October 2013 Chemotherapy

wren - sorry you were down for the count, but for many of us the first tx was the worst - hoping for that for you!

For those who struggled emotionally yesterday, something I found helpful is to reframe my feelings or emotions - instead of thinking how upsetting it is to have cancer at the holidays, think how fortunate you are to have discovered the cancer when your did, and have the resources to mount this fight, and have access to this level of medical care, so that you are able to be here for future holidays. While I know there are no guarantees, spending too much time worrying about what may happen means you have no room to let any joy in.  I know how difficult it is to try to balance worry and fear while not feeling well, with looking toward a brighter day - I have walked a mile in your shoes - but because I have a perspective that you don't yet because you are still in the middle of this, I can tell you it is a waste of your precious time.  This is not a lecture, just a suggestion.

does anyone know what their WBC is 2-3 days prior to their chemo? I just had a treatment and my WBC was 24 on Tues afternoon. Makes me wonder if I need another neulasta shot on sunday? How high a count is too high?

2timer - I know how hard it is.  I actually participated in a study right after chemo was complete with Moffitt Cancer Center (the only NCI designated in FL) and the USF School of Nursing on Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction.  This study recruited patients who were just finished with the most active part of their treatment and was aimed at the anxiety that comes at that point.  For some it is almost as anxiety producing as when we are first diagnosed.  The goal of this study is to determine whether we can reduce stress hormones (cortisol) by fully understanding how to control stress levels with meditation and conscious thought.  They taught formal and informal meditation and how to focus on living in the moment we are in - letting go of regret about the past, and worry about the future.  This was a quantified study - blood and sputum samples, and I was about the 300th study participant - so they already had a good database of how well this works.  I have found that it has been most helpful in managing stress going forward - realizing that I can't control things.  There is a lot of info on the internet, and a helpful book, I will link it:

http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122

relocated - are they checking your WBC on the day of chemo?  That is what they should base the Neulasta decision on.  Your nadir (low point) for WBC is 7-9 days after your chemo.  The other issue is that WBC are high if you have an infection also so if you are feeling ill it may be due to that.  Ask your MO.

sorry for those feeling sad. It is a difficult time of year for many let alone with what you are all enduring. Xoxo

relocated - you should ask your MO - I just checked my CBC from treatment - I had them done weekly and have them in reverse chronological order.  I just paged through and the highest mine went was 14, but that happened regularly and was timed with the Neulasta.  Mine always fell, sometimes below the low normal threshold, and then came back up with the injection.  If you are on antibiotics for a previous infection this may be driving your WBC higher than normal.

sorry you feel terrible lgkgde.

This stuff is tough but something i have noticed is that thanks to this group I'm not in a panic over SE. If not for you guys i would question everything but now when i feel something i can remember it being mentioned here. It really does ease things.

I am not convinced that a low white count is related to fatigue.  All of your counts drop, so that includes red cells, which in turn lowers hemoglobin.  Hemoglobin, and low red cell count, is what drives chemo-induced anemia, which is different than something like a neutropenic fever or susceptibility to infection brought about by a low white count.  Hemoglobin is what oxygenates your muscles, so when it is low it takes more effort to do simple things one usually takes for granted, like moving around, because that requires use of thigh muscles - a typical site for burning that takes place once you are fully into chemo for many.  The nadir for WBC still occurs, but I don't think that your WBC usually drop into the danger zone because of the Neulasta injection.  The nadir action takes place but your WBC are boosted to a higher than normal level, so the nadir drops them into the normal range, thus offering you protection.

wren - yes, that is the purpose of Neulasta.  If you have an infection, or your WBC are too low, you can't get treatment.  Your hemoglobin will most likely drop, possibly in a stairstep fashion, where it drops, then recovers, then drops a bit lower than the first drop.  Consuming as much protein as possible is important to help keep your hemoglobin high enough - and to help with healing - you should aim for 100g a day, if possible.

I am day 10 after AC #4 and have been having rib pain on my left side-anyone else? Also, my implants have been really uncomfortable these last few days. Am I alone here?

Wrenn-I hope you feel better, I've been forcing myself to eat throughout all my treatments, it's hard!

Lgkde-Feel better! Don't worry about not taking your kids anywhere, I'm sure they're happy just to be off from school!

Relocated-after my first tx my wbc was 26, after 2nd was 14, gets lower each time & my doc always makes me get Neulasta.

To all you ladies feeling down, myself included, we just have to think about how great this time next year will be...

thanks everyone. Got up and showered today and took DD to therapy. I am now wiped!

Yeah it is weird how some things just make us nauseous. Ii can't barely drink anything with red coloring bc it reminds me of A. Yuck!!!

Vintagegal- I can't drink coffee yet and can't wait to be able too . My MO said it is common for people to not want things they typically like while doing chemo and to now like things they didn't before. So interesting... Egg salad hit the spot last night

Egg salad? We do have some strange cravings, don't we? A hamburger sounds really good to me right now... May have to go to In-n-Out (only those of you who have been to CA know that place). I made my favorite Christmas snowball cookies yesterday, but when I ate one, I couldn't taste it. ..... Sigh

I have been battling a really bad rash from the Taxotere this round, and I am an itchy mess. I put the post below on the CT board too, but just in case any of you have some advice on my Taxotere allergic reaction, here is the latest & my questions.....

____________

Rash has now turned into hives. I have welts (some 2 inches across) all over my groin, lower backside, both hips, upper abdomen, both elbows, one knee, underarms, nape of neck and even behind one ear. Taking Benedryl every 4 hours, on prednisone daily as prescribed, and rubbing Cortisone 10/Benedryl mixture on all of it about every 3 hours. The itch is generally mild with those treatments, but the rash got so much worse since yesterday, and I have been on steroids for 4 days now.... Hmmmm

Seems, like most allergies, that the Taxotere allergic reaction gets worse with each exposure. I have one more tx to go, so am dreading what more this could do to me. Do they ever adjust the dosage or give something else along with the infusion to head off worse reaction? Also, does anyone know if rads brings back the rash?

debdylan - swelling explains it - once done with chemo you should gradually lose it - you have to eat about 3500 calories and not burn them to gain a pound, so it is unlikely to be real "weight" but fluid weighs a lot.  If your rings are tight, or your shoes, it is most likely fluid.

teamkim - ask for some Atarax, it is a Rx, but it is good.

anyone have any head fuzziness? That's the best way to describe it. This is a new one for me. Not quite dizzy but just fuzzy. I am trying to keep fluids but I have been sleeping so much it is a challenge.

ok yeah little scary. I def can't drive with it...

SpecialK-- Thanks for the suggestion of Atarax. I will definitely ask for it -- read up on it and it sounds like just the thing to make sure tx 4 doesn't make my Christmas into an itchfest (or worse).

SC -- I never thought of an epipen. I will ask MO if the emergency situation would be the next step up for this allergy -- planning to make this rash/hives the main topic of conversation at my meeting with the MO this week.

Lg-- I have the fuzzy feeling sometimes -- it comes and goes. I would say it is "chemo brain," because I just space out sometimes and don't hear people or lose my train of thought in the middle of a sentence. A couple times when I was driving I felt a little unaware -- but by concentrating, I could get myself back together. I am a professor, so I have to lecture, but I warned my classes last week that the medications I take post chemo enable me to be a work, but sometimes they cloud my mind -- they have been great, and with good humor reminded me a couple of times so I didn't go off on a bizarre tangent!

Wrenn -- I think you said it on the other board so well -- this chemo really is awful stuff, and it damn well better work!!