Lupron with dense dose ACx4 with taxol to follow

I will tell you that I had Lupron shots with my chemo 9 years ago......I too was highly ER/PR.  I can't tell you anything about your possible SE's due to your own situation but I can tell you that I had none whatsoever.  My doctor was pretty cutting edge so I think your doctor is on the right track.

I get the panic.....but know this..... my tumor was huge and I had at least 17 nodes positive and I will be at 9 years this May.  The treatment is all doable.....it is the panic stuff that is hard to keep in check.  We've all been there....it does however get better with time.

Best,

Jacqueline

LK, I can't say how it will be, because I did not get lupron during chemo. I did, however, get my period the same day I got my second chemo and that was horrible. That was the last period I ever had. After that the chemo shut down my ovaries, and once I was done with treatment (chemo and rads) I had my ovaries out, in order to go straight on to femara (and skip the tamox, which I was not crazy about as an idea).

It did mean crashing into severe menopause in a very short timeframe, and there were times it was not super-fun exactly, but all in all, it has been doable. I tell everyone to take probiotics and get as much exercise as possible, both seem to help against all the various onslaughts this treatment brings. Walking is fine, doesn't have to be anything streneous, and getting outside is good, not sure why, but fresh air and some light always made me feel better.

The other thing I found helpful was to force myself to breathe and take one thing at a time. It is a long haul, so it helps to pace yourself. I am almost exactly a year out from active treatment, and this week I have been stopped by countless neighbors who wanted to tell me how well I look. In other words, it has taken me a year of healthy eating and exercise to really look like myself again. That may seem like forever, but it really hasn't felt that way, since I started feeling well long before I apparently looked it to others. Also, from one point of view, I think it is downright miraculous that I have come out on the other side looking like myself.

Hi LK, sorry that you have to deal with all this. 

Mine is similar to Momine. I was not given Lupron with chemo but I had my ovaries and fallopian tube removed after BC treatment. 

I know its disturbing to see other advanced cancer patients. I am dealing with that as well, with one of my friends at an advanced stage. 

I get panic attacks too and its ok to take something calming for that. Ask your doctor to prescribe. As some one on this board has said- better living thru pharmaceuticals!

my best wishes to you. 

LK, try not to imagine the worst. I had a lot of treatment and for a long time, i.e. started chemo in June and finished with rads the following February, hyster in March. So that makes about 9 months of something bad being done to me on a regular basis. I was tired and there were times I felt like complete crap, don't get me wrong. I am not going to try to kid you that it was some kind of breeze. But I never puked, never got an infection and never had any serious SEs or complications from treatment. I walked daily. Sometimes just 300 yards, mind you, but often for hours. I also made an effort to get up, get dressed, put on a pretty scarf and some make-up or whatever to bolster my morale.

Let us know how you fare with it all.

Hi there. Few things:)

My Stats are simiar to yours... I was prego at diagnosis. I did chemo then had ovarys removed asap. I chose not to do the shots b-c what if they didn't work? I wanted to mke sure I as ripping all estrogen out of my system.  I was highly er and positive.  So I went into menopause and I felt great.I started exercising very heavliy and I can honestly say I feel better now the I ever dd in my ife. Being in menopase evened me out. It's way easier now then it was when I was having periods. With that said I exercise twice a day everyday and eat ubber healthy.

I too had thoid issues and high anxiety. I had massive panick attacks for years leading UP to my dianois. Funny after menopause DESPITE the tremendous stress of being prego agoin through chemo I never ever had one. I often wondered about that.

Lately I started to have them again but I worked myself up into a complete state of crazyness. I started on anti anxety meds and it went away.

Nice to find this thread!   My story is a little interesting and i'd like to share!  I was 42 at diagnosis in 8/11.  Had my last period in October 2011 after my first infusion of TC (out of 6).  Started Tamoxifen in March 2012 after my BMX.   Fast forward to my appointment with my MO in January 2013.  She says that she wants to check my estradial and FSH because it had been almost 16 months since I've had a period and she wanted to switch me to Arimidex, if the blood work indicated that i was now post menopausal.   We both were under the impression that I was probably not post menopausal because I had been having some intermittent menstrual-like cramps for a few months.  Well, the blood work came back the next day and I was, indeed, post menopausal.  My estradial was less than 5 and FSH was 58.  My MO wanted to me to switch over to Arimidex.  I was hesitant to do so for various reasons that I have discussed on other threads on this board and don't feel like going into again now.  But mainly, I figured "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".   Obviously, the TC x 6 and the Tamoxifen were keeping my estrogen levels low and there was no reason to switch me over to Arimidex because Tami was working and I could stay on it for 3 years before making the switch, as that was the "standard of care", blah, blah, blah.   Well, sure enough, within 5 weeks my period returned!!!   The Arimidex apparently got my ovaries stimulated.  I was really dissapointed. 

