Cytoxan Taxotere Chemo Ladies- February/March 2013

Thank you all for the uplift. I will definitely fight on this one. I did spend an hour of my time today talking to my densest who told me the teeth pain and such is due to the chemo. I might want to start eating soups or things through a straw. He said there a s nerve that runs the whole way of the mouth and if the chemo I’m taking causes allergic reactions or nerve issues that is why I have pain. There is nothing he can do for me, except take some aspirin maybe that would help. He was insistent to keep harassing my MO.

I have read up on the SE of TC and the ones I have are less common and sometimes rare. So, maybe I”m the first for my MO to have someone have these side effects. As for my boobs, I freaked out I thought, “There is cancer in the right one too.” I had a nightmare of waking up to cancer coming out of me like the alien in the Aliens.

I am going to print some of the SE from this discussion board and take them in my MO. I will give her one more try for the 2nd chemo. I don’t know expect her to fix my SE but I want to let her know what is going on.

Thank you for everyone. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

She did approve 1 glass of red wine a week, so tomorrow I will have my wine. Since I can’t taste anything I figure I should drink the cheap stuff

Cheers.

FDM

I feel like I can't take how I'm feeling any longer. I had TC #3 last Friday. For the first two, by today, Day 6, I was almost back to myself again. Well, this time, after dealing with constant nausea, intermittent cramps, gas, constipation, etc......., I started feeling a lot better yesterday and then today was struck with something new and extremely unpleasant. I'm going to describe it and if any of you have felt this way, please reach out to me and tell me what helped. It's hard to describe, but, it feels like nothing I eat is digesting, it turns into a sour feeling after I eat it, no matter how little in amount or what food it is. Nothing tastes good, and even if it does, within 5-10 minutes, this sour feeling just sits from my belly all the way up through my throat and it's really disgusting. I've tried ginger tea, a pill for indigestion, ginger tablets, papaya tablets. I burp more often. If anyone can help, please post on here or pm me, please. I'm going away in 2 days for two nights at a nice hotel for my birthday and I don't want to feel this way!!! Should I call the doctor on call? Why is this happening on day 6 for the first time?

SchoolCouns- I had a day like that too way back then.  I got a huge panic attack, although at home alone.I got in the shower which did not help. Ran outside - clothes on but bald head. I finally took one of the Lorazepam that I had never taken before. In 15 mins I started to breath and relax some. Turned out to be a reaction to the Percocet pain pill which was a new Rx. I hated it when people said its almost over. How in the heck can they relate. Finger pain could be the start of neuropathy which I felt in my feet starting after the first dose. I am now 7 years and still have it. Anyway everyone extra hugs for the holiday to all and pamper yourselfs.

jtrosesav, I'm guessing you've already tried it, but I'm living on gas-x. I'm only on #1, hopefully another veteran will respond...

Jtrosesav -- I hope some people can chime in on this. I am having more heartburn this tx (my 3rd) as well, and this is day 6 for me too. This morning I woke up with the feeling that my mouth was coated with that yucky taste -- no amount of brushing or rinsing seemed to help. I have been belching a lot too, though I drank some ginger ale, which brought on a lot of belching, but then the taste was better for awhile. Mine seems to get worse when I eat anything with butter or any kind of fat (which is everything). Even pretzels and saltines seem to do it. I had some painful heartburn during my first tx, but this isn't painful, just yucky.

I had some Lemon Ginger Probiotic hot tea (Bigelow) and that seemed to help for awhile. Been popping Tums too, which briefly quell the taste. I have decided to wait it out, but then I don't have anything fun on the agenda. You should definitely call and see what you can do to resolve it so you can enjoy your birthday trip.

FDM, Taxotere definitely causes nerve issues. Be sure to share the dentist's comments with your MO. Keeping a daily log of symptoms can be helpful too.

Jacquie, It sounds like heartburn. That has worsened for me with each treatment, and prechemo, I never had any issues with heartburn. It does make my throat very raw. As some have suggested, Tums may help, but you may need something stronger too. Zantac helped me a little, and my MO suggested Prilosec as well. I hope you get some relief. If not, do not hesitate to call. When you work in medicine, you know that somedays you work the holidays. That's just the way it is. Our side effects do not take the holidays off, so if you need something, call.

Teamkim, I hear you on the rant.

SC, I am so sorry to hear that you lost your father to stomach cancer so recently. You have had way more than your share to deal with in these past few months. Your father sounds like a very wise man. The finger pain can be from the Taxotere or from neulasta, but it also could be a sign of neuropathy, especially since it is affecting function. You definitely need to mention it to your MO prior to your next chemo because sometimes they will adjust your dosage if they believe it is neuropathy.

It is Thansgiving. I am thankful for a lot, but specific to BC, I am thankful to have had all of you here to get me through these challenging times. You all just "get it.". Venting here has helped me to keep more positive with my DH and kids and such, because once I let my frustratious out, I generally feel much better. I am thankful for my BS and PS who have always been incredible through this ordeal...both talented and compassionate, and very willing to do whatever they could to get me back to my job. I am thankful for my MO. Though he really, really frustrates me sometimes when he does not take some of my odd symptoms as seriously, I do feel that he gave me a voice in my care, and some of the more typical side effects which could have been more serious he did evaluate thoroughly to rule the bad stuff out. I am thankful to my coworkers...they showed up at my house with a fire truck 15 minutes after hearing of my diagnosis...bearing flowers, ice cream and pie... 24 of them shaved their heads with me. I am also blessed with an amazing group of friends who have filled our freezer with more food than we can possibly eat...without ever being asked. My Dh and kids have been amazing as well. I am feeling very blessed today.

jtrosesav, I have suffered form ulcers and heartburn and stomach issues are a common SE with mt tx. I take Omeprazol 40mg daily, Gasx and believe it or not one yogurt a day. I added the yogurt (greek, no fat) on the tx2 and helped with the heartburn. Might be that we are missing flora and probiotics help.

