October 2013 Chemotherapy

SpecialK

wren - I read on the other thread about the vein access issue - drink a bunch and then have them apply a warm towel first.

SpecialK

debdylan - yes, it does make sense. There are lots of nurses on this site who have been diagnosed, and the occasional doc. The doctor who began this website is also a survivor. I do not image well, so normal detection methods are very fallible for me personally. Mammo saw absolutely nothing - a 2cm mass! I went back to thank the radiologist after I was diagnosed because he saved my life by insisting I get a biopsy, we went back to his office to review my mammo films because he wanted to look again to see if he could find anything - NOTHING! If I had not had the US I would have been in huge trouble with a Her2+++, 96% ER+ mass. I had a pre-surgical MRI that missed the positive nodes, and the ADH and ALH in the other breast. I had a sentinel with 20 IST. Normally that would be declared node negative, artifact from biopsy. Fortunately, both my BS and MO insisted on axillary clearance due to the Her2+ and they found a 6mm node further up. I am very fortunate that I was diagnosed when I was, and that I self-elected a BMX, and that my docs were aggressive with the node situation. $h*t absolutely happens!

Annecy

DebDylan- my skin has become very dry as well....someone from the site has been suggesting a moisturizer made by "Aveda" without parabens (tournaline charged hydrating creme.). It's a fairly expensive product, however I find that it has helped to keep my skin more hydrated. I used twice daily (morning, night). At the Look Good Feel Better workshop , they also recommended to always use a sun protection daily and liberally with UVA protection of SPF 30 higher during chemo treatments.

TX # 2 took place 11/8, to my surprise the SEs were minimal comparratively with TX #1 .I didn't experience too much bone, muscle pains following the Neulasta shot. Claritin seems to have helped . For the past 2 weeks , my nose has been running constantly like a water tap....it's sooo imbarrassing at times! It seems to stop only when I am laying down. One week away from TX # 3.... wow!

wrenn

k i am drinking water. To draw the blood friday they wrapped a warm towel. Hopefully will it today as well

My trauma counsellor was diagnosed with what was called minor cancer that the claimed to have removed with lumpectomy and told her to return in a year for mammogram. When she returns they said " oops missed a more aggressive tumour. She then had bone mets and has since died. I was so angry on her behalf but she was too sick to fight and saw it as shit happens.

SpecialK

debdylan - not at all! I am happy to share it because it is a cautionary tale!

Headeast

Wrenn, that was my fear when I knew I had cancer: that the doctors might miss one tiny piece and then have cancer again. I just went to the 'remove it all' route and had BMX and ALND. My fault for not going to mamograms yearly, but this is where I am now.

Take the Ativan, I hate medicines but that one does help in having a smooth infusion.

wrenn

Headeast, I had a BMX because the other side was too big and would have been a balance problem. There turned out to be precancerous cells in the good breast so the surgeon was happy I chose that route. It's a crap shoot.

Wondering whether to take another ativan or wait. I am very jittery but that could just be from lack of sleep. arghhhh.

Will be hoping for smooth ride for everyone today.

VintageGal1111

That's incredible SpecialK! So glad you pursued it with the medical team, wow!

But there goes to show ya, I have heard some people remark how it wasn't found sooner, how it was missed....even the most diligent can miss soemthing....we are all different & you really have quite a story there!

Thanks for being here even though I am sorry you have to be here!

VintageGal

VintageGal1111

When I went for my blood draw today (2nd Taxol/Herceptin tomorrow) my friend met me there with two more hat scarves she made for me. She does such a great job, lined, padded, stitched, elastic & a long enough tail to keep it tied down low on the nape. She did one for me a couple weeks ago & another similar plus one in soft fleece. I have such a teeny tiny head trying to use 35x35 scarves was a lot of bulk & tying & the longer ones worked to wrap twice but didn't feel secure specially out in the wind. Plus my head stil looked so small LOL

gia444

DebDylan,     I was told the same as you by the BS that it was not necessary.      Sure hope I made the right decision..  

