Starting Chemo October 2012

Wow, I go away for a weekend and there's so many new names! Horrible that we are in this "club" but I am also glad that we have each other! Too tired to comment to individuals right now, but hello to all! Those of you who are a few days in, I'm glad to hear that you're experiencing relatively few side effects.

I'll get my port tomorrow, so should go rest up for that...but first I'm going to try to figure out how to put the whole diagnosis thing at the bottom of my page. 

Good night ladies, and I hope to have more time to catch up on everyone tomorrow!

MrsCich -- wow, you have a whole team to cheer you on ;-).



Good luck tomorrow (or now today)!

Hi I am another one starting chemo Oct 15th,and seriously not looking forward to it, but in another way I am looking forward to it. Although all the initial cancer was removed with good clean margins and clear lymph nodes, I am a triple negative.So my Dr said without chemo 40% chance it comes back and the it will cut in half with chemo. Well I don't like the odds but thats all I got right now. I sure hope they find some treatments for triple negative soon!!.If anybody is having their chemo at the vancouver cancer clinic maybe we will meet..

How many cancer patients does it taketo screw in a light bulb??

1.. to screw it in...

9 to praise her for her efforts!

lol

feeling a bit goofy this morning... and nauseous .. lol 

Good luck to you ladies starting today. Take a deep breath and know that this will all be over soon.



Post chemo 3 days and other than constipation, no slaiva and my taste buds going... I feel good.



We're all gonna be with you getting you infusion so wear big pockets!!!



(((((Hugs)))))

Well today was my first treatment and although I was a bit nervous it felt good to be moving forward once again. I am having AC every 2 weeks for 4 weeks then T every 2nd week for 4 wks. I am also TN so I understand the fear and frustration with little research and information that is out there.  My oncologist told me that my risk of reoccurance is 50/50 after treatment and I am looking at from the positive aspect of 1/2 full.

As of yet no symptoms other than a headache so I am going to spend the afternoon outside enjoying the fall colours. Thinking of you all.  ((hugs))

Well, I did get my first fill. 50cc in each and it was not pleasant at all. I didn't watch but it sure felt like a knitting needle was being inserted into my ports.



It seems I will need another surgery as well. 😔 My nips are attached nicely but there is an area on each that is open and raw. My right is much worse than my left. My PS wants to cut out the open areas and sew them closed. I will have 5 or 6 stitches on either side he said. The nips will be a bit deformed looking but he said we can fix that later. However, I really don't care if they are deformed looking. No one sees them but me and my husband and he's already said he doesn't care what they look like. His reason for cutting out the areas is because with my chemo infusions the likelihood of them healing on their own is going to be slow. I'm good with his decision since I'm just tired of all of it



BC really is the gift that keeps on giving, huh? I don't want to be cut on again and poked and prodded. Ugh.



Still no real side effects on day 3 post chemo. Thankfully.



Hugs to all. I have my private wig fitting in a bit. Then I may just go to sleep.

Hi everyone,

I was supposed to have my first chemo today. It was canceled because I need to have a PET scan first. This isn't my first time with breast cancer. I had it three years ago and it then I got a new cancer in the same breast. I've been lurking here for a while, even started to post once and changed my mind.

Gentle hugs,

Veggy

Hi everyone! Sorry to hear about the added cutting MrsCich....I haven't had surgery yet, but I've had 2 major back surgeries 18 mo's apart, and the cutting and poking gets old really fast. But...hopefully it will benefit you because you could heal faster and reduce your risk of infection. I've heard that the TE fills are a bit brutal...I hope they get better for you.

Halfcan- My port feels SOOO much better now that I'm 5 days out. Relief is coming!   I woke up yesterday and the swelling was down, and I could move my arm better. Do you have EMLA cream to put on it before chemo? If not, see if your MO or BS will write the script for you. It will make the access less painful (if not painless-I can let you know Wed!). I understand that you want to get things done ahead...but remember to rest too.