Call you MO on call. I am sure he is not sitting at an office. He can handle two minutes of his time and help you. I am sure he will tell you to call him at anytime, it is better than having a patient suffering.

You go Team Kim! I agree and LOVE it!

My onc nurse acts like I am the 'only patient they've ever had that is anxious or sad'....it is unreal! She is sympathetic but sortof condescendingly so...although I do persist and get whatever med. I want in the end...she knows I used to be a nurse and I have told her how it's different being 'the patient' and how it sucks and then she sortof empathizes...not sure...but gives in at least.

I am having a good week, still weak, and count wbc 2.4 yesterday but trying to suck it up and shower and have a Thanksgiving day with all of our kids..hoping they are not sick

Next week a little scary as I get port put in, if my wbc is up, then chemo # 2 with neulasta this time...not enjoying the posts about bone pain, fever, etc...do we really need another side effect?

I have rash on both hips and hands from my first infusion and my wrist and hand and left arm is still bruised and sore to touch from that infusion, it is going away amazingly slow.

Having zingers from boobs too, glad you said something as I was worried they are getting infected...

Happy Thanksgiving - very thankful for all of your knowledge and tips and encouragement!

Just wanted to pop in quickly to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!!!! I am thankful for every single person here, you have all been instrumental and wonderful with sharing all your tips, wisdom and knowledge. To those not celebrating Thanksgiving, thanks also!!

Melrose-Will check the rash with my oncologist...it has gone away but weird and looked like raspberry scrape as it went...lasted 1 1/2 weeks! I will ask about pre Benadryl...I HATE rashes...

Thanks for tip- TeamKIM will get that at store..

I am going to get out today for the 1st time! Driving! WOW...I have been so weak and told to avoid crowds but NEED to go somewhere...too bad it's black Friday.

Taking my daughter to get eyebrows threaded...shouldn't be a big crowd there...and I guess drugstore would be less crowded than Target...so will try Walgreens or something...that should give me an outing 'fix'..:)

Might feel like the old me a little too:) I know I'm still in here!

Happy day you all!

SeattleTwinMama, try Pepcid for the rash. It's an H2-inhibitor and can actually help with skin reactions. I took it in conjuction with Benadryl & also took Claritin at the same time (ask your doc before taking 2 different antihistamines, but my doc was OK with it since I had a bad allergic reaction, not to the Taxotere but another med I was on at the time).

Also -- rash ladies -- This morning I took a warm bath and I threw in some salt and baking soda (I figured it worked for the mouth sores, so what the heck) -- very soothing for the itching! And I bought Aveda "ultra calming" foam cleanser and that seems to feel good too.

I decided yesterday that since...1. I could not taste the delicious meal DH prepared (though I do 95%of the cooking, DH loves doing turkey dinners, and kicks me out of the kitchen every year for thanksgiving)...2. I have not been able to actually eat mor than a couple tablespoons of food lately....and 3. The darn Neulasta had me nauseas,.........I made a heading plate of what I would have eaten, wrapped it tight, and put it in the freezer. In a few months when I have a day when i am feeling particularly thankful, I will take it out and have my own little Thanksgiving, and be able to taste it. Maybe that will help me to put some weight back on!

I hope everyone's rashes clear up. Itching is miserable, and can drive you more crazy than pain. Taxotere is known for allergic reactions. Seattletwinmama, it is easy for them to tell you to wait it out. Bug them if you need to. Get relief. Eeeek. I would rather be in pain than itch. Scratching can cause infections too, which is yet another reason to get something stronger. I hope those rashes all heal.

For those with the rashes - - I got my first one 16 days out of the 2nd TC. It traveled all over, nape of next, legs, arms, underarms, you name it. I tried every itch cream at the drug store, cortisone, everything. Finally, they prescribed hydroxyzine, Allegra and benadryl if it got really bad and a cortisone cream. I would take the Allegra instead of the Claritin that I normally took for the Neulasta shot. The combination of the antihistamines gave me relief from the itching, although it didn't totally disappear. Finally, last week 2 weeks after my 4th TC and still with a rash, they gave me a steroid pack which seems to have finally knocked it out. Fingers crossed.

My MO commented that the new TC regimen is generic and she has seen many more skin issues since it went generic. She said she would register a complaint. I hope she does. It is just one more thing.

Joan, i am having 4 TCs and asked the same question. Doctors follow protocols and if they determine you need to get a more aggressive treatment becasue of age (if you are young then more aggressive) or grade or oncotype factor they will do six instead.

In my case it is grade 2, don't have an oncotype factor and I am 45.

If you read the previous comment about that topic from me and Kbeee you will see that we went back and forth on this many times. Kbeee was getting 6 TCs and they changed it to 4 because of oncotype results.

Doctors balance risks vs benefits when makjng a decision to add or eliminate the extra two treatments. There are trail on other regimens but not on TC comparing 4 and 6.