Wrenn,   Good luck today.     (((Hugs))).

SpecialK,    Thank you so much for all the advice.

VintageGal1111

My MO told me even though I had a lumpectomy in August I would need a mastectomy after chemo. Then she told me more surgery might not be necessary if chemo (A&C then T&H) did all it's suppose to do. That makes it very confusing & when we talk about this again when my Taxol is done in March I will have a tough decision.

relocatedtarheel

for those of you who had A/C and are now on taxol, is the taxol easier?

Malakies

was wondering the same thing relocated!!! My last A/C is Dec 2 (would have been today ... but postponed) I will have 12 weekly Taxol .. and can't imagine it to be potent...if its weekly! WTH?

sloyd66

vintagegal1111 I don't understand, why go thru the chemo and all that if she feels you need a mastectomy? why not just say let's do the mastectomy from the get go. I think I would be annoyed if I did all these treatments to still have to go thru a surgery she thinks I may need.

uds17

I'm a doctor and, honestly, it's hard to say how my medical knowledge has helped throughout this process. I found my lump on my own and gynae suggested I see a surgeon just to make sure there wasn't anything to be concerned about. I had fibrocystic breasts and frequently had lumps that came and went. As a result, I had also had frequent ultrasounds. This particular lump didn't change with my last menstrual cycle, which is why I mentioned it to my doctor. I wasn't worried, as the clinical feel of the lump did not have the characteristics typically seen with malignant lesions.

My mammogram showed nothing. Ultrasound showed a "degenerating cyst", for which the radiologist stated I should repeat the ultrasound in 6 months. She stated that going to the breast surgeon was overkill.

The cyst on ultrasound did look slightly different than my previous cysts, so perhaps my medical training helped in differentiating that. The biggest thing I did was just to follow the recommendation of my gynae and trust his instincts.

Doctors are typically terrible patients.....we second guess everything. I fully admit that this is not my field of expertise and have followed the recommendations of my doctors. Having so many contacts in the medical field actually makes things more difficult, especially during the early stages just after diagnosis. I have friends all over the world who are pathologists, surgeons, oncologists, etc, and everyone knows what's best. My husband and I got to a point where we had to be appreciative, yet firm, with those who insisted on sharing their opinions.

I have found an incredible treatment team. I guess the one thing I can't ever differentiate is if they treat me differently because I'm a physician. I would hope they'd be this kind and caring to everyone.

As an aside: a number of you have been mentioning skin issues. I live in a dry environment and things get even worse this time of year. Cerave cleanser is the most gentle and effective cleanser I have found. I also use Kiehls Rosa Arctica face cream and eye cream- both great for sensitive skin. I slather on Lubriderm body lotion right after my shower and this has also been helpful.

To those who gave me the popsicle recommendations, THANK YOU!!! I have been so much better this time around- no dehydration. I hope you all feel good this week and are able to enjoy your stuffing on Thursday (with extra salt, of course, because everything is SO BLAND these days!)

xoxo

kcat2013

uds17 I'm glad the second tx was better for you! I'm also glad you mentioned the need for extra salt because everything tastes so bland! I seem to have to salt everything these days and really enjoy treats like salt and vinegar potato chips!

Gramof2boys

Wrenn- wishing you lots of luck!

The food thing is driving me crazy, nothing tastes right. I love my morning cup of coffee and I now can hardly drink it. The only thing that I can taste and enjoy is cinnamon toast and toast and grape jelly, lol! I know we are supposed to decrease our carbs and sugar, but that is all that tastes halfway decent. Any ideas? Today was so blah for me, also lots of rain and cold. I was hoping my spirits would be better to try and do some Christmas shopping but so far that hasn't happened, maybe tomorrow:)

Furfriend2

Hi Wren,

My best to you. Hope you are feeling ok today? Let us know.

