January 2013 chemo group

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  • kiwikid
    kiwikid Member Posts: 204
    edited February 2013

    Hi girls

    Hope everyone is doing ok. We have been out on a boat for the weekend. I'm two weeks past AC three, a week till the last one.

    Oliverhog that's so cool we are both Hollys, where are you from?

    Going back to work has been both a blessing and a curse. A blessing as its taken my mind of the chemo, but a curse as its been quite tough. My boss has give me part time mon to thur so I can be home by 1, and my only all day is Friday, which is very nice of her. I'm truly so lucky.

    I broke a nail last week (oh no right!) but now it's infected, it broke so low and the skin ripped and now the nail is trying to push up through the hot bleeding corner. I am at my lowest white blood cells and the onc nurse told me if it wasn't better I'd need antibiotics. Well it's not better, but it's not worse, and I have no fever, so I don't want antibiotics, I haven't had them for ten years and am not about to start. I'm a bit worried about it, ho hum.

    Wishing you all great weeks.

    Xx hh

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2013

    Kiwi~I don't think there's anything better for that nail than Australian Tea Tree Oil! Melaleuca (spelling) if you will. After AC 2 I got a nasty head cold and all the dripping, blowing, wiping caused a cold sore type place right under my nose. Oncology insisted on giving me acylovere. Instead of getting that and taking it, I used tea tree oil. It was healed and gone in 2 days.



    I can imagine how much that has to hurt, with or without infection.



    Blessings

    Paula

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  • MTJulie
    MTJulie Member Posts: 63
    edited February 2013

    I am a week past my 4th treatment and it seems like the third one was the roughest. I have the white tongue-yucky mouth thing happening but it doesn't seem as bad as last time. The third round I was not good for at least 10 days but I am feeling pretty good on day 6 and may attempt a little walk today. I don't know why that third one is so hard. I think I got a bit of a psychological boost from knowing I don't have to do it again.

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  • cancernoway
    cancernoway Member Posts: 90
    edited February 2013

    Skimommi - DDTP is GREAT!!!!  When you hold your event is irrelevent to the companies actually since you are going to start now in getting your donations together.  And everyones events are directed towards different groups of people so they are still very willing to donate.  We started getting our acts together about 2 weeks ago.  The earlier you start, the more you get for one and the more organized you are when it comes along and you aren't rushing at then end.  Plus if you are doing shirts, you will need some time to get all of your sponsors together and then get them on the shirt or posters.  I think October is a great month.  How will the weather be for a ride in October be in Colorado though? 

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2013

    October is really risky for a ride. It was really more of a fleeting though and the rebel in me to make a statement against SGK. That is so much work I may have to work on it for next year because I just don't have the time/energy to do it while going through treatment and recovery this year. We'll see though. Maybe I'll start small and grow it from there.

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  • kingboo
    kingboo Member Posts: 28
    edited February 2013

    Hi Ladies,

    The white tongue according to the Chinese means your system is not clear. My white tongue went away after I took max doses of laxative, prune, benefiber and drank a lot of fluid. My doc said I should start laxative the day before chemo and not until I feel constipated.  Give that a try, but do check with your own doctor first please.

    Jean

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  • Nicmac
    Nicmac Member Posts: 4
    edited February 2013

    Hi ladies!

    I've been away from the boards because I got exposed to... and then came down with... stomach flu!Yell I've been lucky enough to have no nausea or vomiting as SE's of my first two Tx. But it sucked to have to call off work on Friday of week #2 after spending the night praying to the porcelain god!!! The good news is that, even though I was super worried about my fever, it never got high enough to concern my nurses, and more importantly I got over it! It felt good knowing I'm not so out of whack that I can't fight off stomach flu. Now, just hoping my counts aren't down to delay next Tx. I have a week to go. 

    I know we have some new shaved heads out there, so I wanted to share that the olive oil and baking soda paste recommended by Sheryl worked pretty well for my head rash. Cleared up many of my bumps and shrunk some others. Thanks ladies!!

    Lee, can you tell me why you asked for Herceptin to be slowed? 

    Jubby, you look great in every pic, and thanks for having the courage to document it all the way through!!

    I've had a few people all but tell me they like my wig better than my hair, but of course i could give a sh$# and  can't wait to donate it when I'm done!!

    Congrats to all of you who've hit milestones in their treatments-- half-way done, completing AC, etc-- love to hear it!! I hope to be on here in 8 days posting that I've hit the half-way point for my chemo. I get motivated when I see you all staying on the move. 

    Also wondering if anyone has experience with taking iron supplements to boost hemoglobin?? Mine was a tad low last time, but I'm worried about the constipation factor. My onc says it's OK, but seemed neutral on whether it would help. 

