I hope you are having a great vacation. We can't wait to hear about it.

LJ - how is everything with you? Still feeling good, still getting better and better with the Halavan?

christina1961

YAY!!  No problems with the mammogram of the remaining breast today!  One year out today, too. 

 Lovelyface, that is interesting about the toxins.  I get all sorts of twinges, including a sore muscle lump on my non breast cancer side.  I can pull the skin and muscle away from my ribs and that is where the soreness lies - maybe it is from compensating by overusing my right side as I think I still tend to "guard" the side where I had the MX and rads.  On the left side, my prosthetic pushes against my lower former breast area and makes the ribs sore.  I think I am going to try to get a lighter prosthetic solution or go ahead and get the implant taken out of the remaining breast so I'll be an A cup on the right.  I think I can have that done as an office procedure as the implant is saline.

 My daughter is 35 (I was a young mom- 15.)  She doesn't get her results today, but luckily she is followed closely by my oncology surgeon who is my favorite doctor of all - he is extremely cautious.  She has had at least one hard biopsy, a breast reduction a few years back, and a couple of cysts drained.  What really scares me for her is that she is on bc pills for endometriosis.  No matter how much I preach to her about them, she wants to take them because without them her endometriosis is really painful.  I'm just afraid of the risk.  We are extremely close and work together although she will probably be changing jobs within the year to work with animals.

Hope60

 Lovelyface - I'm sorry you have to go through this, but it sounds like you have a good surgeon. With all your other clear scans, I'm thinking this could be a false positive on the MRI....keeping my fingers crossed for you!

bak94

Lovleyface-sounds like it will be good news for you! I think it is great that you are being pro active though.

Soooo, my nurse from my mo's office called today and said she said she was contacted by my pharmacy. Seems that the infectious disease doc prescribed a drug-diflucan that can react severly with lovastatin, which I have taken for awhile!!! Good news is that I ran out of lovastatin because the mail order took longer than usual, so I have only taken them for a couple of days together. I have been feeling very achy and fatigued, so much that I get tired walking from the car to my doctors appointments, and the rehab doc did strength testing on me and said I was weak. It all could be from those 2 drugs together, as I had not been quite this weak before, even though I was tired. My pharmacy caught it thank goodness!

TifJ

Thank goodness it was caught! It could have caused you even more trouble. Yay for your pharmacist!!

Titan

Thanks for finding that study Char...I'm too lazy to look it up..sorry ...but when did the 18% happen..during the first year..or spread out throughout the first 5 years?

Ok. Ok..i'll move my rear and check out lol

bak94

Ha ha, you are funny titan! I will look also....

Sugar77

Lovelyface - hoping all will be B9 with your biopsy.

Two years ago today I had my last chemo.  I thought of that tonight when I was at the gym and I was on the bicept curl machine. I looked down at my arms and recalled two years ago having the IV ines running the chemo into me. It's not something we forget.  And, exactly one year ago today my DD got her braces, which were to be on for 9 - 15 months, according to the Orthodontist. Well, here was are a year later and she still has them on so looks like we've passed the "9-12" mark.  Anyway, I wanted to stop in and celebrate my chemo anniversary with you lovely ladies.  Good night! 

Cocker_Spaniel

Can anyone out there help me.  I am 65 yrs of age.  I was diagnosed with triple neg in November with four out of the nodes positive and some cancer already growing outside one of the nodes.  My oncologist said it is a high grade aggressive cancer. I am due to start chemo next Tuesday but the problem is I have a life long fear of vomiting and nausea and quite frankly I am scared stiff.  Can anyone tell me if they have had vomiting/nausea with the chemo and how long it lasts. Also how to avoid it.  I am freaking out big time and I'm not sure what to do.

My name is Annie. I only chose Cocker_spaniel cause the name Annie had already been taken

Thanks

mitymuffin

Cocker_Spaniel, Annie,  Of course you are scared. Everyone here has been there and understands. I think most people do not have vomiting with chemotherapy; the nausea drugs should control that.  If you feel very nauseated, tell you doctor and try a different drug. 

I had mild nausea for a day after the chemotherapy,  some weeks worse than others, but never vomiting.  It does vary from person to person, but it is not like our old ideas of chemotherapy.

TifJ

Happy 2 years Sugar!

Annie- Like Mitymuffin, I never vomited- just felt icky in my stomach from days 3-7 after treatment. Just make sure to tell your oncologist you get nauseated easily. He/she will make sure you have plenty of medication to help. Chemo these days is not like it is portrayed in the movies. Sending you a warm hug!

