January 2012 chemo

Nancy~#6 was hard, since it was such a suprise when the pain happened, and my husband felt so helpless.  I brought a Chemo buddy for #7 and gave him the week off (He's installing a new bathroom in my Dad's house down in Brick NJ) he's ready for this week and insists on taking me this Thursday.  If figure I'll take the pain medication before Pre meds so I'm hopefully ready/numb to some of the pain.  I wish I could fall alseep in the chair, but that seemed to stop for me on the 4th Taxol.

Kitchen~The Head Nurse thought that the original PIC nurse choose small a vein and offered to perform the remaining 5 PIC's finding a larger veins, since I now have this problem.  My SE happens to a few people.  Glad yours infusion went well, hoping they all do for you. The Head Nurse said that they should be less painful, but the areas she has in mind, will not allow my arm to move for hours.

Here's to a swimmingly good session for me too!

barb - I had all 12 weekly infusions through IV (which I kinda hate)  but I was really not wanting a port!  Some weeks it was a challenge (one hurt like hell).  The best seemed to be in the crook of my arm but you do need to keep your arm pretty stil(they would give me a pillow for it).  I noticed the IV was a lot easier if I drank a TON of fluids that day.

Diane~Thanx, that is where the head nurse wants to go this week and I had done the crook of the right arm during the AC and one in the early Taxol...very painful too move and I needed that pillow too...but never the Ice fire wripping through my vein up my arm.  It is better with the 100 of the Saline, as the 200 Saline was a bit too much, gonna have to mix it up the Saline amounts.  Wish they could numb the vein a little before sending in the Taxol.  I am drinking a lot of water, fluff up those veins, the carppy part is that I can't move that arm till the session is done...no bathroom trips.  Oh and the MRI nurse who put in the contrast, screwed up the right crook for weeks, the Chemo nurses were pissed pretty pissed off, said they used too big of a needle.

Barb

Barb - yes, I am having tingling/numbness in my fingers and toes. The last two days I've had the finger pain in my left hand too.   What scares me is that my sister's neuropathy has never completely gone away - she has it permanently.  Yea on the 3 new kitties !   I have one Siamese foster kitten looking for a home (my avitar), and 2 new long hair black kittens that lost their mom on the road.  They are only about 14 days old.

 Char - I'm the opposite.  I don't feel like eating anything on the taxol and am nauseous a lot, in addition to all the other SE's I'm having.  I have 3 different anti-nauseau meds.   I am getting Neulasta shots both with A/C and taxol, but taking Claritin, so I know the bone pain/aching is from the taxol because I didn't get this with the A/C.   I am not having peeling skin on my feet though.   I'm glad that yours isn't bleeding and hope it stops soon.

Thanks Jan

as for every one just calmimg peacefull thoughts and hugs and mwah

Love

Bela

Might not be here for few days after wednesday 

Having had debilitating bone/muscle/joint pain with DD Taxol tx 1 and 2, I thought of just stopping tx early. I just didnt think my body could take any more of this stuff. Because of all the SE my ONC wanted to switch me to weekly Taxol (no mention of Abraxane), which I declined. No way I'll extend this!!! -I cant stand to look at my bold head and chemo-acne, lash-and almost browless face in the mirror any longer, therefore I decided to toughen it out, no matter what.- Had dd Taxol tx3 last Wednesday and so far the SE have been very tolerable. I am very happy about that, of course, but i dont understand it... How SE are so unpredictable from tx to tx?!- In any case, just one more tx to go now - cant wait!!!



I am IN AWE of all of you ladies working through this!!!! I don't know how you do it!!!

SleeplessInSeattle- Hang in there. You're almost done. I have one more Taxol left, too - the day after yours! My 1st was rough, 2nd was not as bad, and 3rd has been good....no real SEs to speak of - other than the bottoms of my feet peeling!

I had to take my 15 y/o kitty to vet today. He's not doing well - he's in renal failure, dehydrated, and barely eating. I had to learn how to give him IV fluids. It was bizarre, since I get hooked up to an IV every other week. I don't think poor Milo is going to make it much longer. (He's my avatar.)

KristinFro - congratulations on finishing Taxol!     LOOK HOW FAR YOU HAVE COME!!

You can do the rest, one day at a time!!! 