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  • LeeA
    LeeA Member Posts: 1,660
    edited February 2013

    Nicmac, I'm sorry to hear you got hit with the flu but great news re: keeping the fever down. 

    Re: slowing down the Herceptin - I've read many archived posts about women who ask to have the infusion slowed to try to avoid any possible heart issues.  Here are two posts (see link) in a row regarding slower infusion times.  I know there are many more posts on the boards but this should give you a good idea: 

    http://community.breastcancer.org/forum/69/topic/776430?page=27#post_3391506

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  • LisaMM
    LisaMM Member Posts: 120
    edited February 2013

    I was wondering if someone could post a link to the ciao bellas on facebook if possible?

    You January ladies are helping me keep the faith that I can do all of this and still keep my sense of humor along with the great advice I find here!

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2013

    Lisa~Send a private message to skigirl. She will get you in.



    Blessings

    Paula

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  • LisaMM
    LisaMM Member Posts: 120
    edited February 2013

    Thank you Paula!

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  • parijo
    parijo Member Posts: 3
    edited February 2013

    Hello, Just joined today.....just discovered you all today.  I just completed my second chemo treatment - the red devil and some other chemo med combo.  My treatments are scheduled every three weeks and my first treatment was horrible.  I had horrible nausea until about the 8th day.  This second treatment seems to be going a little bit better.  I'm trying to go easier on what I eat and resting better, but am still a little nauseated.  Why I even found you all is because I am noticing that facial hair - like peach fuzz  - is developing on both sides of my face.  I shaved my head prematurely because my hair was long and I wanted to donate it and they wouldn't acccept it once I had begun chemo, but none of my head hair seems to be going anywhere (other than what I shaved).  I have definitely lost it other places (down south) and my eyelashes seem to keep falling in my eyes, but this hair growing on the sides of my faces is friggin insane.  Its making me freaked out that maybe the chemo is having an opposite efffect for me and is actually increasing the cell growth.  I did notice in other posts that some women have experienced this facial hair growth after the chemo treatments were completed but has anybody experienced this during the treatments?  Looking forward to being a part of this sisterhood. 

    Jo

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2013

    Parijo~I just noticed the peach fuzz a couple of days ago, and I also haven't lost my buzz. I finished AC 2 weeks ago. I have no idea where the peach fuzz comes from, or maybe I'm just noticing more because my long hair on my head is gone.



    Blessings

    Paula

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  • parijo
    parijo Member Posts: 3
    edited February 2013

    Thanks for your reply Paula.  So have you completed all of your AC treatments?  How many treatments did you have or are you scheduled to have?  If you have finished your treatments, then are you saying you never did lose your hair but you also shaved your head?  Sorry for all the questions, but please know that i really appreciate you sharing your information. 

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2013

    parijo~I don't mind any questions you have. I've learned so much from the ladies who went before me. How can I not pay it forward?



    I cut my long hair into a pixie the night before I started AC. I got them every 3 weeks X 4.

    I felt that short hair would be easier to deal with when it started shedding. On day 17 hair started coming out, but only when I tugged on it.

    The day before AC 2 I had my son buzz it. I never shaved it, and after finishing AC 2 weeks ago, I still have most of my buzz.



    I will start 12 weekly taxol this coming Friday.



    AC 3 was by far the hardest thing I've ever dealt with. I never did get nausea. Never have used a single nausea pill. The hardest thing for me was the second week when I was so weak I could barely make it from my van in the driveway to my front door. I also got out of breath easily. That was probably because of low red blood count.



    The good thing is, except for fatigue & dead skunk tastebuds, AC 4 was very easy.



    If I can help anymore, just ask.



    Blessings

    Paula

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  • parijo
    parijo Member Posts: 3
    edited February 2013

    So it sounds like our treatments are very similar - I'm hot on your heels, so to speak, but actually you are about 9 weeks ahead of me.  How many tubes of the red devil did you get each treatment?  It is amazing that you did not experience nausea - I'm so happy for you.  Wish I shared in your experience but so far its been tough for me.  I receive two tubes of that red juice each treatment in addition to a bag of the Cytoxan.  These treatments will also be followed by 12 weeks of weekly Taxol treatments and then six weeks of daily radiation.  Were you receiving shots for your immune system after your AC treatments?  We'll see if any of my hair falls out.  I'm about had enough of buzzing it every week.....waiting LOL.  But I have also found my buzz cut to be a bit liberating, llike I wasn't going to have when I lost my hair dictated to me by this disease.  Thank you again, Paula.  I am so glad I found this site.  I will check back tomorrow late afternoon or evening. 

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  • Jalessi92
    Jalessi92 Member Posts: 22
    edited February 2013

    Lauren:

    I've had 6 abraxane infusions so far and have had minimal side effects...some tingling in my finger tips and occasional joint pain in my toes. I had a hypersensitivity reaction to Taxol and had to switch to Abraxane. I've had no fingernail or toenail issues.... I'm taking gabapentin and B6 for the neuropathy and it hasn't gotten any worse.



