April 2011 chemo

sarahlou1967

Hi Ladies,

Thanks for all your comments and well wishes, so glad you are all doing well, its so inspirational to hear good news. Hugs to you all 

love and light

sarah xxx 

scc218

Haven't checked in here in quite awhile, but I think of you all OFTEN and wonder how everyone is doing.  I'm feeling great and don't dwell on "the past" much at all.  I finally had my Zometa infusion today after a several-month delay because I had to have some teeth extracted, which I finally got taken care of.  Seeay -- "survivor" does feel like a strange word.  Kinda hard to explain that feeling. 

Sending hugs to everyone, and I hope life is good for you all right now.     

Anonymous

I think of you all often too. I wish we had met under more pleasant circumstances so we could remain in closer contact, without it bringing up difficult memories.

Hugs to each of you.

BernieEllen

Windlass. That would have been nice. 

pawprintgirl24

seeay i totally understand. i have clients that ask all the time and i kinda get tired of talking about it but i tell them what they need to hear. one of my clients has a 4 in mass in his chest!!!!he is starting chemo and i tried to give them advice and even told them to come here since there is so much info about chemo and what to do.my one client told me he came here since there isn't as much info on testicullar cancer so he learned alot here too.but yeah i just want to get back to life and i don't want to hear how cute my hair is and i should keep it short!!nothing against short hair but i have really curly hair and i'm sorry but white women shouln't have a fro!!lol just a little bitter! but hoeflly by christmas i'll have a little more hair more like my old hair. any one elses hair not really come back good until after herceptin?? mine is growing more normal now.i hope all is well with everyone! just had to fuss a minute! thanks for always being here!

BernieEllen

Hi pawprint, twice now i've cut my hair back to really short. Need new avatar.  Anyway, now it's growing much better.

seeay

http://www.wsvn.com/features/articles/medicalreports/MI95602/

Look at this bra! Wow! I wish I knew about this when we had our surgery! I just wanted to share with my girls!! I  hope everyone is doing okay!!

pawprintgirl24

Hey peeps!!! Hope all is well! Is anyone just sick to death with se from tamoxifen? Has anyone thought of not taking it?i have a appt the 30th to talk to my onc about this since i am sick to death with this drug! I have had a complete hystorectomy so i do have alot less estrogen! Just don't know what to do!Would like to wake up and this all be a big ol dream!

Anonymous

Hi Pawprint - what's tamoxifen doing to you?
I barely notice I'm taking it. For me, not having a hormonal cycle is a huge blessing, since I was slammed with awful PMS before chemo.

Sending love to you all.

seeay

Hi pawprint!

I also had a tough time with Tamoxifen, so I took the CYP2D test which showed I was a poor metabolizer (just know the test has mixed reviews!), so I switched to a lupron shot to put me into menopause so I can take an AI, and doing better. If you already have no ovaries, i would think you could switch to an AI. ASK!! Good luck! Good to see Windlass back on the boards!

seeay

Hi pawprint!

I also had a tough time with Tamoxifen, so I took the CYP2D test which showed I was a poor metabolizer (just know the test has mixed reviews!), so I switched to a lupron shot to put me into menopause so I can take an AI, and doing better. If you already have no ovaries, i would think you could switch to an AI. ASK!! Good luck! Good to see Windlass back on the boards!

RangerMom

Hi everyone! Hope I haven't been away so long that you don't remember me. I love seeing all your faces and new hair dos. so great! I'll post a new picture soon. My is all salt and pepper now with a little red left in it. I am back again with these boards looking for answers and information and support as I'm now for sure stage IV with mets to spine and hip, possibly lung. But hey, what can you do but keep putting one foot in front of the other because you just can't quit.  I was so upset when I read from a scan I had during my chemo, if you remember, the one that put me in the hospital with allergic reaction, that ct scan then showed a lesion on my T7 but it wasn't mentioned to me till another scan done this May. The radiologist compared the 2 scans and it had grown. then biopsy of the T7 showed no cancer cells, then 6 mos later this Nov 7th, that bone scan showed the T7 had grown somemore, and a new spot on T9 and hip.  I had no pain, other than regular pain from the arimidex and my rheumatology dx, both gave me pain all over so I didn't know.  Just remembered when I would sneeze my back would hurt.  Just being newly dx again, I'm still have so many emotions; like pissed off, wondering how long I will live, then flip side thinking I'll be fine and they will get this in remission like I've heard of other ladies with mets have.  I know it can happen so why not me.  I took a long break from here because mentally I needed to.  And now I need the support again for my mental health

