Is there a July 2011 group?

Oh yes, I forgot. My eyelashes and eyebrows are almost gone too. Just in the last two weeks. Does anyone know how long it takes those to grow back?

Shinypop - Glad you had speedy gonzalez! My treatments were NEVER quick!

Rabbit - Uneventful is GOOD! As far as the nail pain goes, I've had it with Taxol, so I don't know if it will get better unfortunately. And my hair has been growing back slowly since finishing AC and starting Taxol. I definitely think Taxol doesn't affect the hair quite as much!

Snoopy - Yeah! 1/4 of radiation is done! As far as hot flashes go, I have read they will continue with Tamoxifen like you said, but they may not be as bad once our ovaries kick back into gear. I didn't get the Lupron shot. My onc didn't recommend it. Now I wonder if I made a mistake.

Misswim - What a week! I hope you feel better soon. As for the neuropathy, I have had that happen with my tea too. And yes, jello is the perfect description of how my legs have been feeling, though it's finally getting a bit better.

J-Bug - My last Taxol was as you described. It hit earlier and lasted longer. I'm so sorry that things aren't clear cut for you right now as to next steps. I hope you get things figured out. And you are definitely entitled to all of your MRIs and if there's any question as to what's on them, you should talk to your onc about it. As far as surgery goes, I was told they like to wait about 4 weeks post chemo to give your body enough time to heal (increase hemoglobin and white blood counts).

Yooper - I'm glad things are going relatively smoothly for you...you're almost done right? And I never lost all of my hair either. It's like one day it just stopped falling out and stayed the same. Then a couple weeks later, it started growing again, though slowly. Today I noticed a decent amount of growth. It would be nice to get to my birthday next month with enough hair to go "topless"!

Cathy - My hot flashes come regardless of temperature, but I agree it's probably much worse for you in triple digit weather. I've always gotten cold easily. Now I say bring on winter too!

As for eyelashes and eyebrows, I have lost a lot of my lashes, but not all and still have my eyebrows though they're thinner. I was told that they are the last to go, but the first to come back. I do believe they grow back quickly. I have a friend who had no eyebrows or lashes when she finished chemo in July and I saw her 2 months later and they are fully grown back now!

 AFM - The neuropathy is still pretty bad. Have any of you noticed whether warm/hot temps make it worse? Like when washing dishes, or taking a shower, etc. I went swimming on Wednesday (since I felt so unstead on my legs but wanted to try to get exercise) and my hands and feet felt somewhat better, though it was shortlived. I think I just need to stay off of dishwashing duty for a while!

Hi everyone - I have been mostly commenting on the July Taxotere/Cytoxan thread.  I read through your posts and note that some of you are really having a hard time.  You are all such troopers!

I will start my rads on Monday.  Kind of dreading it because I will need to be so regimented with my schedule and will have to get up so early in the morning for 6 weeks.  I am not a morning person and BC is making me grumpy!!

Anyway, I am missing a bunch of lashes on my right lid - a bit of a gap that is really only noticeable to me.  My brows are really getting thin and I will use pencil on them now and then.  Have very little of my original hair - maybe a couple hundred long strands - survivor strands, and there is wild fuzz (can't really tell the color) all over my scalp.  Scalp skin is a bit flaky, so I am moisturizing it and trying to get the flakes off.  Wonder if it is the recovering hair follicles pushing dead skin out of the way.  Hand neuropathy is mostly gone.  Had a major foot cramp in my left foot, though.  I am hungry all the time, and food has been tasting great now that I am 3 1/2 weeks out of my last chemo infusion.

Have a great weekend!

So, I got copies today of all the imaging that I have had done since diagnosis. I am still seeing measurements on my end of August MRI that says my tumor measures 3.5 cm. Then, the one at the end of September says 5 cm. The only thing that I can guess besides tumor growth is that it was measured two different ways.

I will check in with my oncologist next week when he is back from vacation. I am sure that he would have told me and changed the treatment plan if the tumor was growing. The original size was 8.6 cm, so at least it is not that!

I had those surprises in size in the beginning too. Mine started by being measured at 2 cm, then 5, and finally 8.6 cm.

But now, going through treatment and having an MRI every two treatments, I should have known if there was growth. My oncologist told me that if he saw growth, he would change the chemo treatment. I understood the size changes in the beginning. They were based on using different diagnostic methods. But this is all the same method every two weeks comparing all the old MRI's to the most current. My oncologist will have to explain this one.

Morning all

J-Bug, I completely understand your worries, get some answers Monday, I'm sure there is a missing puzzle piece to all of this. 

yooper,  I think my peach fuzz started on docetaxel, I had that one tx of it 3.5 weeks ago and noticed the fuzz coming in a week or two ago. I only had my first taxol on Wed. but there is definite new growth there. As for the eyelashes and eyebrows, they were massively thinning out already and thinning even more now. I'm sure they will be all gone in a few weeks.

Cathy_C, I know what you mean about the penciling of the eyebrows, I actually used a pencil for the first time a week or two ago, just to test it out, they were really starting to lighten and thin. I was so "foggy" from the chemo still that to be honest I don't know how I even attempted to pencil them in a bit LOL But they looked so-so, not too bad, could of been worse, and I would catch myself wiping or rubbing my eyes off and on, sure I rubbed all the penciling off! Good thing that was the night I was at the survivor dinner with 800 other survivors so they would of not blinked at it anyways!

kk11, I hope you and I are right, and the taxol doesn't affect the scalp growth as much. I would love to start getting my hair back soon especially since the tx change and I won't be done til Dec 7th now, as opposed to Nov 23rd. I don't miss not shaving my legs, under my arms and my bikini line!! Those hairs can stay gone for all I care LOL

I definitely notice the hot water affects the pain in my toes and fingers a lot! Washing dishes is not good during these tx, my hands are so dry, peeling like crazy, shedding layers of skin. And they say gloves are not good either...so get someone else to do dishes for a while if you can! When I took a warm jacuzzi bath (my mom has the best tub!) a few days after my docetaxel tx, I had to cool it off a bit, my toenails and fingernails were throbbing from the heat, very uncomfortable.

dexxy, it's so awesome to see you are getting back to normal a bit, great news, I am soooo happy for you!