    Jalessi92

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2013

    parijo~I got 3 tubes of Adriamiacin each time.



    For nausea I was given...before infusion...a bag of Emend, 3 decadron tablets, and 3 zophran tablets. The first 2 times I got a headache. I thought it was the zophran, but when I mentioned it to the infusion nurse, she slowed them both down. I was there about an hour longer, but NO HEADACHE!!!



    I was given Ativan & compazine & take at home as needed. I took Ativan to sleep on the

    Steroid days. Days 2, 3, & 4. But I never even opened the compazine.



    If you're having nausea, call your onc. There are many other meds they can give you.



    Blessings

    Paula

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  • smethot
    smethot Member Posts: 161
    edited February 2013

    'Morning Ladies...still here...growing balder as i type...look terrible with mange.  However, a theory i've had for decades is proving true: hair does not make the man (or in my case, the woman).  I've always had a thing for bald men...just love 'em.  Even as a kid, i remember watching The Ten Commandments just to gaze adoringly at Yul Brenner...yum!  Even back when bald wasn't cool for dudes, i ALWAYS thought it was very sexy.  And when both my first and second husbands started balding (and felt bad about it), i shared "Shannon's Theory of Balding".  Deal here is, if you're good looking with hair, you'll be good looking without hair.  And if you're ugly, it doesn't matter anyways!  And its true...hair is an accessory but it DOES NOT make the person...you are you without hair and if you is sexy, you is sexy regardless of your hair.  And as i look in the mirror, its VERY weird to see me with a 1/4" brush cut...that is thinning...but i'm still  me.  I still have the eyes and cheekbones and lips that make up the face I stare at in the mirror every day...i am still me...i'm just me pared down to the bare essentials.  And guess what?  I'm still good looking even without hair! 

    It really does give me an appreciation of how men must feel when they bald- but we have a distinct advantage- our hair will grow back.  And its ok if we wear wigs and scarves and hats and sexy-ass makeup and outrageous earrings to make ourselves feel good...most bald men don't even have that as a fall back.  Don't get me wrong, i wants me hair back...but i guess the point is...my hair WILL come back.  Did anyone see Charlize Theron's hair last night at the Oscars?  Fabulous...and she shaved it to the wood for a role 3 months ago...looks great now.  And so will my hair.  And yours.  I'm not going to mourn my hair...its just hair.  I'll welcome it back as the old friend it is when it begins to reappear on my head (hopefully in June!!!) but i'm not gonna have a daily pity party because its MIA right now...its a war...and if the price i have to pay to kill all cellular insurgents is my hair?  So be it.  Lets make it count...my hair is gone for an excellent cause...ME!!!

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  • SherylB
    SherylB Member Posts: 450
    edited February 2013

    Parijo,

    Are you getting emend (sp) or aloxi before each chemo treatment. The Adriamycin is very emetogenic, meaning it make you sick with N/V. You should also have pills you can take at home. Don't wait until you get sick in my opinion head it off at the pass and take them prophylactically. Also hydrate and I know that sounds nuts when you are already sick but you must, try popsicles, jello, broth, etc. You absolutely must get your system flushed. Also, you may need to go in just to get fluids when you are so sick for so long. Call your MO you don't have to be nauseated there are too many good meds out and avalable.

    Hugs, Sheryl

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  • Skigirl72
    Skigirl72 Member Posts: 478
    edited February 2013

    Parijo- I Have AC every 3 weeks x4, 12 weeks of Taxol then 6 weeks of rads. I had #3 AC a week ago. I feel pretty good. I did notice being a bit more tired. Just everything felt a bit more intense. I get a bag of dexa, a emend pill, saline, 2 tubes of the red devil and a bag of cytoxan. Then emend and dex for 2 more days. I have only needed a few compazine pills during all that time. If you have N/V call your MO. They have all told me they don't want you to be sick. They have lots of drugs for you to take. They might just need to switch something around.

    I shaved my head 2 weeks after my first TX. I shaved it again the other day. I had some new growth but it was dry and gross and ugly. I've always had lots of peach fuzz on my face and I have taken the little micro hair trimmers wand to that hair. Sounds weird but it works. My eyelashes and brows are thinning but still there. Everything else is gone!

    I am not getting the neulesta shot because my MO has me going every three weeks. She said she would rather have me on the 3 week plan so my body has time to bounce back on its own. I was fine with that knowing how much that shot hurts...

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  • ywheels22
    ywheels22 Member Posts: 230
    edited February 2013

    Hi SherylB: thank you! I did have my drip slowed down. My SE's were, in some ways better and in some ways about the same as round 1. Aches and pains were a bit less,  think thanks to the pain meds. I didn't sleep as well, again I think thanks to the pain meds and the tiredness was, and to some extent still is, all consuming! I had a bit more nausea too, which was surprising, though managable with the AN meds.

