FecT

Angstapp

Hi,

I've just had my second round of Fec on Thursday and have been on my butt in bed again since, I've found my head is a dizzy mess, I can't drive, can't look after my 2 little ones properly - It's horrible, I feel like a chemo flunk, after all the surgery i kept hearing "your through the worst", but holey heck I never envisioned chemo would be so awlful, I keep seeing stories about it being not so bad, people just being sick for a night, geez, I feel useless!!!  I'm on emend and all sorts of other stuff, I just think I'm in that stinky little percentage that get's really sick.  I have one more round of Fec and and then onto 3 rounds of Taxotere, what am I in for then!!!, I'm not a negative person but I jut feel completely overwhelmed and need a good cry, I just can't see a positive in it today.

I hate posting about negative stuff, I have just hardened up a bit and dried my tears lol

TasiaB

I have also done the same treatment 3 FEC then I'm on my third taxotere treatment July 18 FEC knocked me on my butt was in bed for 7 days I have two little ones as well was hard having someone else watch them .. I couldn't even drive it was hard to focus mind was blurry .. I would have to say taxotere has been easier the worst for me was the bone pain for 3 days but other then that not bad at least could watch the kids .

It's ok to cry and have those moments I'm sure we all do hope it gets better for you .have any questions message me .

flannelette

I found the surgery (except for the huge anxiety that came with the first part of the treatment,) actually pretty easy - not even a tylenol needed after.

FEC was not exacactly a piece of cake! Each time, after the steroids wore off, I went down, hated the taste of water, was probably dehydrated, digestive system went for a major crap-out - for some reason I ate like a pig though my mouth tasted like the bottom of a garbage can after 10 minutes. during my FEC (6 of them) I had to brush and floss my teeth 4 - 5 times a day to get rid of the foul tastes, and one silver lining - my gums improved dramatically when all tx over and I finally saw a dentist after about 2 years. I also found the whole thing cumulative - like, was I ever glad I did not have to do more than 6! I couldn't wait for the day when my taste buds returned to normal, and I could enjoy a cup of tea again! Sorry don't know about T - 5 yrs ago we all seemed to begetting fec and no t. Best to you - cry when you need to - you can't always be up! sometimes I would just crash - just have to lie down, sleep, sleep, or, for me, go through ungodly gas and turbulence & pain if I ate a hunk of meat or something....hang in there, step by step you will get through

Trisha-Anne

Ang, you poor thing. Don't feel you are being negative - chemo is horrible. 

I did FEC-T and I was ok on FEC but couldn't finish Taxotere.  Some women can tolerate certain chemos, and some can't.  Just take it a day at a time, even an hour at a time while things are bad. Don't feel you are failing - your body is fighting and the chemo is doing what it's supposed to.

Make sure you drink as much water as you can - it's important to keep hydrated and the E part of FEC needs to be flushed out of your bladder as thoroughly as possible.

I found that eating jelly beans settled my tummy and gave me a little bit of energy (not much mind you!).  I don't know if you are in the US or elsewhere - here in Australia they are called jelly beans, they are bean shaped and made of glucose.  They were amazing for me.

Also - it depends if you are the type to get constipation or diahorea - each one needs to be managed carefully.  I always had the big D, and seemed to spend most of my time on the loo - it was horrible.  You can get something to help with either, and hopefully that will help you feel a bit better.

Make sure you tell your onc about your se's you may need more meds to help you get through.

And remember what Winston Churchill said - "when you are going through hell, keep going"

Sending you gentle (((((hugs))))

Trish

xoxox

rozem

i had a HORRIBLE time on FEC - actually my MO said i had some of the worst nausea she had seen - i tried everything and was still horribly sick to my stomach.  I was out for an entire week - pretty much 6-7 days of absolute crap.  The fog would lift after that and i felt better by week three only to be hit again.  For me, taxotere was much much easier because there was no nausea - the bone/joint pain was the worst part but i was able to eat and felt much better.  I think you may feel ok on tax if your issues are nausea/tummy.  You are not alone - lots of us failed the torture by chemo test!

Alicethecat

Sweetie

I'm sorry to hear this.

After four rounds of FEC, I do understand a little about some of the side-effects that can happen! Some people seem to sail through it whereas others like you and me find it a little more difficult.

I often heard the nurses on the chemo ward say that people seem to find either FEC or Taxotere more difficult.

If it is any consolation, I found four rounds of Taxotere much easier (once the dose was reduced to 80 per cent of the standard dose) so maybe you will too!

In the meantime, I hope you are eating well and drinking lots of water. If the side-effects are really troubling -and I guess the chemo nurses gave you a number to call re a temperature of 37.5 and above etc - why not ask your oncologist if you could have a reduced dose?

Wishing you well

Alice

Angstapp

Thanks so so much for the support ladies, It is a HUGE relief to know that it's not that easy for everyone (not that it's easy for anyone), it's been a tough round, now there's no hair on my head I look all the worse when I am feeling crappy!!!  

I have been pretty slack with keeping hydrated due to the filmy taste in my mouth so I will try really hard today to get heaps of fluids in and will send for some Belly Jeans (i'm in New zealand), really appreciate your support xo

flannelette

a great way to keep hydrated, if you loathe even the taste of water, is to eat cold cubes of water-holding fruit, such as watermelon, cantaloupe & pineapple. Have them cut up in in a container in the fridge. Someone advised me to do this when water tasted like a sewer, and it's very good way to get hydrated, and for me, were clean fresh tastes I could really tolerate. I hated every one of the pre-cooked & frozen meals I made for myself. there is no way you can know ahead what tastes you can tolerate. I know i was dehydrated, just couldn't drink anythig, the fruit saved me.