At that point, I told her that I wanted to start ovarian supression.  She was on-board with the decision.  I had my first Lupron shot on March 14th.....I had a period a few weeks later and I will have my second shot on Thursday.   This time, they will give me one that will last three months apparently?   

I am very hesitant to continue taking these shots, but I'm afraid to go "all out" and have my ovaries removed.  Some days I feel really good and other days I feel really, really bad and I can only attribute this to the lack of estrogen in my body.   I used to be a pretty active woman, running, walking,  energetic and I am no longer that person!.   Im not having horrible side effects though, so I'm wondering if removing my ovaries would really be a big deal for me?   My thoughts are that I do the shots for 6 months or so, and then make a decision??  Deep down though I feel like its my best shot at not getting a recurrence......

I'm still pretty young at 44 and I told my friend the other day I don't feel 44 any more.  My body feels like I'm 55 instead.  Stiff, slow to move, and mushy now......I hate it!!!   Im also finding it really hard to lose any weight.  I would just like to lose 5 lbs and it seems nearly impossible.  

So, the plan now is to continue with Lupron, probably get myself into that postmenopausal range again, and then my MO wants to switch me to Arimidex.   Not sure what I think.  I may stick with the Tami, until I make a decision about a BSO.  We shall see.  Oh, I did have a baseline DExA scan before I started the AI and it was good.  My MO put me on extra calcium and Vitamin D to keep those bones strong.

Anyway, thanks for letting me vent......  sorry for rambling!

LK...I started on Metformin when done with treatment through my primary care/internist. There is a study going on for Metformin and cancer, but I didn't want to do that and chance getting the placebo. I have metabolic syndrome, and everything was high except for the blood sugar but it was creeping up over the years. I too had a high birthweight baby. There is lots of diabetes in my family. The Metformin is making it easier to keep my weight stable, and to me it makes a lot of sense that high insulin levels could create an environment we as cancer survivors don't want.



I also wanted to say that chemo is hard but doable. You will have a bad week and then a good week, most likely. I did a lot of living life in that good week! The key is as Momine said--walking. Absolutely, positively, one must do this during chemo to circulate the red blood cells that remain more efficiently. They told me even if you can only walk around in the house, do so for 5 minutes every hour during the day. Then get yourself walking longer distances. I did 20 minutes or more on good days, not alot but consistent! I had to take a lot of antinausea meds so I was tired, tired, tired. The walking really helped.

LK, oh, ok. If you find out, I would appreciate the info. I have copies of all my test results and I get fasting glucose as well as an A1c test, every 3 months.

At DX my fasting glucose was in the high 90s, which is within normal, but the really high end of normal. Considering that I had a normal BMI, good cholesterol numbers and profile and was physically active, it made little sense to me. Now my fasting glucose has come down some, but the last A1c was still hovering right on the border of pre-diabetes.

I was very highly positive ER/PR and premenopause at diagnosis (I was 38).  Didn't start hormonals during chemo but after all chemo and rads were done. My period came back after chemo, so I now do tamox and zoladex (like lupron).  I had hot flashes on chemo. I have hot flashes now (they were worse on chemo), but they were all the result of low estrogen.  I don't think taking chemo and antihormonals together will intensify the effect; it's the ovarian suppression either way.

I can't speak for other SE interactions. My joints are creaky and I walk like my feet are made of lead.  But, I stay active anyway, and I think that helps a lot.  You can totally do this!  Your story will be your story, so try not to listen too much to the scary stuff.

LK, we'll be thinking of you Thursday.

About seeing other patients, I saw myself yesterday. Meaning, I came across a pic DH had taken of me in my hospital room right after my BMX. Because I had chemo before (and after) surgery, I am bald as an egg. I look like your classic cancer victim, completely terrible and probably terrifying to others. Thing is, I actually felt OK. A few hours later I was up, walking around, using my laptop, doing some homework etc. Point being that it often looks far worse to others than it really is.