Starting Chemo July 2013

Nocompromises2013

JeriG - final rads. Well done it's been a long journey. Don't worry the free fall isn't too bad and they won't let you go that easily .... Still have 3mthly check ups )

Congrats for completing rads. Xx

JeriGrace

Cut . . . Poisoned . . . Burned . . . DONE!!!

soriya123

Yay  JeriGrace!!!  I had Poisoned, Cut n I hope I dont get Burned.    I will find out tomorrow.  

TwoHobbies

Hahaha love that JeriGrace. Let's see mine looks like this. Cut, rearranged, nipped, cut again, poisoned, burned, and neutered. Geez they call this medicine? Someone should be going to jail!

JeriGrace

LOL! You win!!

Girlstrong

I love the analogy and can definitely relate. Congrats on getting to the finish line JeriGrace! TwoHobbies, you make me laugh ..."neutered" . Only other BC friends can truly appreciate. Funny, I always referred to my chemo as my "rat poison" . My family doesn't like that descriptor but it is the truth. I'm still in the poison phase...sigh.

soriya123

Girlstrong, one more chemo you will be done .  Ladies, this morning i went  to the grocery store, while waiting for cashier to scan the items, my nose starting to drip and i have no control over it.  Luckily I wore a scarf.  I just put scarf on my nose....i was so embarrased.  I think a few ladies  that were waiting in line saw me.  any of you ladies have dripping nose issue?  It happened to me before but i had control  over it, but this  time NOPE...it dripped without any warning.  

TwoHobbies

Girlstrong I love the rat poison reference. We have to laugh right. My cousin called it brassy humor.

JeriGrace now I feel like Charlie Sheen. WINNING!

Soriya someone in a thread mentioned your nose runs because of nose hair loss. I guess that makes sense? We always have that problem up north due to cold winters.

Lana forgot to say I love your Halloween picture. What fun.

I hope all that are recovering from surgery will have smooth sailing.

angelanature

Yah Jerigrace! I love it too! you forgot blinded and bald,but I quess rat poison covers that,lol. I missed my rads yesterday because us new jersey folks got a snow storm. I'm glad though because my boob is all blistered. My hubby and I had date night saturday and I wanted to wear a low cut sweater and for the first time ever he said,"Um,I think you should cover up that."Jeez,what a bummer.Soriya,Twohobbies is right,no nose hairs to stop the running nose thing,don't be ashamed ,have you seen that tissue commercial where people are sneezing into all kinds of things?(alot worse than your own scarf).The things we have to put up with.Hugs all,Angela

Rambo50

Hi Ladies -

I've been following, but no time/energy to update. Had my salpingo-oophorectomy (I just like to use that term - ovaries and fallopian tubes removed) on Friday. Healing well in prep for my other mx day after tomorrow (squeezed, scanned, snipped, cut [and dug], poisoned, neutered, and soon-to-be cut again) - thankful I missed out on the "burn" but SO proud of you strong women who've endured multiple phases!

Congrats JeriGrace - I'm already experiencing that weird feeling of being done - it's kind of a "lost in space" thing; I don't know what to do NEXT! Guess we still fight, hope, and LIVE, just without the weekly drugs and docs ;-)

Soriya - I've been carrying tissues for a couple of months now - the drips can be SO embarrassing!

I DO have to gripe about 2 things:

1. I've definitely got neuropathy - it's driving me CRAZY, I can't sleep without major meds (HATE THIS!), and my mo can't tell me if it will ever go away or not (PO'd) - I'll have to address this after my next surgery and the holidays...

2. My eyebrows are STILL falling out!!! What the HE(double hockey sticks)??? This is nuts! I'm almost 6 weeks out from my last Taxol --- I have to think of a REALLY nasty name for that drug (suggestions?). Oh, and the nubbins I had growing back on my head are ALSO now gone. I can do hats over the winter, though come spring...

BUT... in the end these things are minor parts of the big picture. I know that attitude is 99% of the battle, and, while I gripe (and complain, and whine, and even cry), I KNOW I'm a fighter, like each of you here.

Happy Hump Day!

