March 2010 Chemo Start

LOL Lisa, no worries!

Stacey I just had genetic counseling, signed the consent forms, and had a vial of blood drawn yesterday for the BRCA 1 & 2 gene mutation test.  I didn't really want to take it, as I have no children and had a BMX so didn't need it for a treatment decision, but it's a compromise with my oncologist. 

He wants me to have my ovaries and fallopian tubes out because I have estrogen receptor positive BC, and I don't want them out.  (He said well, you ARE 51, and I said yeah I'm ONLY 51!)  So I agreed to have the gene mutation test done (insurance will pay 100%) and will MAYBE consider having more surgery if the gene test shows the mutation.  Will have the results in two-three weeks.

More waiting and more stupidbreastcancer anxiety!  {{hugs}}

Ana --Toni---

I'm sending some prayers for strength and peace your way. Toni - I have heard of infections lingering "under the radar" for awhile.  Hopefully it is nothing but it sounds like even if it is something you have certainly caught it before it becomes a full blown problem. Ana - Glad you have a super vigilant Onc but it's hard on the nerves!! Praying you will have peace this weekend and be strong for your appt on Monday.  Keep us posted! 

(((HUGS)))

Charley

Stacey: I was advised to have the BRCA1/2 tests since I had such an aggressive form at a young age.  Received counseling before and decided even though I have no children, it might be helpful for my sisters to have this information.  My results were negative, and I am glad I did the testing, especially as I have ovarian cancer in my family history as well as breast cancer.  It has left me wondering why I got breast cancer - without the genes we know to test for - but I am still glad I eliminated that possibility.

You will make the right choice for yourself, I am sure!

Hi ladies!!! I have not posted in a while.as my thumbs have not been working and I am a cashier. So by the time i get off work i am in pain. I was put on arimidex in june, and both of my thumbs got  trigger finger and pain shooting up into the fatty part above it. I cannot even push the knob on my screen door, and have had to go to elastic waist pants. Last week the changed me to tamox with the hopes of my thumbs getting better. If not its off to the surgeon again. I am hunting and pecking now. good thing its not hand writing. soes any one else have this side effect?

Hello all and Happy Thanksgiving!

Barb, I have not had that side effect.  I do have stiff joints and achey legs on tamox although my onc informed me Tues that it might be a lingering SE from taxotere instead of the tamox. 

Lisa - I take effexor and still have hot flashes but only a few a day now. Some days are worse than others ... I don't really know why.  I haven't been able to relate it to food, drink, weather, stress ... Hope it helps!

Now I'm off to finish up my sweet potato casserole --- yummy!

Hugs, Charley

Toni, good luck Tuesday!  Hope everything goes smoothly and you get (B9) results fast so you guys can figure out what the heck is going on!

Ana, been thinking of you, how did it go last Monday? 

barb, hope your hands get to feeling better off the AI.  I take tamox and am a bit creaky first thing in the morning, or if I've been sitting a while, but I choose to chalk that up to middle age. :-)

Sending good wishes and {{hugs}} to all!

good luck today Toni!  {{hugs}}

Thank you so much Lisa and Badger. This biopsy was not nearly as painful as the one a year ago. For some reason they made an incision for the core needle last year, new place today and just the needle. Now I a bit of a ball of anxiety, just breathing, two days to find out if the cancer has recurred. On the good side, all the techs & docs working on me said it looked like scar tissue, they just wanted to be sure. Something that wouldn't have worried me much at all before the last year happened. But last year, I didn't know that my body had betrayed me.

Anyway, I'll post as soon as I have news, and thank you wonderful women again for your good wishes. I can actually feel them over here!

hugs, Toni

ps badger how in the world do you rack up 10,440 posts??

Hello All,

Finally good caught up with work after being off for the holiday and now back to the boards. 

ChelseaB, badger and yeshua4me - thanks for the replies - although I am still sweating it out.  I meet with my surgeon (1yr follow-up) Tuesday and I think that also has me wigging out.  It seems as though I will never shake this feeling and I thought I had a good handle on it but lately I seem to be falling apart - Anyone else? 

As always I am grateful for this board and the friendships - Thanks Ladies!!!

