Cytoxan Taxotere Chemo Ladies- February/March 2013

It went really well. Anticipation is always worse than the actual in my crazy world. The nurse had trouble getting a vein. She wrapped me in a hot towel twice but finally got it going. She was eyeing up the great veins on my left arm and asked how long ago I had had the node resection. She said it could possibly cause lymphedema to use that arm but not necessarily.

Has anyone used their node arm for veins?

I am tired from not sleeping last night but the doc gave me a prescription for a sleeping pill so tomorrow should be better.

They recently got wifi which would be great but she had me wearing icy cold mitts to prevent nail damage. She said I had an option to not use them but I was too paranoid to not do it.

All the support here helped and then lovely Nicole from here tracked me down even though I'd forgotten to give her my real name so we had a great visit and a real life hug.

Thank you so much for all of your help.

Awww Hugs KBeee - dang you are not grouchy at all - you sound actually quite reasonable!!! I hope the temp goes down!!

Wrenn - I was concerned when I had my most recent surgery and they were checking the nodes on my left side (non cancer side) and RE-checking my previous and new cancer side (right again)....I said to my surgeon "so now I can't have blood drawn or bp on EITHER arm???" She said that no using the node arm was "old school" but she did specify that it could only be used if it was the sentinel node biopsy done. She told me that if I ended up with an axillary node dissection on my prev cancer side the I couldn't use that arm....... Not that it means any more or less thus was my surgeon at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in NYC --- hope this explanation made sense and wasn't too ramble-y

i had 6 nodes removed and after the horror stories about lymphedema i was happy to have them stay away fro that arm but it has always bbe my best arm for veins so i would love finding out it wo't cause lymphedema

Annoying was when I went to the hospital Thursday night and the MD said they'd hospitalize me for iv antibiotics and use my port. Then the nurse came in and said she was doing an iv in the arm with the raging cellulitis that landed me there in the first place. I pointed out that the MD said they'd use my port, "no" she said, "too much likelihood for infection." So I got an iv in my arm one inch away from the inflamed tissue. The next morning the MD on rounds asked me why my iv wasn't in my port, and said if there was any reason to fuss with it, he'd have it changed to my port. ARGHHHH!!! Like sleeping would have been so much easier without anything in my sore arm.

Wrenn -- glad it went well and you got a hug from Nicole!!! Remember to drink lots of fluids (doesn't have to all be water) and take your meds if you feel a need. Prayers for a cozy and comfortable evening!

KBeee -- I hope you've gotten the temp under control. Mine spiked a bit this afternoon, but. Am lucky that MO has given me the OK to alternate Motrin and Tylenol. I know first hand how the fever makes you feel even crummier -- the last thing you need when you are DONE!!!! I don't blame you for feeling a bit cranky about it -- (((hugs)))

Thinking of all of you who are in the path of the big Thanksgiving storm headed across the country. Stay warm, stay safe, and may the taste buds return in time to taste some yummy Thanksgiving goodies. We decided not to have TG since I am the one who loves all that turkey with trimmings! and I won't be able to taste it. Oh well, the point of this is to enjoy many more TGs on into the future, right?

teamkim and kbeee so sorry about the fevers. Yuck. Fevers knock it out of us at the best of times. I' m hoping for quick recovery. Xo

FDM - I would definitely ask your MO for a prescription for Ativan. When the steroids are raging and my heart is crazy pounding, I take one of those and it lulls me right to sleep.

Another SE I haven't seen on this board much - anyone experiencing the hand/foot syndrome? I learned from other boards that this is a common SE for Taxotere.

I also got the strangest SE this last time after my 4th TC. I literally could not walk. My knee was so painful. It was wierd. Went away in two days.

Anyway, hope all can enjoy their Thanksgiving!

Last night I could my right toes locked up. Today my knee was killing me I couldn’t walk either. I will talk to MO tomorrow. I have the Neulasta shot, but these pains start the first day of chemo and each day since have gotten worst. I take Clartin daily for the shot. I’m allergic to most pain meds. I was going to see if I could take a supplement. Thank you for the advice. I just want to be able to get more than 2 hours of sleep.

