Starting Chemo June 2013!?!?!

KatiAK

Hang in ther dlm425!  You can do this - we're all sending positive thoughts out for you!  Almost to the end!

OceanWarrior

This is an extremely tough experience we are going through.  Chemo and all that goes with it is more intense for me than I thought it would be.  I'm astonished at times the amount of pills I'm taking just to counteract the SE's of treatment.  It is all overwhelming at times and of course is wrecking havoc with our hormones and emotions and sense of self.  There are some really rough days, and then things become more manageble.....and then it all starts again.  

For anyone struggling, ride through it as best you can and remember, if/when needed reach out to your Oncology team.  They are there to help us.  I don't think I mentioned it before but last week I went to talk to the Social Worker/Counsellor at the Cancer Agency.  Got some emotions out, talked about some things that I'm struggling with.  It was really helpful for me.  Just a thought, I think many agencies have these services on site.  It was brought up in Chemo Teach and then I inquired and made an appointment.  Glad I did. 

Very glad to have this group to share and learn from.  Nobody is alone in this.  Lots of support and care here.  Please continue to post.  ~ good energy to all.

tonya845

I will be having the same exact tx starting 8/21/13. I'm 39 with three young boys and scared. I'm trying to be strong for them, but not really sure what i'm up against.

rachel22

Dlm - sending positive thoughts and prayers your way! You can do this! You're a strong woman. I pray the pain subsides soon for you



I agree that there are so many crazy side effects and I feel like I take a zillion meds to manage them too! I had pretty bad mouth sores on AC but I swished several times a day with the water/salt/baking soda mix and that really helped me. It helped with the icky feeling on my tongue as well.



Does everyone take Claritin for bone pain? I've been on it since the start and that's really helped me manage that pain.



And I too have the weird waxy, smooth skin. Very strange. I also have horrible circles under my eyes that make me look sicker than I feel but oh well. Ha, whoever mentioned makeup I totally agree. I look so much better when I wear it but I hate the way it feels on my face!



Taxol #2 of 12 done for me! Only 10 more!!



We can do this ladies! Keep your spirits up and remember that you are strong and beautiful!

Robin-Lynn

Supposed to get my 2nd taxol tomorrow but I think I'll head out shopping instead ... Or maybe the beach.....

OceanWarrior

Robin-Lynn, heading to the beach sounds nice.  Let's go, I'll pack a picnic and bring some magazines!

annika12

YES....let's run away....beach sounds good

dlm425

Good morning ladies Rain I always say those words So many have traveled this road and I can do it. It helps but whats up with all the crying!!! hormones I guess. Ive never felt pain in my body like this before. I feel a little better today have to go to plastic surgeon. I don't feel like going to work but I need the money. Why do we have ovarian pain. Ive been having migraines too. I sit in a recliner and cry. I look in the mirror and say alien. I know what doesn't kill us makes us stronger stand a little longer. I sing that all the time. Two more to go. All you ladies are so important to me because no one knows unless they have been through it. Im already scheduled for surgery and I keep thing about if they will ever find a vein after chemo. November 13... Thanks for the support it helps. We need to all meet when our shitty journeys are over. Without you ladies id be lost

dlm425

Oh my brothers has a new neighbor ironic she was dx with stage 4 invasive Bc double mastectomy cancer in her chest wall. Had same chemo as I. Well she is cancer free 14 years. Wants to meet me when I feel better looking g toward to it. Just wanted to share. Cant wait to see the light at the end of our tunnels

dlm425

Oh and she was 12 nodes positive out of 15

NisaVilla

Is there anyone having their last chemo on Monday? Looking for partners to celebrate with!



I also wonder what sort of things people do to celebrate/seal the chemo-stage other than special dinner with family?



Thanks, Nisa

kayezzy66

Finished my 4th  chemo today...then on Sept.10th for 12 doses of taxol every 7 days...hopefully this will not be as bad as chemo..what can i expect from this ...???? i know everybody is different from this ,im in research,and they are really good....but???? I will keep reading and i also want to say thank you all for all the information,that is on here...i care!!!!!!!

annika12

Finally had a good day.....wore my wig ALL day and didn't mind it at all....even put on some make up. It was nice to walk by a mirror and almost recognize myself. Cooked dinner, took my dog and hubby for a walk.And my kid who's leaving for college Thursday has friends over night.....feels kinda normal tonight Hang in there ladies.....we will have our lifes back !!!

annika12

Funny, you feel like you are dying and the doc tells you you are doing great !! You feel great and the doctor calls you and says you have a zero white blood count. My doctor and hubby thinks Im changing plans on taking my kid to college....wrong!! Cancer taken so much from me....this weekend Im a mom first

maureenb

Are most of you having 4 or 6 treatments?  