~Lynn

GraceB1

Congrats Jerigrace on reaching the finish line! I just got done with the poison and still have to do the cut and burn. Yuck. OK, my husband was asking me last night how long it will take for my hair to start growing back in. I think he is as tired of the bald look as I am. Any idea or is it all very individual? That runny nose thing happens to me all the time. I have gone through many Kleenex boxes and don't leave home without some in my pocket. It's like the fountain got turned on.

soriya123

Thank you ladies about the nose dripping, yes I do not have any nose hair..crazy!!!!  Rambo, I am glad to hear from you.  So sorry to hear about your Neuropathy.  I hope its only a temporary.  Grace, I am still bald .   Will find out my final path today so nervous.

soriya123

I am so confused with all these research. To those who had chemo before surgery please read this link:

http://www.breastcancer.org/research-news/20131118

Girlstrong, I also PM you regarding this link. 

TwoHobbies

Soriya I think this is just saying if dr felt on physical exam that nodes were positive that they could need to come out and not rely on sentinel node. For instance my dr said node was soft and unlikely to be affected and SNB agreed. But take this to your dr and he or she can fill you in.

JG I felt a little sad finishing rads plus my doctor left the hospital so I feel abandoned but there seems to be plenty of follow up with my BS and MO. I go monthly for zoledex so maybe that's why I still feel someone's watching me. Now is our time to watch our diet, exercise and take our meds every day, if applicable.

Angela the skin healed pretty fast after rads were done. I didn't blister until after but was extremely red or purple. Within a couple of weeks the blistering healed and I was just tan looking. Hang in there.

Rambo I feel for you doing another surgery so soon. And my eyebrows and lashes continued to fall out. Eyebrows have been normal now fir a while. Eyelashes are thick but still too short to bother with mascara.

Grace I had white hairs coming in about 3 to4 weeks after last chemo. They were barely there but there. This is the chick down everyone is referring to. I might have barely an inch of hair now and my last chemo was late august.

angelanature

Hi again,Rambo I have neuropathy too,awful! I'm on neurontin(gabapentin 500mg a day) not really helping at night at all.What are you taking? The hair issue sucks! White wisps,i used dark blonde root touch up and it looks alittle better,still glueing on eyelashes and drawing in eyebrows.Between the wig,shaving my beard,fake eyelashes and eyebrows,I could be on RuPaul's drag race,lol.Hugs Angela

Nocompromises2013

JeriG -and 2Hobs loved those phrases

Rambo. Good luck for Mx and you recover quickly ready for Crimbo.

An early Happy Christmas to everybody !!

soriya123

hi my lovely ladies,  got final path report today.  2 sentinel lymph nodes was taken out no cancer found.   Negative for residual carcinoma. My BS an MO very happy with the results, but how come I dont feel the same way as them.  I probably feel more happy if my BS remove some of my ALND  so I kno for sure there isno cancer there....sigh....

LanaM

Jerigrace - love that analogy! I've been cut and poisoned and the burn begins Monday! Glad to hear from you Rambo - glad all is well with the exception of neuropathy! Soriya that's great news! GraceB my husband also said "I can't wait until your hair grows back I'm sick of the bald" - I said well that makes me feel good! Men! I swear they speak without thinking half the time! I finished chemo 10/25 and my hair is starting to grow. My eyebrows are also starting to come back, but no eyelashes yet. Of course the unwanted facial hair comes back - darn! It's terribly cold here - I'm sick of winter and its just getting started! Take care all! Lana

Rambo50

Soriya - SO glad for your negative path report!!! I know that's such a relief I'm waiting on mine from my ovary surgery but am pretty sure it will be okay. My surgeon IS going to run a dye test for my sentinel nodes prior or my left mx on Friday. All was clear in that breast per an MRI before my first mx, but he just wants to check - me too!

Angela - I'm not taking anything for my neuropathy yet - really have just figured out that's what's been keeping me awake at night, and it's getting progressively worse I don't want to open another can of worms this week, but will follow up with my mo and pcp after my surgery. It's just SO aggravating! I'm pretty active (or WAS) and will have to find something that at least takes the edge off. Hate that the neurontin isn't working. I also have Raynauds so the cold is doubly difficult... Lana - I can't EVEN imagine living in WIsconsin!!! We need to be down under with Sue ;-)

Oh, Angela, I've actually met RuPaul - in his EARLY days (1983) in the ATL ;-). I'm going to shock all of my blog followers with a sans make-up photo in my next post!!!

But... I got almost all of my Christmas wrapping done today so I'm feeling accomplished

Thanks for the surgery well wishes - should be a breeze after everything else, right?

Hugs to all,

Lynn

JeriGrace

Soriya, I think you should let yourself celebrate - you just got a lot of good news! I know it's probably hard to believe after all you've been through.