Tiffany

Titan

Annie...ask for Emend!  It is the best...The nurses told me that I could take Emend and drink of fifth of whisky and still not throw up.

mccrimmon324

Annie, I just had my last chemo in Sept and I never once vomited.  I may have been a little nauseated but not too bad.  I took those meds like clockwork.  Also started taking them before I felt bad.  My tummy felt wonky but never like I was going to get sick. 

I can tell you I was absolutely terrified of Chemo and it wasn't half as bad as I thought it was going to be.  I would get my treatments done on Thursday, start to feel under the weather from Friday night thru Sunday, by Monday morning I was feeling like my old self again. 

Just take one day at a time and definitely talk to your onc about your fears, they have meds for everything, there is no reason for you to vomit at all thru treatment. 

 Good luck.

mccrimmon324

Ladies,

Zoe-lily posted this article on another thread.  I'm not sure what date it was published but I think it's fairly outdated but it's a positive article and I thought we could all use a bit of positivity lately. 

I hope I'm not stepping on any toes or offending anyone.  If I am I'll remove ASAP. 

Talking With Patients About a Diagnosis of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: An Expert Interview With Dr. Hope Rugo
Faculty and Disclosures

Editor's Note:

Although they constitute fewer than 20% of all breast tumors, triple-negative cancers are responsible for a disproportionate number of cases and deaths among young women.[1] Such statistics leave many women who receive a diagnosis of triple-negative disease feeling hopeless. Still, studies in the last decade have demonstrated that patients with triple-negative disease have a substantially better response to conventional chemotherapy than women with other breast cancer types.[2,3] However, too often these data are overlooked or misunderstood by patients. To find out how clinicians can discuss and explain the implications of a diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer with their patients, Sandra A. Finestone, PsyD, a member of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Steering Committee for the Breast Cancer Curriculum on Medscape, and herself a breast cancer survivor, interviewed Hope S. Rugo, MD, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Director, Breast Cancer Clinical Trials Program at the University of California at San Francisco. Their conversation is both revealing and instructive and is presented to help clinicians communicate more effectively with women who have just received a diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer.

Dr. Finestone: I've been noticing that patients with triple-negative breast cancer are often very worried about their diagnosis. Are you seeing the same thing in your practice?

Dr. Rugo: Yes, I do think a diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer tends to generate a lot of unnecessary fear. For example, I saw a patient yesterday who was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer a year ago. At the time of her diagnosis, she felt that it [triple-negative breast cancer] was a death sentence; that there was no point to treatment because it was not curable, because it is such a horrible disease. I had a lengthy conversation with her about how triple-negative breast cancer is treatable and even curable, but she could not be reassured. She had heard from so many people that triple-negative disease is akin to being given a death sentence.

First of all, the diagnosis of breast cancer is quite scary in general. Patients often hear that it is better to have hormone receptor-positive disease rather than HER2-positive disease, or vice versa. But when people hear that they have triple-negative breast cancer, they feel like they have just been given a death sentence, that their survival is going to be 18 months, and everything is terrible.

Dr. Finestone: How many patients really understand the implications of triple-negative breast cancer? Would it help to have an explanation readily available?

Dr. Rugo: Very few patients understand the concept of triple-negative breast cancer. For that reason, I do have an explanation ready. I think the important thing is to tell patients that not only is triple-negative breast cancer very treatable, but it is also worthwhile to look at clinical trials because they offer patients additional options.

Dr. Finestone: Based on that, how does the clinician translate the diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer for the patient?

Dr. Rugo: I think it really requires explaining to a patient -- and then having her believe you -- about the biology of breast cancer and how we treat it. The best way is to start off by telling the patient that triple-negative disease is a type of breast cancer that does not respond to hormone therapy or HER2-directed therapy. However, because triple-negative tumors grow rapidly in the early-stage setting, they are much more likely to respond to chemotherapy. In fact, chemotherapy can be very effective at controlling the disease. If one looks at the neoadjuvant data, although a complete pathologic response rate of 15%-18% is seen among patients with all breast cancers, the pathologic response rate in patients with triple-negative disease is quite a bit higher.[2,3] In fact, if a patient has triple-negative breast cancer, there is a very good chance that chemotherapy -- either neoadjuvant or adjuvant -- will induce disease remission.

If a patient has triple-negative breast cancer, there is a very good chance that chemotherapy -- either neoadjuvant or adjuvant -- will induce disease remission.
The metastatic setting is a little different, but not that much. Again, we should emphasize that we try to use the best possible chemotherapy regimens. We also need to know what clinical trials are available and discuss these with our patients.