Mine was TCH x 4.  At first he said 6, then said I would be ok with 4.  

Finished that last Friday, still feeling a little crummy, mostly due to hot flashes and severe insomnia no matter what I take.  

Anyone doing a year of herceptin and then Tamoxifen?  

Dyvgrl

Is anyone still having their period? Was really hoping to drop that fun little slice but apparently not so lucky. PMSing on steroids, fun times!! I had to take yesterday off and I literally slept the entire day. So sick of this!!

annika12

I am.....the one and only SE Im not having!! My last period was the worst ever.....I do appreciate my body trying to be normal

KatiAK

Dyvgrl - I had a period after my first or second AC and made the same comment about having PMS on steroids.  Told the doc I was pretty sure my husband and kids were secretly packing their bags.  It was miserable.  So far I haven't had one since.  Our bodies do fight like hell to be normal but nothing about this is normal.

Went in for blood work yesterday.  White cells nice and high, red blood cells ok, liver enzymes a little off.  All in all I'm fine.  Yay!  I just want to keep plugging along until I'm done.  I took Advil at bedtime and the pain in my legs woke me up twice.  Added a percocett - that got me through the night.  Onc told me to take an Aleve in the morning and at night and that would help too.  That's all I'm needing during the day now. 

A facebook friend lost her friend to BC yesterday - pneumonia complication actually.  She'd been fighting for many years.  So sad.  And so hard to watch.  Take care of yourselves ladies - we're fighting for our lives here and we mean to win!

NisaVilla

Maureenb, Congrats on being done with the hardest stage! I will be done on Modnay, yay! Mine was a similar situation. First told 6 treatments then a second/third opinion at UCLA changed 6 to 4. Next for me in hormonal treatment, not Herceptin.

AryaS

Kayezzy-

I have heard that the 12 weekly rounds of Taxol are much more gentle on you than the Dose Dense 4 rounds that I am doing.

The good news for me has been no nausea on Taxol. I also have a little peach fuzz of hair on my head. It's very light and I still look bald but it makes me happy.

You can do some searches for threads. I am pretty sure there is a thread for weekly Taxol that can give you more info.

My Onc nurse said that they are switching from Dose Dense Taxol to weekly with most patients. I am guessing I am one of their last ones.

Gingergirl1

MaureenB - I am also doing a year of Herceptin and Tamoxifen. I heard that Tamoxifen can cause thinning of hair in some people (hopefully not). That is depressing thinking you will finally get your hair back.



Have you started Herceptin yet?

Alibeths

Hang in there dlm!!!

Alibeths

Anyone else have a mastectomy already?? Wondering how long before u went back to work?

Dyvgrl

Alibeths, I had mine in May and went back to work after 2 weeks. I took a few half days here and there but was pretty much good to go. I have a physical job that required the use of my arm and that has been a challenge. I couldn't lift anything more than 10 lbs for several months. The incision under my armpit took awhile to heal, and because they did an axillary dissection it was several months before I had range of motion back in my arm. I'm still not 100% but probably like 90. It doesn't hurt anymore, but took longer than I thought. I do have issues with Lymphedema in my arm on occasion so watch out for that. All the time I was worried about losing my breast, but after having the mastectomy it became more about the arm recovery than anything. Just something to prepare you for. The breast area will be fairly numb and won't hurt too much. If you have any lymph nodes removed, that armpit is gonna hurt like a bitch. Take time to rehabilitate your arm. All in all it wasn't as bad as I was expecting tho. The worst part for me was recovering from the anesthesia. It makes me truly ill for days after. Pain killers for a few days, take Valium and you'll be back on your feet in no time.

