Anyone from Mississauga???

Hi, I had Taxotere/Cytoxan (TC) regimen and Taxotere was my main drug.  I had no problems with it...I iced my finget and toe nails and none of them discoloured or fell out and all of my hair grew back as thick as before, except now it's curly.  I gained about eight pounds but lost it pretty much right after.  I didn't experience a lot of water retention but do think part of my weight gain was related to water.  I took the Neulasta shot after each round and took Claritin to help eliminate bone pain. It was no picnic but it was definately doable. Be sure to take the steroids as prescribed.

Hi, haven't heard from anyone lately...how are you all doing? Just wanted to check in....

Rachel, it was good to meet you in person at the Run for the Cure on Sunday and congratulations on your team award.  

The following link from Mississauga News was sent to me earlier today about the run.  My family and my co-workers (and my little dog) participated and we all have a great time.

http://www.mississauga.com/news/article/882262--over-600-000-raised-for-cancer-research

Hi, how's everyone doing these days?

I will call myself Mississauga even though I live in Georgetown. I'll be meeting Dr Myers at Credit Valley on Friday.

I have been nearly two months working on just surgery--a lumpectomy on Dec 6, 2010, a re-lumpectomy on Dec 23, 2010, and finally a radical mastectomy on Jan 19, 2010. FINALLY, we have clean margins and the surgeon will let me go. 

My husband and I have been reading, reading, reading, and the volume of information is overwhelming. I just want to get an informed opinion of what are the best next steps to take. I've already accepted that it probably includes chemo. I will have lots of questions on Fri.

Hi pasmithx2 and sheuber - welcome to the Mississauga thread!

Pasmith - which Dr. Myers did you see?  The son, Jeffrey Myers, is my oncologist.  He's great!

Just had to stop in and say hi.  Just hearing Mississauga brought back memories.  Some of the best parts of my life were spent in Muskoka.

Hi mk999----Once you get all the reports--things will make much more sense--like everything, waiting is the worst. I had my chemo at Trillium and my radiation at CVH---everyone at both hospitals was amazing and they really help you get through this whole journey. This site was so helpful in answering questions and meeting others with similar experience. Take it one day at a time and there are a lot of resources out there to help you and get you meeting others in similar situations (Wellspring in Oakville is amazing). Take care--Rachel

Hi Sugar---I am doing well--finished rads almost two weeks ago--have a little bit of peeling but other than that--rads were pretty easy compared to chemo. I started back at the gym to try and lose the weight I gained through the last year. Not sure when I will be back at work..in a couple of months perhaps? Hope everything is good with you. I am suitably jealous about your hair--my hair has grown in (now 13 weeks PFC) but still feel a little uncomfortable going "topless". I'm not wearing a wig at all--haven't for months---but wearing scarves or hats.

Hi Kyroheal - I'm sorry to hear about your diagnosis and am sending you a virtual hug. I'm also from Mississauga and was diagnosed last year at age 31. I had my surgery and chemo at St. Joes (on the Queensway) and my radiation at PM.

My cancer had spread to 1 lymph node and they knew it had spred before I had surgery. This is because the lymph node was swollen and you could see/feel it (I had it biopsied the same time as the lump in my breast). Stay strong through out your treatments - it's a rough road but you can do it!  If there's any questions you have, I'd be happy to help. Good luck on Monday and I`ll be thinking about you. 

I'm doing much better - thanks for asking Sugar77!  I'm all done chemo and radiation and working my way through the year of herceptin (which is a breeze). I'm returning to work next month and am really looking forward to it.

I'm attending a workshop through Wellsprings called "Breast Cancer & Healthy Eating".  Have any of you attended one of their workshops before? 

Hi Ladies,

 Thank you all for your words of encouragement, they have helped more that you know. Yes Dr. Moffatt is great, just had my surgery on Monday and I feel great. Waiting is the tough part for me as I am back at school and trying to concentrate as much as I can. I have been trying to eat as healthy as possible in the meantime in terms of antioxidants or foods that slow/reverse progression (does that actually help?). It is about 3 weeks before I hear anything, but I heard I will most likely be offered chemo as I am young and can handle it. I'm just worried about not being able to have children later because I heard that it can effect fertility - is this true?

On another note, all you ladies seem to be doing great and it gives me alot of hope that I can one day feel the same and help others through my experiences as you have with mine. I'm not sure about any religious statuses here but I found alot of comfort by turning to God and found a really nice verse that reminds me of you ladies with your comforting words:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-5

Goodluck with everything

Cate2011--I am in Mississauga. Had my chemo at Trillium and radiation at CVH. I was stage 2--as the cancer had got one lymph node...lucky me! I (by recommendation of Sugar!!) went to Wellspring (it is in Oakville). I joined their BC support group--met lots of wonderful people who I still talk to. They have a bunch of other programs too--I have used them a lot since my diagnosis. Would be a great place to try. I met Sugar on this thread and she was a great help for when I was first diagnosed (and your mind is racing). Please feel free to ask me anything--I can try to answer--or at least give you my experience. The one thing is that BC experience is so different for everyone. Take care, Rachel

Hi Cate - sorry I haven't posted sooner...I didn't realize this thread had any updates recently. I would highly recommend Wellspring to connect with other breast cancer ladies.  There is another resource called Willow.  I didn't use them but I've heard good things about it.  I think you could find by "Googling"  Willow Breast Cancer support.  There's another really good organizationg that helped me and it's called Rethink Breast Cancer. Rethink supports young women in their 20s, 30s and early to mid-forties. Please feel free to send me a PM any time and I can provide further informaiton.

Take care, Sherri