January 2012 chemo
Comments
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Yipeeee! The last of us stragglers are finally finishing up.
Nancy: Good luck on Thursday!
If I had enough strength to do a happy dance on Wednesday I would. But alas I always feel like crap after chemo.
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Such a great name - and since we all started in January very correct. It was a crappy Christmas "looking forward" to chemo. Happy Crappy Christmas!
Saw RO today - planning CT and tatoos on the 5th of June then start rads on 18th June and last day will be 25th July. 28 days breast and axilla including concurrent boost, but no supra-clavicular rads. Happy Crappy Christmas in July!
You know the story on supra-clavicular rads? Stats say only 1% reduction in recurrance by adding that area so cost/benefit ratio is "off" to start with. Then hubby asked what would be the treatment for local recurrance in that area if not treated previously - and it would be rads (chemo if treated previously). So why do them up front? Doesn't make sense... Another case of "but it's what we do".
Jenn -
PS - don't all desert me! I don't finish till the following Friday (1 June). Am I the last?
Jenn -
I don't finish until June 14th. Because I skipped 3 weeks along the way for various reasons. Grrrrr. This week Thurday is #9 of 12 Taxol/Her. Yesterday I was really dragging. Not sure if I really felt more tired or just didn't have any adrenaline because I didn't have anything pressing that needed to be done. I have several little tasks that need attention around the house and garden but none of them are urgent so when I'm feeling punky I find it easy to just let them go and rest or read instead.
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Hi Kitchenella. It seems endless doesn't it? It was after my 9 of 12 the other week that I started having these breathlessness, racing heartbeat, fatigue problems. I hope that your fatigued moment is temporary :-)
Jenn -
Thanks, Momof2 - it's the thought that counts! And I completely understand; I'm lucky to be able to get out of bed most days.
Indeed - a Happy Crappy Christmas it was!
Thank you for explaining the supra-clavical rads, Jennifer - you're such a wealth of medical information!! I'm impressed they're starting so quickly after your final chemo. I have my meeting next Tuesday and have no idea what I'm in for. We met briefly waaaaaay back when I thought I'd only be doing 4xTC so I don't remember half of what they said, even with the notes DH took.
I have one really bad week after each Taxol, but usually the few days before the next treatment I start to feel human again. I actually did finish the Komen 5k walk this last Sunday (Day 11) and carried you all with me (wrote "Jan 2012 BCO" on the back of my shirt since I couldn't get everyone's name on it!). It was hard; 90+ here, and very humid. I started to have a mild asthma attack the last few blocks, but was able to make it over the finish line with my husband, his daughters, their DHs and our friend - and all of you! - right there with me! It was, by far, the hardest walk I've ever done, but I kept telling myself, "If I can finish chemo, I can certainly finish this!!" So thank you all for being with me - we did it together!!
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This is not relevant to my in Israel but it might be something for others. Anyone aware of this?
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Nancy-good job finishing the Komen. There's another very important finish line coming up. Good luck with that.
Jenn and Kitchen-we will all be here! I check in often to smile when I see our group finishing chemo! -
Jenn -- you're not the last. I have my 4th AC on June 4th -- then, of course, Herceptin starting back up a the end of July for the next 9 months after that.
Nancy -- Congrats on finishing the race! Your strength and determination (especially in that kind of heat!) is very inspiring.
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Ahhh yes Kristen.Us Herceptin girls will all still be here till next year - how could I forget!
Is everyone on FB already hooked up there if they want to be? I'm already friends with Nancy, Dorrie, Rhonda etc. Was thinking of creating a private group there for everyone. I know other BCO month groups have done that to keep up after tx finishes and if you don't necessarily keep coming back here...
Jenn -
Ok - I had nothing better to do at 5am so I went ahead and created a private Facebook group called Happy Crappy Xmas - Chemo January 2012. I've added everyone that I'm already FB friends with and have made them all admin so you can ask any one of them/us to add you to the group.
I've made it a completely private group for now so don't think it's searchable - so for now you'll have to be friends with someone and ask to be added. I could change it so it's searchable - but then anyone would be able to see the member list (and ask to join) but the posts would always be private. What do you all prefer?
My FB name is Jennifer.Thompson1 if you want to find me (Sydney, Australia - dark short hair in my photo). If you are asking to join the group just put BCO as the message in the friend request :-)
Jenn -
Jenn, thanks for doing this. I will contact you on FB!
HERCEPTIN GIRLS - I got refused for Herceptin today. Last heart test showed damage. Cardiologist and MO think it is temporary. Repeat ECHO in 28 days see MO in 31 days. Hope it is temporary!
All I could think of was THANK GOD no drugs today!
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Sorry to hear that Denise :-( Did they tell you what your drop was? I had a heart scan on Monday that showed only a 3% drop in my LVEF. Still no explanation for the ongoing racing heart beat and raised diastolic pressure though.