Thanks to all for your warm welcome.

TeamKim, I hope the Ativan and sleep tamed the nausea.

KBee, I wish your MO team were more attuned to your emotional needs. It's so much easier to face new physical challenges if someone takes your concerns seriously, especially given your evil experience after chemo3!

Wren, I too hope all went as expected with your chemo1; and that you are home again and comfortable.

Do any of you have a resurgence of pain/discomfort in your surgical sites after chemo? My lumpectomy, node dissection and port implant sites were pretty much pain free before chemo1. By day3, all the sites were aching, including my jaw where I'd had a cracked tooth extracted a month before my lumpectomy. Things got better in the week right before chemo2, but here I am on chemo2/day8, with an achy boob and port site again, which makes it hard for me to find a comfortable sleep position. Acetaminophen/ibuprofen don't seem to help much.

BGH - Yes, me too! I started having pain in those same spots after chemo (lumpectomy site, sentinal node dissection site, and port.) It's kind of a flash of pain that comes and goes, not a constant pain. Fortunately for me, ibuprofen makes most of the pain go away. I see my oncologist tomorrow and plan to ask for Ativan to help with sleep because I have insomnia most nights and can't get comfortable.

Bondsy, hope you get better rest tonight. I got a script for Ativan as part of my pre-chemo anti-nausea arsenal, but it also puts me right to sleep, too...a blessing on those days when my mind refuses to turn off.

I can't believe they would put an IV anywhere close to a skin infection; that is crazy and scary. It is frustrating when the different medical professionals do their own thing and do not always communicate or think beyond whatnis most convenient at the time.

NC, it is great to hear that you are doing so well. Thanks for the update. I am sure your hair is gorgeous.

BGH, It seems the Taxotere causes pain in any "weak" spot. i think I can feel every single prior injury i have had on those first few days after the infusions. I hope you get some pain relief.

Wrenn, I am glad it went well. I hope you keep feeling good. You are well on your way to healing!

My temp kept climbing last might, so they of course had me come in to the ER for a blood draw. temp was 101.5 when there. Of course that entails an IV, chest x-ray, urinalysis, and labs when you go to the ER. It would have been easier to draw them yesterday...or have me come in today. Nevertheless, 800 mg of Ibuprofen and a liter of IV fluid later, and I am feeling much better. The neulasta did its job, so betweeen that and the extra steroids I was on for nausea, my counts were elevated this time...better than last time when I had "less than 1 neutrophil.".

Hope everyone has a good day.

Bluegrass, glad you found us. Such a wonderful group. I hope those pains subside soon. I think I will get out my heating pad just in case. Reading about you cozying up to your ipad with it sounded soothing. :-)

No compromise. Thank you for the update. I am surprised hair comes back that quickly. It is good to hear. Turns out I have a very flat head and will be happy to have hair back.

KBeee I worry so much about your fever. It must be so frustrating for you (and draining) to not be able to kick it or get answers. In spite of it you keep a good attitude which is very impressive. I really hope it straightens out soon xo

School counsellor, I use cpap and worried that my stubbled head wouldn't like it bu I slept fine with it and worry about ever going without it these days. It kind of helps me sleep just by suggestion. I yawn reaching for my mask because cpap means sleep time. I am glad you were able to use yours last night.

I had a rough evening but was pleased to wake up having slept and don't feel anything too bad now. I made a point of getting up to the bathroom to flush my kidneys a couple of time so the chemo wouldn't sit there and one time when I wasn't really sure I had to go it ran down my legs and my bladder didn't even feel full. That surprised me since I am not a leaker. Made sure I washed but I haven't had any tenderness from it all. TMI.

I was surprised to be up 8 lbs. this morning since I didn't really feel like eating yesterday. I took lunch and snacks to chemo but only ate a digestive biscuit and forced myself to have a sandwich when I got home. Hope that goes away with the steroids.

Have an ok day everyone and thank you again for being so wonderful.