Starting Chemo January 6, 2014

Marren I go for week 6 of Taxol this week, (yay, half way through) I have had a complete response, but the only thing they took off the table was radiation.

I am SOOOO EXCITED!!!    

I know this seems crazy, but Tuesday is my 5th round of chemo.  Do you know what that means???  ONE MORE!!!!  ONE!!! ONE!!!!  It seems like it has been an eternity, but that thought of only having to do this one more time is soooo exciting to me!  My dad is going to my treatment on Tuessday and that just makes me smile and cracks me up.  My dad is a character - I'm sure we will be misbehaving and giggling most of the time. 

I cannot wait until my last treatment!  I am wearing my t-shirt that says, "Cancer, you picked the wrong bitch!"  and bringing champagne!  What a journey - it has been insane!  I guess i shouldn't start celebrating yet, but I'm just relieved to finally see a light at the end of this god awful long tunnel!

For everyone with surgeries coming up - you will be so relieved once your tumor(s) are removed.  Keep that in your mind these coming weeks.  It will hopefully help.  And remember that even if the chemo did not shrink your tumor, it hopefully has killed any cancer cells that may have escaped via lymph nodes or blood stream.  That is what I am hoping for.

The skin on my hands is starting to peel.  Does anyone have any advice?  Vitamin B?

Also, there are bruises forming under my fingernails.  They are not horribly painful (I have worse problems), but it hurts to do regular things like opening a jar, grabbing socks from a laundry basket, doing buttons.  Is anyone else experiencing this?

Thanks carolsue   Makes me feel better knowing the problem went away.  Good luck with your treatments, you have been through a lot.

Has anyone had this happen?  This weekend, wasn't feel well.   So, like we have been trained to do, I took my temperature.  It was 102.1... UH OH!!!  Couple minutes later...  101.5...  so I called the doctor who told me to head to the emergency room.  I get there and of course, I no longer have a fever.  WTH!!! Had a ton of blood work, chest xray, pee in a cup, all came back fine so sent home with an all clear.  I just don't understand why I had a temp at home.  Has this happened to anyone else?  I wonder if I just go overheated or something....

Curlyq - I had this happen also.  A couple of weeks ago, I watched my temp creep up all morning.  It got up to 101 at home.  I was also pretty cold, had jacket and blankets on me.  Once it got to 100.5, I called MO.  They had me come right in.  Lots of blood work, pee in cup.  All came back fine.  And, yes, no fever once I got there.  They thought I might have had something viral.  Waste of a day...
I hope the sun is shining where you are, it is here .

desimone

good to hear no problems on taxol yet and hope you sail through it.  I go for #10 this week, 17 days until the last one. 12 weeks seems like forever but it is going by pretty fast. 

Barbara

Smartasssmurf(I love that name ) hopefully your liver will stop acting up!

I know this will sound bad, but after 5 Taxol treatments I wish my blood counts would go ahead and bottom out so I can get a transfusion and get over the se's of anemia.  My WBC was 3.9 yesterday, Hematocrit-26.3, Hemoglobin-9.3, RBC 2.89.  Just whining--I know we all are going through this journey with the same problems.

Wishing a s/e free day for everyone!!

oh wabbit I am envious. I have not gotten to skip blood work.  I h ave to go every week. and I always get stuck with the chick that is not so good.  I am black and blue. I am afraid to say anything for fear it will get worse.

Crazy - I do not use EMLA, they use a freezing spray on me.  You should ask for it if you forget the cream again.

Is anyone else having breakouts on their face?  My skin was beautiful on A/C, but now on Abraxane (a taxane, like Taxol) after 3 weekly treatments it just started to break out.  I'm red and blotchy.

Not acne, just red blotches and some small pimples.  Taxane side effect - yes, that is what I was thinking.

noticed last evening when I was sitting next to someone at a dinner that my finger nails are very pearly pink colored. Not deep pink like my friends regular nails but they look like I painted then a light whitish pink. They are still growing and I just trimmed them yesterday. Still stuck down to the nail bed, not flaking or lifting but just very pale looking, I know my hemoglobin is in the upper 10's so it is not pale from anemia.  I keep them covered with a clear nutrient polish. 

Funny the toe nails look normal. 

Another taxol down today (#10). I drove myself to and from the CTC.  With the lower dose of Benedryl I  am not drowsy. Luckily I only live 5 blocks away. I figured if I was to dopy to drive I would walk home and walk back later in the evening to pick up my car. But I was fine. I actually enjoyed being there by myself.  I visited with a friend who was there for her last chemo for lymphoma. She brought the nurses cookies today. Read the newspaper and a book on IPad. Also got 4 phone calls from friends who all wanted to know if I needed a ride home. It was nice to have some quiet time.  

Barbara

The A/C just made me feel rotten - no precise way to describe it, but for 4-5 days I would be extremely fatigued and nauseous (but still able to eat, if that makes sense) and just want to sleep the days away because I was so miserable. The Taxol has been kind to me so far (I've only had 4 infusions) in that I can still carry on my normal life for the most part. A/C made me a hermit for the better part of two months.