Silly me came home and looked up the potential cardiac side-effects of Herceptin and found it isn't just lowered LVEF - there's a bunch of other thongs that can go wrong, including getting something called diastolic dysfunction. My docs don't seem concerned though so I decided not to research further right now... ;-)
Jenn -
BROOKE/Momof2inME - CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR FINAL TAXOL!!! WOO HOO, HAPPY DANCE FOR YOU!!
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Yes Brooke! You are done!
Jenn -
Thank you, thank you, thank you ladies!!! You guys are always here for the cheers and jeers. I am headachy and nauseous but I am just so darn happy to be done. I received the triple dose herceptin so I think that's why the new se headache. But I can pop a few tylenol and happy dance with those of you that have also finished.
My treatment center had lobster rolls (we are in Maine
) and cake for me and my dad (chemo buddy). The nurses all came in with presents and told us this was a celabratory day. They were all lined up so I asked if they were going to sing to me like it was my birthday in a restaurant. They declined. 
They gave me a t-shirt, a giant chocolate dipped fortune cookie, and a journal. My chemo nurse who I am close to, came back later with a Pandora "journery" charm from her since she noticed I had a bracelet that I would wear to chemo each week. That's when I lost it and stated crying. Also, a surprise visit from my husband who usually has to be at work with flowers and chocolate. My garage door was decorated with 3 congratualtions signs and balloons by my neighbor for when I came home. And the wonderful BC survivor volunteer who comes in every week to see me did an hour of reiki instead of the usual half hour. I felt so pampered. Overall it has been a wonderful day. Except for the chemo part anyway.I hope all you wonderful ladies that have finished are getting stronger everyday and for those of you about to finish I wish send you good healing energy!!
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Thanx you for the Congrats and good wishes.....and Congratulations to all the Girls that are done and will be done soon, if I can do it so can you!!
Jenn ~ Thanx for the FB Crappy Xmas, been busy at work and only saw it today...FB is the only place I can squeeze a moment for lately.
My final day of Taxol, I received an 8x10 piece of paper and a hug from my Doc., before, the last Taxol..that's it. I felt so horrible from the last Taxol that I really didn't care at the time. I checked almost everything on their "How are you feeling/side effect etc..." 2 sided questionnaire sheet (I fill this out every time I see the Doc." and received "ZILCH" in answers....I had received great care during the first 3 AC's and from there it went down hill. My husband noticed it too..but that was when the "Rare-Special" side effects hit. I did receive a prescription for the Tamoxifen, that I should start to take in about 4 weeks and I go back there in 6 weeks to see if my Side effects have subsided. No Radiation is needed and no reconstruction surgery. My hair is growing back, my nails threaten to fall off everyday..look like Old Nail Tips, that I need wrapping. My pulse is about 102.
I asked about my high pulse and heart...the answer I got was classic.."by all means, if you think there is something wrong with your heart, you should have it looked at." She didn't even listen to it! Maybe I'm just having a bad day...I feel bad for my regular Doctor, she's not going to know what to do with me next Tuesday.
I really am doing good, working as much and as physically active as I am and I am definitely over doing it.. Going away for the weekend, to relax in Reading PA. Have a nice holiday weekend if I don't get back here till after
Barb -
Brooke - Congratulations!! It sounds like you had a loving, healing end to your chemo journey - what a blessing! I hope you feel better quickly, and can enjoy that chocolate-covered fortune cookie! :-)
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I did receive an Edable Fruit Arrangement (Which we ate immedietly..never made the fridge) from a good friend and lots of flowers and Baloons from friends and customers. All is good ... just tired and still hurt, guess it will fell like I finished, when the pain is gone and I get a good night sleep...:)
Barb
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Oh Barb, it does sound like your MO dropped the ball... Not even listening to your heart!
I have developed a racing heartbeat (tacycardia) too and last week the MO took my pulse twice manually, then had the nurse drag in the obs trolley and do bp, pulse, oxygen sats. THEN they rolled in the ECG machine and hooked me up. THEN she sent me for a MUGA test 2 weeks early (I'm supposed to have them every 12 weeks while on Herceptin).
The ECG was fine. The MUGA was fine. So I think they are just going to keep an eye on me for these last couple of weeks of chemo.
Hope your PCP is able to check everything for you :-)
Jenn -
I go for Taxol/her #9 today. The end is in sight. I doubt I'll get a party. I havn't seen anyone else getting one in the oncology infusion center here. I won't even care I just want to be finished.
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Peggy - You are almost done! It seems so long ago when you found that your tx had to be postponed. This has been quite a journey! I didn't get a party either. However, I did get big hugs and well wishes from the nurses on duty that day(twice from MO's NP). The radiation center gives a t-shirt and has a person ring a large bell in the waiting room when finished treatment. Everyone claps and congratulates the patient. Last night an older gentleman finished treatment and gave a little speech about courage and fighting cancer to the strangers in the room after he rang the bell. He has been battling cancer for 25 years and he encouraged everyone to fight as hard as they are able. It was very emotional. But then again, everything seems very emotional to me these days. I can bring on the tears at the drop of a hat!
