Where are the tri-negs!

Kathygolf,

I had the same thing happen with my port.  I went 5 tx without being able to draw blood (had to use my arm) and this last time for some reason it worked like a charm again. The chemo nurse said they do this sometimes. It is the internal catheter creating a suction along the vein/artery and not a cause for worry.  You can still get infusions and sometimes that helps indo the suction. Just means getting stuck in the arm. Come to think of it, I did trip a few days before and caught myself with my port arm.  It ached for a couple of days then when I went for my blood work the port worked.  Maybe it jarred the suction loose?  Who knows. 

bombus, welcome to the club you didn't want to join.  I know you are scared but you can do this !  We'll help you through! What chemo are you getting?

floridalady - I know I'm late in reading this post , but the condition you were referring to is called constochronditis.  Some people mistake it for heart attack.

They had postponed my 2nd tx until tomorrow ... it seems I did not do very well after the first one and am still not 100%, but I didn't want to delay the tx any longer.  She did a thorough exam and agreed I could go ahead with the tx.  So I've just taken my Dex, sitting here with my big water bottle and feeling like a Puffer Fish. 

Okay, what's the good stuff for constipation?  I eat plenty of fiber, drink plenty of water and other juices.  I've already tried colace w/dulcolax and miralax, neither worked .... recommendations anyone?

Hello Ladies;

I haven;t wrote lately , i had my physical a week ago and all test and mammo came back normal, thank the Lord for that   i hope the best for all of you ladies too!!!  take care, Jesus will be with you all always and with me too                  HAVE A GOOD NITE

                                                                           LIZ
 

Great news to hear TN girlfriends,

Happy Easter!

Jeannine

I start my chemo on May 11  I will do dd A/C x 4  then toxol x12 then radiation for 6  weeks.  During that I will be in a clinical trial.

Hi TN Ladies,

Yes, I had lumpectomy the first time, excisional biopsy, then they went in again to get clear margins and 7 nodes. I had lymphatic invasion also, didn't understand what that meant then, I better understand it now. If the tumor had a blood supply why wouldn't it get into my blood stream throughout my body.

Thank you for the prayers, your all in mine also.

I received a letter from the mammo center today, it states, "your recent mammography examination showed an area that we believe is benign (not cancer). However, in six months you should have a follow up mammogram to confirm that this area has not changed."

What? I wanted my breast removed when I found out I was trip neg the first time, sure this could be nothing now, in six months it could easily be cancer. Has anyone else had anything similar happen and the surgeon removed the breast before "the area" becomes cancer? I want a bilateral, I am so upset by this crap and grey areas..... I will look for more information on the boards, sorry to rattle on.

Take Care Charlene

Have they tested you for BRACCA yet?  If it is positive and all triple negatives are good canidates for this testing the insurance will pay for bilateral masectomy.  If it is negative I'm told you are only slightly more likely than the general population to develop breast cancer again.  At least that is what I was told.  My BRACCA was negative.  I was happy not to have the hysterectomy and bilateral ahead of me.  But, there is still a small part of me that would feel safer with all of it gone.  I guess in time I'll get over that feeling.  Monday is my 6 month mammogram since all of this started.  They aren't the relaxed thing that they used to be.  I'll pray for you and I know you'll do the same for me.

Debonthelake & Everyone - Just an FYI regarding insurance coverage for the BRCA testing. 

I spoke with some insurance carriers and they are all saying they each have different criteria, but ovreall they agree you need to have immediate family members who have had breast or cervical cancer as well as the TN diagnosis to be covered.  The good thing is they will accept the sample, but the test will not be done until the company finds out if it's covered and then they send you 'statement' letting you know the cost, so you can make the decision if you want to proceed.  My onc mentioned there is a facility that will test for free but it takes months for the results to come back.  Just thought I'd mention that ... also if you know the code your doctor uses to submit the claim the insurance company can tell you over the phone if they will cover the test.

Hi Rinna! Sorry you're having to join this team, but you have come to the right place!

I'm in Windsor, and I had almost exactly that regimen--I had Taxotere, which is related to docetaxol, butotherwise the same. The combination is often abbreviated FEC.

There's a website specifically on TN (Triple Negative) bc: www.tribcfoundation.org. They've got a lot of good information.

Also, there are several women here who know tons and I'm sure one of them will be along soon and can answer an specific questions yo might have.

And, I am one week--6 treatments--away from finishing rads. 

Then what do I do?

I hadn't thought I'd feel this way--that I'd just be relieved to be done--but now I'm realising that I've done what I can do and the rest is waiting...for that 3 year mark and then the 5 year.  Have I mentioned that I'm not very patient? 

Hope everyone's treatment is going well!

Hugs

Martha

Hi Rinna40,

Sorry you have to join us.  It's such a scarry diagnosis.  My chemo regimen is Taxotere also known as docetaxel and paraplatin also known as carboplatin; given intraveniously once every 3 weeks for 4-6 sessions.  The Oncologist says if one can tolerate it, the extra two sessions raise effectiveness by 10 percent.  Monday is my last chemo session.  Yeah!.  The middle of May I start my post lumpectomy radiation.  I'll have to have 33 sessions of that, 5 days a week until the sessions are complete.  Medications do seem to vary a lot.  But, either Taxol or Taxotere seem to be a common denomiator.  I've also noticed the the way the chemo is given seems to vary.  I got both of my chemo's simulataneously and others seem to take one at a time. I'm receiving my treatment in Nashville, TN.

Torch song, I know how you feel.  I'm excited to be starting the radiation so that treatment will be behind me but then the pure faith part of the journey begins.  I guess I'll pour myself into healthy eating, vigorous exercise and prayer.  Other than that I will have fought the fight and the rest is up to acceptance.  That part of the prayer,  Lord, give me the serenity to accept the things I can not change is the hardest part.  It feels better to be fighting even if chemo is an unpleasant way to fight. I guess that's why we pray for the serenity.  It's certainly not something I'll be able to manufacture on my own.

God be with all of us.

D

Hi Rinna40 - I had my surgery Feb 6th (my port was inserted at that time), met with my onc Feb. 21st and started chemo the first week in March.  I'm on A/C x 4, Taxol x 8 and then daily rads for 8 weeks.  I'm also having a BRCA test done which may or may not alter my tx depending upon the results.  I'm coming up on tx #3 tomorrow and if you don't count the SEs, everything's going good.

BTW - I'm also on the discussion board at TNBC and it is a wonderful site designed specifically for TN.  It is a wealth of information, support and encouragement (just like this site), but it's focus is for us TN folks. 

I wish you well in your journey.

Raymon