Well, post chemo day 5. Aches are better (I really think it was the neulasta that did me in), nausea is better (I can eat-although carefully), now my biggest nemesis is thrush. I knew it was coming b/c I get it with any antibx I take...and they gave me Ancef with my port. I called my MO's office and they called in magic mouthwash. A word of warning....these can be all different mixes (MD's make up their own frequently) & depending on what (& how much of what) is in it...it can taste ok or AWEFUL. Lucky me...I got AWEFUL!!! LOL  I was wishing I had no taste at that point!  Did numb my mouth nicely, but holy cow, if I was nauseated when I used it...nothing would have stayed down! ick! Nystatin swish and swallow usually tastes a little better. Soft,bland foods will be my friend till this clears.

I hope everyone is well....I'm terrible at keeping up with who starts what day....please keep everyone updated!  Also, since I'm at home now for a while, I've been watching Ellen. Today & all month they are inviting breast cancer survivors to be in the audience and she's raising money for the Susan G Komen foundation. Some have shared their stories & the one today made me cry (a happy cry-she was diagnosed a stage IV and is currently cancer free!).

 Glad to see women doing so well! We will be there one day soon!

Ladies on my way home from my first chemo AC treatment....so far so good! I'm a little woozy from the pre meds and I have a touch of a headache. But overall easier than I thought! I will keep everyone posted in my coming days!!

Hi everyone! I am new to the group, and just had my first AC chemo treatment today. I was so nervous, but it really wasn't bad. I have a Power Port (inserted 9/20), had no EMLA cream, and the needle poke was painless. After vitals, a blood draw was obtained from the port to check my RBCs, WBCs, and platelets. I was given Emend, Decadron, and Zofran through the port and about 45 minutes later my infusion nurse started the Adriamycin. That infusion took about 20 minutes.... two syringes of bright red chemo meds. After that, the Cytoxan was hung which took about 90 minutes. It is now 5 hrs since the infusions started with no side effects. I am to take Zofran tonight, and then every 8 hrs through Thursday evening. I am also taking Decadron - the steroid - every 12 hrs through Thursday night. I get a Neulasta shot tomorrow afternoon and plan to try Claritin to ease or eliminate the bone pain that Neulasta can cause. We will get through this!!

the5owens-yay!!! Got the first one done! I hope you feel well through it all!

Jalessi-I'm glad you made it through ok! Glad the acess didn't hurt!

Michelle- Welcome....breathe....take one thing at a time. My lymph node was completely taken over by the cancer cells, and it's 2.5cm (my original tumor is ~4cm). However...so far there are no other nodes or spots seen on my CT or PET scan. I hope it will be the same in your case! You are 1/2 way there with having your surgery out of the way....just count down those chemo tx's until it's done! (I only have 1 chemo tx down and surgery yet to go!). Keep in touch with all of us and you'll get even more support.

Susan-that's too funny! I know right after my diagnosis my husband made some sort of remark to my daughter.....something about someone being over-dramatic.  He said something like...yeah right, they act like they have cancer or something. He just stopped & had this horrified look on his face. I looked so offended and said,"thanks babe...real nice". He started apologizing & I just started laughing. Gotta keep laughing through this b/c the alternative stinks.

Goodnight all!

Thanks, alcb, will definitely try to keep breathing and will use this group for support.



Abby, best wishes tomorrow! Will be thinking of you and hoping for smooth and peaceful treatment.

Abby20, I'm thinking of you today!



Poke, I just keep thinking of you- you're so young! I'm glad that you seem so well-informed and your posts read like you have a really strong, positive personality.



Alcb70, MrsCich, and any others that have already started- how are you feeling today? I have been warned by many that the SE kick in several days to a week after infusion, and that it also depends on which drugs you're taking. So I'm very anxious about that- that once I start, I'll be going along thinking everything is fine, and then suddenly get hit with the vomiting, big D, or whatever else. I feel like I can't plan anything for after chemo starts because I just don't know how things will be...



I had my port installed yesterday- a power port on my right side- he couldn't find the normal vein so mine goes up into my jugular! Ack! I had a pretty nasty reaction to the IV sedation. And my left arm was already bum because of the node removal, and now my right arm is bum because of this new pain...so I took today off to try to get things back under control! Don't know how I'm going to make an hour-long commute each way to work with two low-functioning arms! Ha!



I hope everyone is doing something to make yourself happy and well today!

Oops, I see people already told you about EMLA, I missed that