Taxotere/Cytoxan starting July 2011

Hi all, please don't take antioxidants whilst on rads as it will reduce the effectiveness of the rads.

Day 5 post final chemo. At work today, and still a little sluggish. The taste in my mouth is worse this time than ever, but I know it will be mostly gone by the weekend.  

FrancesC: congrats on beginning rads! Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

Rossileo/Phillybird: we will walk through this rad thing together

I don't meet with my rads onc until 10/7, so I guess I will start 10/10 or 10/17. 

Peachy: I am so glad #1 has went so well for you. I felt the same after #1 - if they all go this good, I can breeze through this. Well, they all went that well - so, keep your chin up.

I wore myself out today on my first day back at work. I usually stick to an 8 hour day my first week after chemo, but today I had some crisis' that needed handling so I ended up working 10 hours. I am wore out!  

Hang in there my beautiful friends!

LadyBoss I am glad to hear all of your treatments went as well as the first one,  that really is encouraging!        Get a good night of rest after your long day,  10 hours is a very long day to get through.   

Peachy: go shave your hair off. Trust me, it is less stressful. And it puts you in control.

Snoopy: I am so sorry about your loss, but we are glad you are back with us. What about rads scared you? After chemo you should be able to handle anything.

My appointment with RO is on Tues 10/4. I am hoping to be able to do the internal radiation, which is twice a day for 5 days through a catheter. I will find out that day when I start.  

I googled the antioxidant thing. Reasearch is mixed on the subject. I will do whatever my RO recommends.

Probably going to make an appt. with my stylist for Saturday to have it shaved.        I was just reading another thread about how taxotere can cause permanent hairloss.   I hope this is not true.   

Rossileo - Yes, survivor hairs!  I have those, but fewer and fewer every day.  I know that I am not kidding anyone, but I was curious how my hairloss would progress, and also decided never to shave it.  There is so little, that they don't interfere with putting on the wig (just tuck them under the nylon wig liner), and they look cool poking out from under skull caps and bandanas.

Peachy - Regarding the permanent hairloss with Taxotere - it is incredibly rare, but you'll hear plenty of yelling on the internet about it from the unfortunate few.  I would not give that one thought at the moment.  What is the use of worrying about stuff like that?  Only concern yourself with what is happening right now and what is more certain to happen in the near future - like tomorrow.  Also - if you are like me, your hair will likely start regrowing in places on your head and your armpits by about the start of cycle 4.  That's a sure sign that you are not among the unfortunate few.

I tried the baking soda and salt rinse - mouth is so much less painful!  Thanks Peachy!

Regarding rads - they are supposed to be "a piece of cake" compared to chemo.  Yeah - we will get tired as the weeks of rads go on, but that will be nothing compared to the SEs from chemo.  Also - during rads, our hair will be continuing to grow back and that will plant a smile on my face.  So our spirits will continue to rise during rads and we'll all be in a generally better mood most of the time.  No wonky mouths, bad tastes, intestinal problems, back pains.  I hope the neuropathy settles down soon too.  My RO told me I will probably have some minor damage to the top of my right lung, but that I wouldn't even notice it if I were a marathon runner.

Snoopy - can you tell us briefly what the rads planning and tatooing session was like?  Mine is Oct. 11; my filming session will be Oct. 14; the real rads begin on Oct. 17.

Regarding antioxidants - it is probably fine to eat foods that have antioxidant properties (lots of fruits and veggies), and not a good idea to take antioxidant supplements (high concentrations of such substances).  But my plan is to do exactly what the RO and his nurse tell me to do.

Good night ladies!

OK, rad ladies - remember to drink lots of liquids. Stretches are an excellent idea. I have been doing them daily to help with the body aches. Whether or not our hair will grow back is the least of our worries. I a am post #4, I still have a few hairs left on my shaved head. I have been shaving my underarms all along, so I don't now if there has been any growth there. I am investing in some Ovation Therapy scalp treatment for hair growth. Also, I heard that the eyebrows will come out the first week or so of radiation. It is due to new eyebrow hair growth underneath, and should be very temporary. Have a good day, my friends!

Got a call from my radiologist's office. They were told my  dr. says chemo my  will be done in november,she wanted to schedule my first session in december. To my knowledge I was supposed to follow up with taxol for 12 weeks. If my treatment has changed I was never told. I will will be elated if dr. says i am done with adriamycin/cytoxin and thats it. Will see dr. next week.

Peachy - good idea to stop reading horror stories and stick with reading our discussion group!  We aim to encourage rather than frighten! The eyelid twitch thing is definitely a SE that I get.  Prolonged steroid use and bad skin go together - just think of those guys who abuse steroids to bulk up!  You'll be fine though; better to get a pimple or two than to have edema from the chemo infusion.

On the matter of SEs and the course of chemo in general - I now understand why people tell us that once you get through the first round the rest are easier.  It is merely because you will know what SEs you will get.  The mystery of your response to chemo is solved and the fear of the unknown is taken out of the equation.  But - what they don't tell you is that whichever SEs you get, come on sooner and with more intensity.  So for me, the eyelid twitching becomes really annoying and started while I was in the CHAIR last time - or maybe never subsided after number 3.  My puffy and sore mouth has lasted 9 days or so - it still bothers me and this is day 11.  Forturnately I now have my liter bottle of home-made special rinse (baking soda/salt water) - thanks Peachy!

TheaterCat - that will be great if you're done with chemo and can go onto rads soon!

Robo - I am sorry for your "loss" - I am sooooo bald too!  Even though I won't buzz it, it looks ridiculous and I wonder who that weird creature is in the mirror.  My husband says I am very cute though.    But - I have been wearing my wig a bit more to work and I really like it.  I am going to order two more wigs and have fun with them too.  I will stick with my skullcaps from Sparkling Earth for the gym and my jewelry making class, though.

Frances - so glad you are breezing through - as always - you inspire me!

LadyBoss - Thanks for the heads up about the brows.  I will be using my eyebrow pencil more then.  I found a nice cheap one at Target that has a bristle brush on the end cap, so after you pencil some on, you can brush the brow hairs that remain (if you have some) to blend it better.  Not sure what to do if they all fall out - Joan Crawford?  Might be a bit much. 

Have a great weekend everyone!!