I am receiving treatment at the University of Pa medical center. The radiation department is quite large and the waiting room is for people receiving traditional linac radiation as well as proton therapy. I've noticed that there seems to be a a lot of men being treated for throat cancer. Last night a group of these men were talking while waiting for their turn. Every one of them smoked for many years. Seeing these men made the connection between smoking and cancer so real. I wish I could get this message out to the kids that I teach. They are so oblivious, as I guess most of us were at their age.
I start my third week of rads this evening. Time is flying by and summer is right around the corner. Fortunately, rads has not been bad. No real SEs so far. Its time consuming but doable. I'm about 5 weeks past my last chemo tx and am feeling pretty good except for some lingering neuropathy in my feet. That could take months to resolve. My hair is slowly returning and I have the beginnings of eyelashes. Things are improving!
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Yea Janet! It sounds like things are going well for you. So glad to hear you're experiencing minimal SEs with the rads; also sounds like you're not having lingering SEs from the chemo, which is wonderful! I know we never go back to "normal" but it would be nice not to have daily reminders of this ugly journey.
It sounds like you have met some interesting people during your treatments. I find I take a little piece of everyone I meet with me; their stories are so powerful and inspiring and always touch my heart. Today is my final chemo and it's bittersweet: I'm so glad to be done with treatment but am going to miss (??) all those wonderful staff and patients I've met over the last few months. I'm thinking seriously about going back and volunteering when all this is done - just a way to give a little something back.
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Nancy-yeah for today! I'll be with you in spirit as you get that last treatment. You're getting a big smile from NC. Take it easy HB.
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Chief Oncology Vampire still on vacation. Darling young perky little Vampirette quickly zipped in a needle while talking a mile a minute. They were not busy today so she kept me captive for another 5 minutes practicing her English skills and finding out my life story. Lab report on blood was not so good. WBC was below normal so they did not do my Taxol. Now I know why I was so wiped out the last few days. Herceptin was finished by 12 noon. Next bus was not until 1:30 so we took the train into town again and had lunch. Arrived home at 3 and slept for 2 hours. Nurse was not sure whether the skipped Taxol infusion would be tacked onto the end. So I may or may not be done with Taxol in 3 more weeks. Never a dull moment. As we type I'm sitting down with tea and the cheesecake I couldn't eat last night. Yum!
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NANCY - Congratulations on LAST TREATMENT - HOORAY!!!!!!
Kitchenella - So sorry your WBC was done and you couldn't get Taxol. I mean who wants Taxol, but you know what I mean. It interrupts the flow, and you don't want it to go on longer.
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Whoo-hoo! All done!!! It was great - I wore my pink tutu and glitter shoes, and people came from all over the third floor to see the "boob fairy" in person. :-) I was told that *no one* has ever dressed up or celebrated their final chemo. How sad!! I brought flowers for everyone, including my clinical trial coordinator who was on vacation. :-( I'll see her again in a couple of weeks, though, when I return for my Tamoxifen. The nurses in the infusion room did blow bubbles for me as I was leaving - bubbles that kind of "harden" after you blow them and don't pop, so my shirt and skirt were covered in little bubbles as I left, it was so sweet! The infusion center was packed and I'm not sure everyone appreciated the joy and happiness of the moment, but I hope they feel half this happy some day. I know not every person will make it through chemo with a positive outcome so I hope it wasn't too irreverant.
I have to have a DEXA scan next week, and then we talk about supplements to keep my bones and body strong.
Question - for those who are not having Herceptin, how long will you, have you, or did you wait to have your port removed? The nurses are saying 6months to a year - and frankly, I want this little thing OUT of my body now. I have an appointment with my surgeon just after my meeting with my MO to go over the DEXA scan, and I'm going to ask for immediate removal. They keep saying, "Oh, we like to keep it just in case something comes back" and I want to say, "Um, after all of the hell I've been though lately cancer doesn't DARE grow in this body again." I don't know - any thoughts?
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Nancy - I want mine gone asap after I finish. If anyone dares to say "we/I like to keep it in" to me they will get a blast. Geez, who is this all about - if "we/I" like to keep it in they can go and get one themselves and keep it as long as they like!
It's all about what YOU want not what they want... Rant over...
Jenn -
Thank you Jenn! I feel like a defeatist keeping it in after treatment - like I'm waiting for it to come back. And I tend to bump it and it's in the way, and I want to wear tank tops and not have people starting at the lump on my chest!! I'm ready to let go of reminders of this period of treatment. *IF* it comes back they can put in a new one then. Thanks for ranting for me - I don't have the energy to do it myself.
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Congrats to you NancyHB! You did it-now get that damn port OUT. Out, out damn port!
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