Char - giving fluids is easy once you do it a few times and it will really make Milo feel better and extend his life.  Unlike IV, it doesn't go into a vein - you just poke the needle under the skin and most tolerate it very well.   Also, you should look at feeding a low-phosorous food which will help the kidneys.  I was giving Mini fluids 1-2 times per day for over a year up until the day she passed.   The vet said she would have been dead a long time ago without my dialy nursing.   I also gave her potassium supplement each day because it is lost in urine, especially when they pee alot.   You should look at the website www.felinecrf.org.   It has tons of info from giving fluids, to recognizing crf symptoms and all the different treatments of crf.    Good luck with Milo.   He is a handsome boy - I love B&W kitties.  My sweet Mini was B&W too.

Just about like clockwork, the pain and exhaustion started again today around 5:00 pm.  Tried desperately to leave the office early so I could be home before it hit, but no such luck.  Made it home okay, long enough to take a couple of Vicodin and hop into bed.  Not looking forward to the next couple of days, but at least now I know what's coming and can plan for it, so it's not so scary.  Three Taxols down, only three more to go!  Best part is I finished my final papers for the semester, so I don't have any homework to worry about for at least another three weeks, so I can focus on just trying to feel better for now.

Today, two students stopped by my desk and shared their BC survival stories, and it was so inspiring.  Every time I meet another woman (I have yet to meet, at least in person, a man with BC) I feel empowered and alive.  Their joy is so infectious and delightful, and it helps me feel so not alone, even when I'm having an awful day.  Both went through AC and Taxotere (neither could tolerate Taxol).  They both said that they experienced alot of pain and that no one told them ahead of time it would happen (sounds so familiar!)  

So - because apparently I'm not crazy enough as it is, I have signed up to run (walk, probably) the Komen race on May 20 - 4 days before my final Taxol.  I am not necessarily a fan of SGK but my DH had planned this - along with a couple of his running friends - long before the whole PP incident.  So, we have a team, and I decided the other day that perhaps I need to run/walk as my reward for facing my final Taxol!  Wish me luck - I may crawl across the finish line, but I'm going to do everything I can to make it!!

krostinfro, glad you are done,

nanacy hope u feel better

hugs to all

bela

surgery tomoorow so wont be back for few days

good luck to all

Bela 

Hello All:

Cat Whisperer: yes my feet have been peeling....huge...crazy..never seems to end. My feet look like they have been brought up from the depths of the Atlantic.

NCBeachGal: Congrats on FINISHING Taxol.

Tomorrow is my last DD Abraxane (Taxol) and because I am TNBC, thats it. Now its back to a life that was put on hold October 2011. After 1pm tomorrow, when that needle comes out of my arm, I have decided I am no longer a breast cancer patient. I have given this disease my breasts, six+ months of my life, my tears and fears. But I am 24 hours away from the end of treatment. Its the beginning of a new life.

 Thank you all for your support.

Denjak - what a wonderful and postive attitude to have!!!  Stay strong and healthy and enjoy the beautiful summer-like weather.

Denjak and ncbeachgal (and anyone I may have missed): congrats on finishing chemo! Honestly, we should get marathoners' medals for making it through.



Nancy - I hope your discomfort is short lived this round.



Tomorrow is my penultimate treatment. Two weeks later I'll get my last dd Taxol and hopefully dance out the door. I never dance, so that shows how ecstatic I'll be to finish. I asked my surgeon if I could postpone my surgery from four weeks to six weeks post chemo. In early June I have a number of book related events scheduled that I'd really like to make. Having chemo when your book is published takes some if the fun out of the event, so I want to do what I can.



Just found out my company (I'm a real estate agent) is giving me something called the Spirit Award. Apparently all I had to do to win it was get diagnosed with cancer:)



Annie

Congrats to all finishing up. I'm soooooo jealous.... I've still got another 7 weeks of Taxol/Herceptin...

Just read my emails and got one from my gynae to let me know that my ca125 marker test has come back normal. This means that the cyst on my right ovary is not likely to be cancerous. Still have to go back in 2 months for a follow-up ultrasound to keep an eye on it - but good news for now!!!!!!!!  My gynae wants to whip out those pesky ovaries but I still have a few months to make that decision.

Jenn