seeay

@rangermom one foot in front of the other. Keep walking girl! Keep fighting! You got this!

Merilee

Hi everybody, just popping in to say I am doing well and hope that all of you are as well. It has been an amazing year of healing and spiritual growth for me. I wrote a program to help other survivors with fear, which you all know is a big part of the experience. If  anyone wants to check it out let me know and I will PM you my website.

Hugs and love to all of you amazing warriors, I would not have made it without you!

Merilee

Anonymous

Hi, Merilee - I would love to see your program. Please send the link!

Merilee

Hi Windlass,

Good to hear from you. I will PM  you the link to my site

Merilee

sarahlou1967

Hi Merilee, Ladies, I'm would like a link to your website if possible sounds really interesting, glad too hear your doing well. I'm classed as stable at the moment and doing well on the jucing and healthy eating diet, not doing so well on the Tamoxifen as I've put on 2.5 stone on since starting the dammed tablets I get a few other nasty SE from herceptin but other than that I'm still here and living for the moment. Sending all my American sisters lots of love and light sarahxxx

Merilee

@sarahlou here is the link to my site. http://www.visionboardhealing.com

Anonymous

Sending love to you all today.

I had my second post-mastectomy mammogram (on the intact side) today. Yikes! They thought the saw something so they put me through the wringer - literally. I was squashed and pinched and hurt to the point of tears streaming down my face. They came back again and again and made me do the whole thing a total of three times. The last time was on a bigger, different machine. Then the doctor came in and did an ultrasound, and said she was sorry, not to worry, all it was was "dense breast tissue." I was red and sore all day. Not to mention completely sick to my stomach as the floor dropped out from under me and the room swam.

The good news is I am fine. I hope you are all well too.

Merilee

OMG I have had a few scares as well and I know just what you mean. So terrifying, and the medical people don't seem to get that. I'm sorry you went through that but I am very glad you are ok. For me it has been 2 years since the last tumor was removed. Life is good!

trail2

Hi Merilee,  It was nice to get on here and see some of our friends from our chemo days.  I loved your vision board link !  I remembered your daughter worked at the aquarium in Chatt.  My son is getting married in Chattanooga in May, and if she was still there thought we could look for her when we take grand daugther to visit the fish.   Thanks for keeping this up, and I look forward to coming back to check in on everyone.  

Take care and keep up all the positive thoughts !

CarlaB76

Hi ladies, I'm just doing the quickest drive-by. I read back few pages and it is so good to see so many of our group doing well.



I did want to give a special shout out to RangerMom. Like you, I was diagnosed as Stage IV at the beginning of June last year. My initial metastases were to the bones and I had a round of radiation. A few months lather they found a secondary cancer in the axillary region of my left side (mastectomy side) and additional mets in my liver and lungs. Between November and now, I've done two different chemos, and while they are keeping the bone and lung mets stable, we've not found a drug as yet that is stopping the liver mets. I'm waiting for my onc to tell me the next step in the plan and starting to look very seriously at clinical trials. So RangerMom, I understand what you're facing and the roller coaster of emotions. I've moved myself mentally from the survivor group to the warrior group. PM me if you need anything. I'll try to check here more often.





Love and light.