The important thing is that not all cases of triple-negative breast cancer are the same. There is a subgroup of triple-negative tumors that progresses very rapidly and is quite chemotherapy-resistant, but it is only a subset. However, it is worth noting that this subset of rapidly progressing triple-negative breast cancer may be particularly responsive to new targeted therapies.

That is really how I explain triple-negative breast disease to patients -- that this kind of cancer often is quite responsive to chemotherapy, which is a very good treatment for triple-negative breast cancer.

Dr. Finestone: I think that is a message that patients really need to hear because there is this misunderstanding that there are no effective treatments for triple-negative breast cancer.

Dr. Rugo: Right, and that's absolutely not the case.

Dr. Finestone: How would a clinician in a rural, small practice setting start the discussion?

Dr. Rugo: The clinician should emphasize that the standard therapy really does work. The reasons that triple-negative breast cancer has gotten a lot of negative press are 1) because a small number of triple-negative cancers are seen in patients with inherited mutations, and 2) in contrast to HER2-positive breast cancer, we do not have a targeted therapy like trastuzumab with which to treat triple-negative disease.

Ideally, regardless of the practice setting, the clinician should strive to have an open dialogue with the patient, discussing and considering all appropriate treatment options, including clinical trials. I also think it is worthwhile to consult with other physicians who might have greater familiarity with certain types of cancer. In this way, treatment may be optimized while allowing the patient to remain in her own community. However, it is worth noting that geography may determine access to certain clinical trials and, therefore, access to certain types of treatment.

Dr. Finestone: Do you think that there is any advantage to describing a spectrum of disease and positioning triple-negative breast cancer within that spectrum?

Dr. Rugo: The concept of early vs late disease is certainly a type of spectrum physicians could use when describing disease to their patients. Another important area for patient education is biology. For example, the clinician can explain that a very slow-growing tumor, even with 5 positive axillary lymph nodes, is not going to respond to aggressive chemotherapy and is associated with a risk for recurrence over the subsequent 10-20 years. With triple-negative breast cancer, the recurrence risk is front-loaded; that is, it is more likely to occur within the first 3-5 years after diagnosis. The upside, however, is that chemotherapy is much more likely to be effective. It is really a question of biology.

Dr. Finestone: Unfortunately, the messages about triple-negative breast cancer have gotten a bit skewed. Can triple-negative disease be viewed positively because it can be treated quite effectively with chemotherapy?

Dr. Rugo: I say to people, "It is information. It is not bad or good." For instance, if a patient with triple-negative disease is cured right up front, she is done with treatment. In contrast, a patient with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer potentially has to take hormone therapy for at least 5 years, and recently we have been exploring treatment for up to 10 and 15 years because of the risk for late recurrences.[4] There are those sorts of hidden benefits for patients with triple-negative disease.

In addition, we are looking into a variety of different treatments, like antiangiogenic agents, that might help to improve outcomes for patients with triple-negative breast cancer. Specifically, there are a number of trials examining the efficacy of add-on bevacizumab across the spectrum of triple-negative disease.[5]

We have quite a number of patients who come from far away, sometimes from rural areas, to participate in post-neoadjuvant therapy trials. We have even treated a woman who lived as far away as Alaska. She was a young woman, with extensive triple-negative disease at the time of surgery, as well as after chemotherapy. In fact, her doctors stopped her chemotherapy early due to poor response. She enrolled in one of our clinical trials that included bevacizumab and has now been disease free for 2 years. Triple-negative breast cancer is really a disease that we can treat, and I think we are treating it more and more effectively.

Dr. Finestone: When and how would you recommend that patients with triple-negative breast cancer consider participation in a clinical trial?

Dr. Rugo: I think any patient who is undergoing treatment should at least be thinking about what trials are available to her. Clinical trials are not for everybody. But there are many options out there, and it is really important to explore them. There is an excellent, relatively new Website, organized in collaboration with the National Cancer Institute, called breastcancertrials.org, which will match patients with available trials. Breastcancertrials.org also provides a lot of information for patients, such as what a clinical trial is and what it entails. It would be worthwhile for physicians and patients to look at the site and see what approaches are being studied to improve breast cancer care.