Deb, you r a hoot

wrenn

i'm tired but good. I can't imagine losing my taste for carbs and sugar. I am going to see if i can tolerate my spinach smoothie when my taste changes. I put frozen berrie banana yogurt milk protein powder flax seed crushed and a handful of spinach. It is really sweet so will probably be ok.

Not looking forward to my morning coffee ritual being spoiled.

Furfriend2

Grams,

I too, and I think most of us are having issues with food & taste buds. Coffee does not taste good to me either. I have been eating tons of carbs, cereal, oatmeal, bread thru the wazooh!!!! Lots of chocolate n salt - I know that is bad. Gummy bears as well but they give me cramps sometimes.

Tonight is the first night I actually baked Tilapia and it tasted pretty good. I just bought some yogurt as I was told to eat this often as it helps with my tummy issues. Some have told me they can't eat yogurt as it makes their stomach worse. We are all so different.

Uds, thanks for your world of knowledge as my skin is terrible and the weather is cold and inside the heat is on etc. All this reeks havoc on our skin.

lgkgde13

Debdylan- yes we should party!!!

uds17

Ladies, Nutella has been my saving grace. Yes, It has a lot of sugar, but it also has protein. BC (before cancer), I used to eat a really well balanced diet, including a green smoothie with spinach and kale every morning. Now I just eat what tastes good and gives me some nutrients. As I've been told at my oncologist's office, all the good over the past number of years is not going to be undone by a few months of less than stellar nutrition. We deserve small pleasures, gals, even if it comes in the form of carbs!

SchoolCounselor

uds I was the green smoothie queen, grain free eating, blah blah. Now with no taste buds everything tastes luck crud except Burger King vanilla milkshakes! I'll get back to all my exercise and eating after chemo. I'm lucky if I can drag myself out of bed on some days.

Wren glad today went okay. Keep drinking. I also ended up in the ER last time with severe constipation, which I still don't understand, apparently I had output but it was not enough. So I am on psyllium husks( meramucil) and colace 2 to 3 times a day.

Since I have no taste buds I will be freezing food on thanksgiving to feast on post chemo. Well that's the plan my family has to make me feel better.

I'm having the foot and ankle pain too. I generally tough it out, but if it gets too bad I take Motrin.

Hang tough ladies, we are doing this!!!

Gramof2boys

I have a question for y'all. I finished my A/C tx on Friday but I received 10 mg Dexamethasone in my IV premeds. Could that cause me to be down and weepy on day 4? I just realized that every Monday after a treatment has been crappy. I'm supposed to take Dexamethosone 4mg twice a day the day before my Taxol and then I think I get it with my IV premeds too, I hope I don't get like this every Monday after Taxol. Let me know what you think??

lgkgde13

I love my coffee but ever since I started treatment my stomach can't handle it. Only during my 3rd wk am I able to drink it again and only a small cup. Nothing like I used to. Also, I have given up drinking diet Pepsi which I loved. Good thing I know bc it was really bad for me.

lgkgde13

can u tell I can't sleep? Night before my treatment and me turning 40!!! Double whammy

SpecialK

lg - happy b-day! You are still a baby - 40 is a long way back in my rear-view mirror!

Those of you worried about eating naughty stuff - worry about that later - just do what you can to get through right now!

I am a self-admitted coffee snob, but for some reason flavored instant coffee was doable during chemo - I have no idea why.

lgkgde13

thanks specialk!!!!

uds17

lgkgde- happy 40th birthday! I'm thinking this is not the way you envisioned spending your birthday, but I do hope you feel special today.(((hugs)))

Gram- unfortunately steroids can have weird effects on emotions. hang in there! It should pass soon.

VintageGal1111

I am leaving in 5 minutes for my second Taxol. The SEs last week were definitely easier than the last 2 dose denses of A&C but it being cumulative who knows for next week?!