    A number of people on here say AC #3 is worse. OMG! I can't imagne worse! #3 is over a week away and I'm already stressing!!!! 

    I have not worked out, walked or done anything since treatment last Wednesday. I hope I feel well enough to do something this week.

    Ugh!!!

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  • ywheels22
    ywheels22 Member Posts: 230
    edited February 2013

    NicNak: sorry your round 3 was bad. My round 3 is next Wednesday and I am dreading it as many on here, like you, said round 3 is worse. God I can't imagine! Hang in there and I hope you have help with your children.

    I had a double mast/reconstruction with temp implants.  I am nearly 6 weeks post op now. The recovery time is slow, especially if they have to do a sentinal node and axillary node disection, which I had both. My chest and new boobs still feel 'funny'. Kind of numb and tingling. Weird but not bad, just annoying. I have started to do some light lifting, ect and expect by week 8 to be nearly healed (at least that is what my PS said.) I get saline injections of about 30cc's every other week during my off treatment week. Having injections and treatments in one week was just too much for me. My permenent implants will be put in late June after all chemo is done and out of my system. My last treatment is May 15.

    Good luck and stay strong!

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  • ywheels22
    ywheels22 Member Posts: 230
    edited February 2013

    Parijo: I just finished AC#2. I had some mild nausea this time. I also get a steroid and amend during treatment. I take Kytril on day 2 and 3 and have zofran and compazine as well. For #2, I did take a couple of zofran and compazine. I did not need to take them for #1. Not sure why. The nuelasta shot was not good for me on #1. I had horrible aches and pains. For #2, I got a percoset for pain. It helped but sleeping was a problem so I will ask about that when I got tomorrow for my blood work. If you have any N/V, tell your MO. You shouldn't have it that bad, And take the AN meds before you start to feel real bad. When your tummy starts to feel funny, take a med right away.

    My hair started shedding on the days of #2. I had it shaved that day. It is coming out in places now so I'm guessing it's a matter of time before it is all gone. I'm worried about the patchy look that I think is going to start as parts of it fall out faster than others. Oh well. Let me know if you have any other questions. Remember, everyone does react differenly to each and every treatment. Dose amount can make a difference, how often it is given, how fast the drip is, etc....I try to remind myself of that when I start freaking out about what hasn't even happened yet!

    Soteria205: thank you for sharing your experiences.  I dread #3 AC. I'm worried, since I had a bit more nausea with #2 (though not bad), that #3 will be even worse. I guess I can only hope and pray it isn't as bad and that #4 is even better! Then I am on to Taxol, dose dense x4. Most have said that is easier. Please share how you do with your weekly Taxol.

    Best to all!

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  • chgogemini
    chgogemini Member Posts: 73
    edited February 2013

    Smethot



    You're very inspiring! My buzz is thinning by the moment but it will come back. I keep telling myself that. I go in in for round 2 on Thursday and I'm very nervous about se's.



    Gina

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  • LeeA
    LeeA Member Posts: 1,660
    edited February 2013

    Shannon, yes, I saw Charlize T. last night.  She looks great.  I didn't know she had shaved down to the wood (I like that expression :) ).  

    Wishing everyone a week full of goodness versus side effects - or at least enough goodness to make the side effects easier to endure. 

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  • chgogemini
    chgogemini Member Posts: 73
    edited February 2013

    Charlize was shaved down in June and she said it was great and every women should try it. She donated all of her hair products and she looked gorgeous. Now she died her hair blonde again and has a short cut man hair cut.



    G

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  • Skigirl72
    Skigirl72 Member Posts: 478
    edited February 2013

    I loved that she dyed it blonde and left the roots dark. She is beautiful. I always liked her. I've been watching for pics of her when I knew she had shaved. Well done, Charlize...

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  • chgogemini
    chgogemini Member Posts: 73
    edited February 2013

    Yes we'll done! She's beautiful inside and out.

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  • Oliverhog
    Oliverhog Member Posts: 74
    edited February 2013

    Kiwikid, I'm from a south suburb of Chicago, IL.  My older sister is named Juanita.  My mom named her Juanita because her dad liked that name.  My dad wanted to name me Holiday, but my mom wouldn't have it.  My brother is named after my dad, who was named after his father.  And, his son is named after him.  That name?  Fernleigh Thomas.  My mom's name is Adrienne.  So, we're quite an eclectic bunch of names.  My dad's father was from Great Britian, so we have a very British last name.  

    I went through a period of time years ago when I didn't particularly like my name, but now I'm quite happy with that name.  I was born in '62 and it wasn't a popular name at all when I was a kid.  

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