Starting Chemo in December 2013

Hello ladies - 

Catching up on your posts.  I had my round 4 AC on Thurs. and was feeling crappy Sat  &  Sun. just now starting to get my energy back, if you can call it that.  I will start with douse dense Taxol next Thurs., but will go to weekly if it becomes too hard for me.  I will get the neulasta shots with the douse dense Taxol, I believe.  I take claritin the day before and for 3 days after, but I don't know if it really helps.  

I too crave carbs.  My weight goes up and down 5 to 6 pounds weekly.  I need to walk more; however, I work when I have energy and am tired by the time I get home from work.  My MO told me that my red blood count was down last week, but was in the normal for chemo range.  I guess that is why my energy level is not that great.  I will have a month break between chemo and rads. and plan on getting a camping trip in at the coast during this time.

I still have my eyelashes and brows, but my brows are getting thin.  I had thick brows before, and fill in with brow pencil.  It isn't really noticeable yet.  I am hoping they hang on.  

Kim

round 4 goes today ladies ... half way there.... praying for minimal side effects .... sending everyone luck wishes this week for treatment.  big hugs

Kimie-I'm praying for minimun side effects for you also.

I'm also craving carbs. That's what taste good. bread and butter, mashed potatoes and soup. I did feel good enough to go to zumba yesterday. Plan to exercise this week while I have the energy before next chemo on Monday

my appetite is so so these days. My biggest problem is dry mouth. Almost impossible to eat bagels (my favorite) without a sip of water with each bite.  Greek yogurt is my best friend these days.  Trying to get some protein drinks in also. Regular food is just so hard to chew and swallow.  I wake up in the middle of the night and my mouth is so dry I have to take a few sips of water.   

Best to those getting chemo this week.  I go Thurs for a blood count. Hopefully not lower then my last time when it was 1.0.  

Barbara

Kimie - Half way there, hoping you have an easy time with the SEs.

Mikesgirl - What type of cold packs will you be using.  My MO mentioned heat?  I need to do some research on this.  Any info. would be appreciated.

DJJ - My eyelashes have been itchy lately.  Were there any signs before your lashes started falling out?  I have never worn so much makeup in my life....just to look somewhat normal.  On Christmas, I forgot to put my fake boob in my bra and was in the middle of a conversation when I remembered.  Awkward.  

Kim

mikesgirl, what a great idea you have! I am not very handy. My husband ordered these two products from amazon, "Elasto gel hypothermia slippers and therapy mittens".  my nurse said people put them on during taxol infusion. It may not stay cold for the whole hour, but she said people used ice packs for the last 15 min if needed. This way you don't need to get two sets to save some money. 

For ladies who are going on trips, enjoy your much needed break and have a lot of fun! 

I have a sample of biotene  mouth rinse I will try. On my dentist's advise I have using a prescription high fluoride toothpaste to try to counteract the increased risk of cavities with a dry mouth. I mostly rinse with the baking soda washes 4 times a day and sip on water constantly, the. Dry mouth is starting to ease up now that it is 5 days post rx. 

Barbara. 

followed up with MO today. AC #2 set for Thursday. We are going to start dose dense now and will go to every 2 weeks instead of every 3 like was originally planned. 

So those of you on DD AC... Will it make me sicker going every 2 weeks as opposed to every 3?

Talking to MO about what's next. Taxol or Taxotere. Any of you ladies have any opinions on which to go with? Supposedly with Taxotere you don't get the neuropathy. 

KJFROMCA, No itchiness before I started losing my lashes,  They started coming out on round 2 and have been slowly getting thinner.  They just start pointing down and then fall out.  I have had irritated watery eyes since round 2. 

j4dz how are you feeling today?  Rash?  Mine cleared up after the 4th a/c.  I think because of the steroid.

CW, I also got high flouride toothpaste from my dentist.  I had a lot of mouth issues in Round 1 (mouth sores, thrush, etc).  I think the high-flouride toothpaste was not helping.  Now I use only Biotene from about Day 3-10+.  Somewhere around 10 (this time it was more like Day 12) my mouth is back to somewhat-normal.  Then I use the prescription toothpaste again.  

rhgsr, good luck on your TX tomorrow! I haven't heard of taxotere not having neuropathy as a possible SE. Not sure of the diff in the two.

Day 7 of 3rd TC. This round has not been as easy for me, but I am making it. I think with some good sleep, I will feel much better. If only I could figure out how to make that happen! Nothing seems to be working....

stay warm ladies!!!

beths1, I hope you are feeling better. weight gain is definitely annoying, but hopefully it will go away. My nurse said typically people gain 10-15 pounds during chemo because water retention. Steroid also cause some weight gain. I can see obvious changes in the first week post AC (my face is so round and red :-( ) then it is somewhat back to normal before starting again with the next treatment. I try to walk and do yoga/ Zumba dance when I can, it makes me feel better. 

Keepthefaith, I found 3rd AC takes longer to recover. It was not too bad overall, but I still have burned feeling in my tongue and queasy in the stomach at day 7. Sometime, it feels like having a very bad pregnancy. 

Hope everybody stay warm and feel good. 

Goldie, chances are you won't sleep well tonight so maybe being tired will help.  . Good luck tomorrow!

AC round 4 tomorrow...I asked for a 3 week break before Taxol, MO gave me that extra week.  Start Taxol on 2-13... Everyone has said it's easier, I hope so because having to weekly doesn't give us much recovery time