Carla

RangerMom

Carla and all,

I rarely stop here but something tonight said, hey go see hw they are all doing. And Carla, I see your message and feel it too.  I am so sorry to see you have mets and progression.  I had progression with each scan until this last one. However, it was only 2 months from the last scan but it showed everything was the same, nothing new and nothing smaller. This was the first good news I had in about a year.  I've been on Xeloda and that is the only one with some positive results so far.  yes, I will PM you, we need to stay in touch. 

Merilee, I will check out your vision board website in a bit. I am sure it will be awesome. 

All my other sisters on here, I have to tell you about a breast cancer organization that you can apply for a free beach vacation.  They are still taking applications. I was awarded a week all paid vacation at Kure Beach, NC in April. It was life changing.  check it out www.littlepink.org Its for any breast cancer person and spouse/SO and family.  All paid.  A truly wonderful and amazing organization started by a woman who got her dx during her vacation.

Take care, love you...and I'll be back

Linda

KiwiMum

Linda and Carla, I'm sorry to see you have progression. I will have you both in my thoughts and hope that treatment can hold things stable for you!



I'm back at my oncologist tomorrow for my 12 weekly ovary suppression injection. I've also had diep reconstruction, 2 years after MX, in Feb this year. Stage 2 recon was in July. I'm healing well and am pleased I did it.



Anyway, sending lots of positive vibes your way xx

RangerMom

You look Great KIwi! So glad you are on the mend. Thanks for the positive vibes. Was at the onc office today with a good report.  I'm feeling good today, no complaints. Next scans in October.

sarahlou1967

Hi all,

Little while since I came on this thread just wanted to check in with all my American sisters. 

Rangermom and CarlaB76 - So sorry to hear about your latest cancer challenge and wishing you both well with all your treatments, have faith for there is plenty of cancer drugs they try. I was dx stage IV from the start and that was 2 and a half years ago!!!! and I'm still here, living and breathing and most importantly loving evey moment of it. I'm on herceptin forever (which is ok cause I don't get any SE from it) but also the dreaded Tamoxifen which I do suffer SE. My mets are on both lungs and Im happy to say have stayed stable since June 2011.

Pawprint - Are you off the Tamoxifen now? my SE are extreme and my weight is has balooned up to 4 stone since dx (2 stone this year), I absolutely hate the stuff and have begged the Dr's to take me off of it but they wont my ER+ status was 4/8 so I'm weakly oestrogen rich. So far I've been on it for 2 years this month, thinking of taking a Tamoxifen holiday next year of a month or 2 and I'm not gonna tell them, just need a break from this shit. I'm still going through the menopause so they told me can't change drug until I'm through it.

Merilee - Loving the website

Sending you all lots of love and light

Sarahlou xxxx

RangerMom

Thanks Sarahlou - Those Tamox se's were hard, I remember, I was on i for a short while, then armidex and armosin, both of those were not easy either and unfortunately I had progression with the hormals. Hope you continue to stay stable.  I know what you mean wanting to take a break from this stuff. This Xeloda has se's that kick my butt and I start another round this Saturday, yuck! I know its a necessary evil but I can understand when some say "I'm done" and can't do anymore.  I'm not there by any means, I am still enjoying my life every day and grateful to be alive.  Scans in a week and will see what's going on.

KiwiMum

Hi ladies

I don't know if anyone checks this thread any longer? It's coming up to our 4 year anniversary and I was thinking about you all and the support you gave me and each other.

I hope you are all happy and healthy and wish you well.

I am great.  I am still keeping up with all my appointments and treatment.  I'm scheduled for an oophorectomy in 4 weeks. 

Anonymous

Hi, Kiwi and friends - so good to see you posted here! I had brain surgery 11 days ago to remove two unexpected tumors (mets? Something else?) and am awaiting a path report Monday (in two days) First time I've been back here in ages. Miss you all, hope you are thriving and well. I am protected, working, thriving, and doing as well as can hope!

Blessings, Windlass

KiwiMum

Windlass - I'm crossing fingers, toes and everything in between for a good path report. I'm sorry you are going through this.

I love your positivity. Take care my friend. Blessings to you too