Stacey

Toni, I am so happy for you.... and for me too - I've been clenching my muscles too(for you (and ana))

relaxing currently with too much plonk and beer, Christmas cheer has started.......it's the first Friday  night of December here, and the celebrations have started. I'm ready to have a really fun Christmas season after this year. If you feel like a really ridiculous hot Christmas, come on down and share it with us.

Lisa

xxx

Toni;  That is FANTASTIC news!!!

I've been absent from the website for some time.  I just got caught up with rads and celebrating the end of it.  I finished rads the day before Thanksgiving.  I made chocolate covered pretzels for everyone of the rad techs, nurses, administrative staff, doctors etc and it felt wonderful to hand them a bit of my appreciation for their kindness and strength that they gave me.  I gave one of my techs an autographed photo of Sidney Crosby (Captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins).  She cried her heart out.  I was so blessed to have the team of girls that I had.  I was surprised at how it was leaving them. 

So my daughter who came to the final appointment with me, danced with one of my rad techs in the radiation room and then we screamed as we left and scared everyone in the waiting room.

I guess we are all nearing the 1 year anniversary of our diagnosis at this point.  As I look back, I don't think I could have gotten through all of this without these boards to read and write on. 

On another note, I removed my wig on November 4th (I may have posted this already).  Can I still use Chemo brain as an excuse??!!  Anyhow, I went to a fundraiser for Leukemia and Lymphoma and decided I had had enough of "Wanda" my wig.  Anyhow, I feel totally liberated.  Have a great weekend.

Fondly, Heather

Toni - Awesome news! So glad to hear it.

Strange that it has been almost a year since my diagnosis on 12/24.  It seems so long ago but sort of just like yesterday. I got my tattoos yesterday.  Basically the last thing in this long process ... or is it ever really over?  <sigh>  I can't even really say I feel happy, sad, relieved, upset ... not really anything ... just tired. But for the most part, I am fine.

Charley

ewww is right, Lisa, ROFLMAO!

Charley, if you just got tattoos does that mean you're starting rads?  

Snow here means walks are considerably shorter and slower now but I'm still going.  May have to look into a gym membership as there's no room in our house for a treadmill.

We'll be spending Christmas in Florida with my mom who is thrilled to have company.  She's invited about 20 of her friends for Christmas dinner - DH will cook - and it will be a nice break.  Not looking forward to the airport boogie though. If selected for the enhanced screening, I will opt out of the scanner box and let a TSA agent pat me down... sure doesn't make me want to fly anymore!

Thanks and Congratulations, that's a milestone! 

Hello everyone,

I've been off the thread for awhile. I've been focusing on work and getting back to normal.  I am sick to death of the "new normal" and have been desperately reaching for the old normal.  I need to give up that fight and make peace with my lot. I'm doing pretty well. Energy levels are back up.  I'm on Anastrozole (A-generic) for 2 and half months now with minimal side effects - I do have some major pain in my elbow, but I'm starting to think this can't be an SE from the drug - it is too damn painful. So I need to go to an ortho to have it checked out. If it is an SE, it's going to be a long 5 years!

My neuropathy is just about gone. I had acupuncture for a few months and think it helped a lot. My hair is taking it's sweet time coming back.  I'm still in the chicken fuzz phase, anxiously awaiting the pixie phase. 

Even though I feel like I've come such a long way from the end of chemo and rads (finished in September), I somehow feel forever changed.  I feel more vulnerable in the world. Last week when I put up the Christmas tree, I was putting the angel on top and I was standing on the piano bench reaching over to the tree I felt scared. I felt like I could fall and hurt myself and then I felt sad. I have put that angel on the tree for 25 years without a second thought. I feel like the core of who I am has changed. I've never been truly brave, but I've never been truly scared either. Hmmmmmmm.  

On a less introspective note - I'm taking the morning off. It is 10:00 am and I am still in my jammies, still in bed, on a MONDAY morning!! The one change I've made in my life is that I have decided to only work 40 hours a week. I have a few late nights this week, so I decided to take some time this morning for myself.  And what better way to spend it than catching up with you all.

All the best - Marilyn