PhillyBird, I have been using tar shampoo a few days a week on my scalp, I was getting a few tiny little bumps, itchy spots...and it seems to help, the stuff stinks but it works. I also use nivea body oil on my scalp or lotion once in a while. Since doing those things my scalp is in great shape, almost never itchy, no flakes.

lulujune17, I remember during my FECs I had sore spots all over as well.  I still get spots on my neck, head, and upper arms that are so tender to touch, like they are bruised, but they aren't. 

misswim, how are you feeling today?

I have some aches and pains today, day 4 of my first taxol, nothing terrible and certainly not as bad as the docetaxel. No upper GI issues, knock on wood!!!!!!! I hope everyone has a SE free or close to it! weekend

xoxoxoxo 

J-Bug- Strikes me that if the chemo isn't working, better out than in, right? Perhaps they might make a reccomendation for additional chemo based on what they find in the mastectomy. I am sorry it has thrown of your plan- I am sure mentally that can be really upsetting. Such a long journey. I finish up chemo next Weds, then get a two week break, then tamox and lupron until I have an ooph in February. Everybody keepos telling me to be "happy it will be over". Newsflash, it  is not over! It's never over....... I hope whatever happens, you are ok. Let us know what happens.

I meant no ill will by that newsflash statement....... just meant that everyone around me thinks that once chemo is over, life will be normal, that this road is not one we will always be on, even if we move forward and do well (which we will), we will always live with our breast cancer and it will always be a part of who we are, and I wish people understood that.

I wish you the very best of luck

misswim: I was not taking any offense at all by your statement!

I am just saying I could have used that newsflash with my being so set on my treatment plan, thinking that it was such a straight path to getting this cancer thing over with. You are absolutely right! It is never just "done", maybe cancer-free if we are one of the lucky ones, but not just done. 

I enjoy hearing from you girls who are already done with chemo. I find it very encouraging! I need the reminders of what I have to look forward to. It keeps me plugging along.

My husband and I watched "Five" on Lifetime tonight, and we were both in tears. While I don't think it was a particularly well done or realistic, there was a saying in the last scence that stuck with me, and I think is how we all must live going forward. It was :

Learn from yesterday;

Live for today;

Hope for tomorrow.

I thought it was a perfect metaphor for our journey.

missswim - I agree with everyone feeling like once chemo was over that everything would go back to normal.  Guess what? I'll never be the same person, none of us will.  I sometimes want to scream it out loud.  my husband, who i love, just thinks I should be fine now.  I've been fine all through this and been very strong.  But hey it would be nice to not have to be sometimes you know?  I find myself really thinking about the future and how I want to continue, I feel I'm at a crossroad in life and need to choose the right direction FOR ME.  Those of you who have kids have it so much harder, but then you also have people in your life who will be there in the end.  I'm thinking of you all and hope this was a great weekend

misswim, I grabbed your saying, love it and it's so true for our journey!

Hi to all...gotta catchup on work, love you ladies!!!  

Dexxy---I agree with you. Where did I hear someone say it's a "new normal"? Describes it pretty well.Watched "Five" . It was OK,made me cry. I identified with Rosario Dawson's character as she walked in to have her lumpectomy. It was an overwhelming feeling of "Welcome to the land of the Sick". Glad to have all you ladies with me throughout all of this. I love being able to share our fears, hopes, symptoms and just plain griping. I have to report that four weeks out of chemo I'm having about 5 good days and then 1 day of lying on the couch. Still have sore leg muscles and am trying,trying to get some exercise but it's tough. No sign of real hair although I do have a halo or peach fuzz on my head and one of my annoying chin hairs is back. Have a good week.

Good morning, amazing women! I've thought of all of you so much, even though I have not been posting. I'm about 5.5 weeks PFC and am still struggling with my energy level. Had hoped I could report more positively! I think it is sleep issues, more than anything else. Hot flashes, possibly drug reactions and a little anxiety thrown in do not make for a good night's sleep!

I started taking Tamoxifen a few weeks ago and have not noticed any particular side effects from that. I already had hot flashes and have not seen much change there. I started taking Effexor to try to help the flashes but don't know yet if that will work. I think it takes a while.

I think initiallly, I tried to do too much too soon after chemo, so have backed off and am still being very protective of my time and energy. I have my exchange surgery scheduled for the 28th, so am looking forward to getting that done. After that, I should really feel like I am able to recover without any other setbacks on the schedule.

J-bug - I really hope you get some answers to your questions about the MRIs. I know it must be incredibly frustrating to contemplate a change in treatment plan at this point. I hope they are able to continue as planned.

Missswim - hope you are feeling better.

rabbit and kk11 - hope the neuropathy and nail pain gets better soon! I've only had a bit of the nail soreness and that is mostly gone, although my nails are discolored.

Oh - as far as hair goes, I've noticed some longer grey hairs that have probably been growing all along. Apparently, chemo did not kill my greys ;-). And now there is peach fuzz starting. Not what I expected - it will be interesting to see how this regrowth happens!

Wishing all of you the best this week!