2012 sisters

2FriedEggs-When is your exchange date? I know I will be thinking about you on your exchange date, saying a pray and sending you healing vibes. 

I joined the site in May, but just got up the nerve to start posting today 6 weeks post BMX and 2 weeks post AC chemotherapy.  It was important for me to find a site that was reputable and that had positive people. I feel so far that this site has hit the mark.  I understand everyone cannot be pollyanna everyday.  There are good and bad days for all of us, but I have been determined to stay positive throughout this experience and I want to surround myself with people who feel the same way.  I hope I have found that here.  Thank you for letting me join your group.

Ladies, I've seen people use the abbreviations SE and AC. What do they mean? Also, to anyone here thats gotten or is getting chemo...do you get it through a port or in pill form? Since I haven't started treatment yet my mind in going a million miles a minute. My step mom had leukemia and took pull form chemo and never lost her hair. My dad is trying to keep my spirits up by saying not everyone loses their hair. Is it possible? Also, it is chemo that makes you lose your hair and not radiation, right?



On another note, day 5 post BMX and I feel so nauseated. I didn't sleep last night, I wake up sweating and the nausea is awful. Is all this from the BMX?

Thanks Soteria. I have not met with the onc yet. I set up that appt after I have my post op with the bs on Monday. Tomorrow I meet with my ps and hopefully get these drains out.

Mrscich; again, you are getting WAY ahead of yourself. I STRONGLY suggest you try to stay focused on recovering from your BMX. the rest will follow soon enough.



If you want to, send me a private message and I can give you my phone number and try to answer some of your questions based on my experience, since im not in healthcare field that's all I have to offer you.



I had a lot of the same questions but even after I learned the answers, it didn't change my fears... Hugs.

Donna, welcome, and sorry you have to be here. We do try to stay positive, but we all do have our days, hopefully never all at once! LOL!

Brought my computer to the hosp while I wait my turn for rads.

Watched my guys roll out yesterday morning headed for CA. Good news is I didn't cry too much. They made Texas last night. 

Hope everyone is having a good day! 

Hi ladies. I met with RO today for rads and am going to do a clinical trial. Will find out in few days if i get standard 6 week radiation or slightly higher dose for three weeks which has been studied and used often in Canada trial. SE the same and in all studies so far no difference in outcome. This is stage 3 clinical trial so this one now gathering data on much bigger pool of people. I love my RO and she feels very good about this. Guess either way i can say i am helping those in the future get best treatment possible. Had CAT scan and bloodwork today. Will get call about nect steps and which rad direction i go by end of week. Needed to be withon 50 days of surgery and have one other medium risk factor (mine is that oncotype at 26). We shall see.. I have never had to make so manymajor decisions in such a short time.

Seem to have lost my focus on posting these days - but I've been reading and keeping up with things.

Donna - welcome! You truly do rock the bald look! Love it! I'm getting more and more inspired by all of you ladies for my date with the buzzer. I might be imagining it - but I think I start to feel the texture changing a bit.

MrsCich - others have said it all. You had such a short time to process your diagnosis before you got thrown into surgery, of course your brain is a whirlwind. I remember those days and send you giant hugs. But it's true what the others have said. Cancer is best tackled one step at a time. Right now your body needs to heal and that needs to be your main focus. Remember - surgery gets the cancer out! The rest that follows is the additional arsenal to make sure you obliterate it for good. I hope I'm not overstepping by saying this, but you might want to consider some anxiety meds if you don't have them already. I got my first ever bottle of xanax the day of my diagnosis. And when I feel my brain spinning out of control, I take a 1/2 tab and it does wonders to settle things down. Feel free to take my suggestion and shove it if that is not your thing - but if ever there is a time worthy of getting some help to calm frazzled nerves, I think a cancer diagnosis is high up on that list. Anyway - rest up, relax and feel good!

lostinmo - so sorry you had to watch your guys head out... But hopefully the rest of your time with rads will zip by and then you'll be on the road with them again. Big hugs!