There is also the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), which issues guidelines about the standard types of treatment for triple-negative breast cancer. For example, I recently saw an out-of-state patient with triple-negative breast cancer who came to the appointment with molecular diagnostic lab work ordered by her referring physician. Although molecular diagnostic testing can be helpful in guiding hormone receptor-positive breast cancer treatment, in this case, use of such a test is contrary to the standard of care for triple-negative disease. By utilizing the NCCN Website, physicians are able to review and discuss standard treatment algorithms with their patients. I think that is also really helpful.

Using these kinds of tools can be empowering for patients. A patient faced with a diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer may have to counter a great deal of misinformation from well meaning friends and loved ones. What she needs to understand is that this disease is not so terrible, that it is a very treatable cancer.

Dr. Finestone: I think the key to a meaningful, reassuring conversation with patients is exactly what you have explained, namely that triple-negative breast cancer is very treatable and can have a very good outcome.

Dr. Rugo: I think that is absolutely the case. Even in cases of relapsed and metastatic disease, there are a lot of new treatment options. So I think that the most helpful thing to do with patients is to provide them with as much information as possible before they begin any treatment. It is usually better for the patient to take the time to consider all options than to just rush into treatment due to anxiety.

I'd like to reiterate that not all triple-negative cancer is the same. We have seen patients who respond to each therapy for a year or longer in the metastatic setting, and then we have some patients whose cancers progress very rapidly. Physicians and patients should not make assumptions about how a tumor will respond to chemotherapy until treatment begins and responsiveness can be evaluated. Many of my patients with triple-negative disease have done well on treatment for years. The name of the game is to continue the treatment and continue to pay attention to quality of life.

This activity is supported by an independent educational grant from Susan G Komen for the Cure.

Fighter_34

I truly feel that once more is understood about our type of DX it will become one of the more easier forms of BC to control and treat.

It is just the waiting to get to that point that sucks.

^^^Great article... 

mccrimmon324

Just wish they'd hurry the "F" up with finding something! 

Hope60

Annie - I was absolutely terrified of chemo, but it was much easier than I imagined.  They have some excellent anti-nausea drugs these days, and I never vomited.  Like Titan, I took Emend ...I think it's a wonder drug....I used to call it "my friend Emend."   I felt queasy sometimes but not too bad, plus my doc gave me some other meds to help with this. Chemo is do-able, and I wish you the best of luck with your treatment.

Heather - Thanks for posting this.  This is what my MO told me when I was first diagnosed.   It's good to be reminded of it!

Titan

Its a good article to read when the "freaking out" feelings start hanging around.. Thanks Heather!

mccrimmon324

I hate the "freaking out" feeling that creep in on me.  When that happens to me I have to sit back and remember during treatment at one of my onc visits, I started to ask him something and I phrased it "I know I'm not curable but" and he stopped me right there, looked me right in the eye and said I am absolutely curable.  I know that wasn't a 100% gurantee but it sure helps during my freak outs. 

Hope60

I guess nobody gets a  100% guarantee...with or without BC....(sigh).  But I know the "freaking out feeling" all too well.....and it's good to have something to hang on to when it hits.

CharB22

Cocker_Spaniel_Annie - My MO gave me a recipe for peppermint ginger tea to help with nausea. PM me and I'll give it to you along with a list of other herbs and foods that help fight nausea. I had some slight nausea with my 1st treatment but I didn't faithfully take the meds. With the 2nd treatment, I started the nausea meds before I went to bed the day of treatment, then every 4 hours (I have 2 that I take). Then I ate a lot of cinnamon (on that list) and peppermint candy w/peppermint oil (also on that list). No nausea at all. I felt lousy for a few days but turns out it was from my dangerously low WBC.

Chemo's really not as bad as I thought it would be....it's no walk in the park, but it's manageable.

Lynn18

Heather, thank you for the article. It helps me to read this as I always get a little "freaked out" before my checkups, and I have one coming up.

One thing in the article that stood out to me was that our risk of recurrence is "front-loaded", whereas other types of BC can recurr 10 to 15 years down the road.  I like how she calls that a "hidden benefit". ( However, getting through those first couple of years is scary).