NisaVilla

Alibeths - I had multifocal disease in both breasts so I had to have a double mastectomy w/ Sentinel & Axillary Lymph Node Dissection, had 4 ugly drains for 2 weeks, and took 2 more weeks before going back to work. Sounds like you had a lumpectomy and now facing a mastectomy? Good luck! Nisa

maureenb

Nisavilla-  so glad to hear more reports of the 4 vs 6!  I was so glad to be told I could do 4, but didn't want to give up when I was most of the way through if there was some benefit.  It's always a gamble and no one knows anything for certain, but I am glad to hear there are studies and more doctors leaning this way.  I haven't had every bad SE, but the ones I have had are pretty scary and hard to deal with.  Besides the mental ones-  like the hair- and being afraid to be seen in large groups, I feel like my heart is about to explode for about 10 days after chemo.  It just pounds and pounds.  And the hot flashes, and the no sleep!  

Good for you that Monday is the last!  I found it hard to be excited about the actual day of my last chemo because for me, chemo day was actually pretty good.  All of the steroids gave me lots of energy.  Now I am on day 6, so I hope that every day I will feel a tiny bit better.  Yesterday I did yoga for the first time since April.   

Alibeths-  Good luck with your mastectomy!  Are you done with chemo already?  I found the mastectomy itself to be not too bad.  I had a NSM with immediate reconstruction with silicone implants.  The recovery from the actual surgery wasn't too bad.  The drains were a pain and a nuisance and it was hard to wear normal clothes because you could see them hanging there.  I discovered if I hung them right under my bra and wore a loose top it was better.  

I was out of commission for 4 days after my surgery ONLY because my right nipple looked like it might croak and so they were putting nitroglycerin on it which gave me terrible headaches.  Once the nitro stopped and I got the drains out, I felt ok.  I would say after a couple weeks you might feel like working if you're not doing chemo.  

I don't know how anyone works during chemo-  I am giving any of you who do it a standing ovation right now.  You are so much stronger than I am!  If you can handle that, you can handle anything!  

TwinMamaHeather

KatiAK ~ Can I ask which leg of your treatment you are on {AC or T}? My liver enzymes were a "little off" last week and I have been freaking out about it ever since!

maureen ~ I know you asked about this on the Triple-P board, but here is one study, hope this helps you feel a bit better:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/734367

kayezzy66

Thank goodness,ive heard about bone pain,and i take an allergy pill..and i got the worse mouth sores .The last dose i havent had diarrea,or nausea,of chemo4.Hopefully it was a low dose.Will or have to get through this!!!!

OceanWarrior

Hi,

Busy thread.  Hard to keep up, or is it just me.  Anyone else having chemo brain?  Don't like that term but its what they seem to call it. I have a hard time getting my words out sometimes.  Or I mix them up.  And my short term memory is poor.  Walk into my kitchen with purpose then have no idea what I was going to get.  

Nissa Villa - congrats for last chemo coming up this Monday.  I'm not sure what people do to celebrate.  For sure a celebration dinner is in order.  I have a tradition of going out for a classic Martini at a nice hotel bar when something good happens.  So I'll probably ask for that.  Last week at chemo a lady asked why the clinic doesn't have a bell to ring when you are done.  They liked the idea.

About periods - I had 2 really close together with my first 2 rounds of AC.  Now they have stopped.  Wonder if they will come back when treatment is done?  

Maureen - doing yoga first time since April, sounds so good.  Bet it felt good too!

I'm doing pretty good.  It is one week since 2nd Taxol and I continue to manage better with the nerve pain blockers. 

Funny thing.  I decided to check out the Cancer Support Group offered at the local hospital.  I was the only one there.  So, chatted with the facilitator for a half hour about 'my journey' and the ups and downs.  Nice to get a private session but would have been better if there was a group.  Said usually 10 people but slow in summer.  I wanted to meet and chat with some people.  Maybe next time.

Wishing everyone a good day.

KatiAK

Ocean - I like when the thread is busy but I know what you mean about chemo brain.  I don't think I mix up  my words but I don't remember where I put things, etc.  Some of that is normal for me but a little worse these days.

TwinMamaHeather - I am preparing for Round 2 of Taxol coming up next week.  Onc said liver enzymes being a little off is pretty normal for this tx.  Plus I've been taking some hydrocodoone and Percocetts for pain which contain a lot of Tylenol.  Tylenol effects your liver.  We added an Aleve in the morning and at night which really does take the edge off and will help keep my Tylenol use down a little.  I still have to take a low dose Percocett at night to sleep thru the pain.  Doesn't help that I accidently tried to cut my finger off with the lid of a can last night.  I've never been know for my grace.  Your liver enzymes should return to normal.

Hope everybody has a good weekend.  It's State Fair time in Alaska so of course - its pouring down rain!