Juneau and Websister - I'm watching your posts extra carefully as you're both two weeks ahead of me on chemo. Its such a relief to see you both note that the second time seems not as bad as the first. Gives me hope! Hope you're doing as well as can be expected with this round. Rest up and feel good!

Scorchy - you've been on my mind. Hoping those second/third opinions are coming along and giving you more info to work with. Big hugs.

To all you others I missed - sending you love and hugs! Go find some happy, would ya!  

Scorchy, hoping that you get good news.

Thank you all for your advice but in my opinion I'm not thinking WAY ahead as some of you have said. I will be meeting my Oncologist next week and the advice I get here helps me with questions to ask there. How is a week, TOO far ahead? You all didn't have questions about chemo and stuff before meeting with your onc?

Mrscich; yes of course. Millions if questions, however most were not applicable to my exact pathology. For example, I in no way expected chemo to be presented as something I should even consider doing. I had no idea what an Oncotype was and if I had known before my appointment it would have not made a difference. My MO appointment was more a information gathering. I had a second appointment where I asked more questions based on the pathology and results from my specific mass. I wish I could explain better, there are just so many variables at play. Either way it's big, and scary, but you can and will get through it and we will be here to help however we can.

MrsCich, congrats on the clear nodes, that is big news!  They are moving along fast for you but that is good, it makes the head spin no doubt but information is good.  The MO will have a recommendation for you as to chemo or no chemo and hormone therapy and what type of medicines.  Thats when the research will really start.  They will probably go through a website like Adjuvant! online and show you how much benefit you would get from each treatment on your survival and recurrence stats.  You will probably also meet with a radiation oncologist.  After all those doctors appointments then your head will really be spinning and decision time will come but you do have time to think about it.  It is always a good idea if you are able to get second opinions if there is gray areas.  I wasnt really given any choice based on my situation but I am betting you will have some big choices.

And get something for the nausea! its the anesthesia effects, pain medications and stress and pain giving you nausea no doubt.

Paula, as others have said it is quite common for the cancers to show up in several spots.  often the IDC can show up in several areas of a wider area of DCIS.  There are also lots of women that have completely separate areas of CA.  It does change treatment regimins sometimes... having multifocal disease will make it more likely to have chemo or mastectomy recommended.

Teeball, believe it or not you will feel a lot less anxious once the chemo starts.  Sorry to here about your DH's accident and all the car woes... who needs that on top of this?

 DonnaD08, welcome!  i am glad you chose us, I hope you get as much out of this website as I have.  This is my main thread, these ladies are the best.  sorry you are in this situation though...

I am finishing a 12 hour shift.  Got another tomorrow.  feeling pretty good energy wise.  My arm is still a pain.  the damn cording... oh well, stretch stretch stretch.  I even feel pretty good after running a mie or 2 for the first time in months and i even did a little light weight lifting with my arms.  Trying to get back into normal life.  I am nervous that rads will knock me back again but will see.  My hair is starting to get a little wavy and messy!  I actually woke up with some bed head this morning.  A milestone!

As the swelling has gone from my lumpectomy ( more like a skin and nipple sparing hemi mastectomy since i am tiny breasted and had a big mass of DCIS...) my breast looks worse.  It looked almost normal when it was still swollen.  but now the areola seems to have been pulled inward somehow and i cant even see the areola underneath the nipple. i am flat as a board.  I guess that is the choice I made.  With a shirt on it doesnt look all that lopsided since I was miniscule to start with. sometimes i wonder if i should have gone for more extensive surgery and reconstruction but I am athletic and didnt want to do the bigger surgeries and implants and such.  But Maybe i shoulda gotten the free boob job after all.  MEH. The decisions we have to make when BC is thrust at us.  I was supposed to be deciding what fast car I was gonig to buy this year and not this shit. 

Goodnight ladies.  Home to put my kiddos to bed. 

You go ramols! Small victories.