laurajane

Good afternoon ladies. I'm going to try and play catch up. MBJ should be recording her laptop next Monday or Tuesday. We texted briefly and she said she was doing rads this week and should be able to go home next Monday. I'm still not sue what's going on but next week she should be able to share. I sure do miss her on this thread. I went for my chemo cocktail on Tuesday and got the CT results. I had an itty bitty lesion on my liver but onc says it used to be fatty and isn't anymore so it may have already been there. The fattiness has been reduced due to once loving beer and wine and sadly I lost the taste for it. Boohoo! I guess the good thing is that less fatty is a good thing. We discussed the possibility that I am a lot like the energizer bunny I just keep on keeping on. The CT looked worse than the last one but I was a lot better for the last one and the FC as you guys know got really bad in between. My onc and I can see how much better things are since restarting the Halavan. A couple of tumors have wrapped around some nerves in my pit area which is what is causing the severe pain in my left arm, also showed tumors in my clavicle and sternum. These I already had. It also showed that the cancer has spread to the nodes under my right arm pit. But the great news is that it hasn't spread to any high risk areas. This made me very happy. So I pray the Halavan keeps on working. I'm having a kind of difficult time getting too excited until I pass the 6 week mark. I've had other chemos that have worked great but none so far have worked past 5 weeks. Again praying this is the one. I generally feel pretty good. Happy that I'm feeling better today than I did yesterday and the day before that etc. I truly didn't think I could ever feel this good again. So I'll just keep on keeping on.



Tifj- your surprise sounded wonderful. I always had a crush on David Lee Roth. What a cutie.



Lovelyface - I'm with McCrimmon and hope it's a false positive too. When is your surgery? Also, on a different note, what a great idea to do the self massage. It sure makes sense to me. Thanks for sharing.



McCrimmon- congratulations on smoke free. I have not quit right after diagnosis I tried and cut back like crazy when i first started chemo. After the first 3 chemos didnt work I went back to smoking. I asked my onc if she thought I would live longer if I quit and she basically said in my situation she did not think it would make a difference. My BS told me the same thing. I tell myself that if there is a chance that this could all be behind me I will quit. Again praying on beating that 6 week mark.



Christine- I'm so happy your mammo was good. I can only imagine the worry you had. Wishing the same to say the least for your daughter. Even though I don't carry the gene my daughter is so terrified that she will get cancer too. I'm not really sure how to alleviate her fears. I try, but my words sound shallow to me.



Bac- oh my o! I can't believe that happened with your drug screw up. So happy they caught the error. That is so frightening. I know I drive my onc and pharmacist crazy with my questions will this interact with etc. I'm currently taking 7 prescriptions along with my Halavan and we often read about mistakes like this happening. I'm so glad someone caught the mistake in time for you.



Annie- as Titan and others have said the meds they give you will really help and Emend is fabulous. I have heard of some insurances that won't cover it, if you run into any problems with that the pharmaceutical company will help you. I hope it is reassuring that we have all done these chemos and we can help answer any questions you might have. A while back I posted about mouth sores and if you happen to get any they are usually caused from a yeast infection and your onc can prescribe meds for that. Most once don't realize this is the cause.



Sugar- I'm celebrating with you. Congratulations!



Titan- I think it's fabulous that you ran 2 miles. I need to get up off my petunias and at least start walking.



Fighter- time to go shopping. I too have lost weight I kind of like being able to fit into my skinny jeans again.



I hope you all have a fabulous day. I love the best thing stories you all have shared. Sure puts a smile on my face reading them. I'll post the best thing tonight.

LRM216

Annie:

I will be 65 next week and welcome you to our group.  I remember only to well all that I was feeling almost 3 years ago when diagnosed with this horrid disease.  I can soooooo relate to your fear of vomiting.  I think, and I swear to this, that I have vomited perhaps a total of 10 times in all of my life, as I do absolutely everything I can possibly do to avoid it (not that anyone likes it!).  I had A/C & T and was so petrified of the thought of vomiting that I actually cried to my onc.  She assured me that the Emend I would be taking prior to each round of A/C would insure that I didn't  vomit.  She was correct.  I never had the need to vomit at all.  Please make sure you discuss all this with your onc and insist on a full arsenal of "I will not omit drugs."  The Emend must be started the day before (or is it 2 days before, I don't remember) chemo, the day of and the day after.  In order for the drugs to work, it must be adhered to.  Also got extra Zofran (also anti nauseau) and Compazine for any type of breakthrough nausea and she stressed to me to stay ahead of any and all pain and/or nausea with all of these meds.  Once you let it start - it's hard to stop, but if you keep ahead, it won't happen. 

Also, Annie, practically each and every triple neg (with few exceptions) is found to have a high grade aggressive cancer.  That kind of defines triple neg to a tee, no matter what stage you might be, the grade is almost alwasy grade 3, so we are all in the same boat - don't get too scared over that.

Want to wish you all the best, let us know what you will be having, and there will be many of us at any time of day or night to help you and guide you.  Be strong - this will be behind you  soon, I promise!

Will be thinking of you,

Linda