Rambo, I felt the same way about the eyebrows! Mine fell out like crazy at 8 weeks out. Then a couple weeks later a whole bunch of little ones started growing in all over the place - even places you don't expect to have eyebrows. Luckily I learned how to draw on fairly believable ones at Look Good Feel Better. Good luck with your second surgery. You are super strong to do both so close together.

Angela, I'm sure you're a very beautiful drag queen! By the way, I went to my first drag show with my daughter and granddaughter a couple of weeks ago - pretty impressive!

Lana, you've been through chemo which is much harder than rads in many ways. None of it is a picnic, but the first few weeks were not bad at all. At the end I did start having skin problems that are pretty uncomfortable right now but everyone says it will heal after a few weeks. I hope so because I'm heading to San Francisco next Friday to spend a week with my sons. It's time to celebrate!

Stay strong everyone!

Girlstrong

soriya123: Great news. What a wonderful blessing!!!! Don't worry about the ALND, celebrate that you Cancer is gone!!!!!!!!!!

Rambo50: best of luck on Friday. Your so strong to do all of these surgeries in such a short timeframe. Your a warrior!!! We all have to do what we have to do to get to the finish line; your inspirational.

Sweet dreams ladies:)

TwoHobbies

Soriya that is good news so be relieved that it had not spread. It's not good to take out too many nodes so you trust and believe all is well.

Angela and Rambo I have a lot of pain in my feet and ankles by the end of the day and I have yet to sleep very many nights without ibuprofen. But at least that does help me sleep through the night. My fingers still are very sensitive too but I hope that is more due to broken nails exposing that sensitive skin. I broke anywhere from2/3 to1/3 of each and every nail.

soriya123

Thanks you my lovely ladies, once I feel better i will have dinner with my girlfriends.  i missed hanging around with just us girls dinner n dancing once in a while.  But now i dont see myself on the dance floor anymore.  I feel so bald n ugly. ...I tld them dinner ONLY. You know what I still have my eyes lashes and eyebrows.  My BS was shocked to see that n I hope it stay this way.   Girlstrong, Yay! to your last chemo ,  you made it till the end.  Rambo, will be thinking of you tomorrow. I hope you have a fast recovery.

2bluestars

Hi Everyone!

I'm drain free. YAY!! Right side didn't hurt a bit, the left, OMG, hurt like hell. Thank God removing the tube is quick so it didn't last long, but wowzaa. It burned so bad.

The dr. went over my path report. I did have a post chemo mri and it came back NED, however path said chemo didn't kill 100% of the cancer in my breast, left a spot about .9mm, but he did get clean margins, 20x greater then he requires, so yay....and he absolutely considers me cancer free. Hot damn! He took 9 nodes, all clear too. Start rads in the middle of January.

Rambo, I'll be thinking of you Friday. You've been through a lot these last few months.

Lana that was a great Halloween pic! I'm ready to retire my Uncle Fester look. I think I can actually see a tiny bit of hair growing on my head. Still losing eyebrows, eyelashes and leg hair. Just when I think I'm going to have to shave, bam...they're gone. Strange to be growing some and losing some.

:-)

Girlstrong

2bluestars...a big CONGRATS on your great news. What a good feeling to be NED...celebrate!!!!!!!

JeriGrace

2bluestars, congratulations on your good news - cancer free!! Those are some awesome words!

Hannariggs

Hi Ladies,

Had the cut, poison, and working on my tan. I feel cooked but my little red pop out thing hasn't arrived yet. I have 10 more treatments to go! I do have about an inch growth of hair on my head, even though no eyebrows or lashes have appeared. I am tired with work and all the hustle and bustle of Christmas. This last year was definitely no fun. One I hope and pray none of us ever have to revisit. But we made it and are alive. So looking forward to the holidays and the new year. Things could always be soooo much worse. Love to all

angelanature

Hi All,Yah for you Soriya,Twohobbies,and Jerigrace! Rambo you have a way to go but you are strong as hell! I'm having a bad day,cryiing ,down,it sucks.Good days and bad, I feel so depressed and negative,burned to a crisp,blisters,etc. I'm feeling bad for myself,so sick of all of this. I'm so done. Rant, I want this over. Angela

LanaM

Hang in there Angela - you will get through this! Sending hugs your way! Lana

TwoHobbies

Hugs to you Angela. You're near the finish line. Just a few more days! Be kind to yourself and know that you will feel good again.