Told by phone, Invasive Ductile Carcinoma-- little other info

Thank you! You are so sweet and supportive.

I really am feeling pretty darn close to normal, which is GREAT!!! In fact, I worry that my appetite is just too good and I'm going to balloon up---but at least I'll be happy eating all that good food!

Yeah-- hard to tell what is better, losing or gaining. Probably better to stay the same, I guess! What a crazy way to lose weight!!!! I definitely wouldn't recommend it. Luckily, I didn't ever get down to skeletal during chemo. I ate as soon as I could eat and made up the 10 lbs I'd lose each cycle... otherwise it would have been scary. But by the last cycle it was getting a bit bad--anemia and low potassium, magnesium, etc.

I have always had a hard time losing weight, but after DX, I was running around to so many appointments--rushing to get the tests out of the way before chemo (and even then, I didn't get all the tests done! Had my breast MRI a month or so after my first chemo)... I didn't have time to eat and lost 20 lbs right away! I used to be around 150, but am still around 130 even though I just had two helpings of ice cream! --it's because I'm still have some diarrhea, I think! I'll have to watch what I eat when that stops. I'll probably balloon up like crazy.

Of course, it's still pretty pudgy around my middle! Absolutely the wrong place to carry fat, but unfortunately that's where it goes. Totally comes OFF my breasts first! *sigh*

Down-side to losing weight: I get to see where my skin is all thin and sagging! ugh. I think I looked a bit better with a bit more fat, really!

60 lbs is a lot to gain! I think I'd be even more ticked off at the cancer-- everything AND weight-gain, too? No fun!!! I'm hoping to try and stay around this current weight... maybe put on some muscle weight! My muscles are pretty weak by now. I'm going to not worry about all that until after rads are over, though! (Yes, I'm lazy and will use what excuses I can! -- but they really did tell me at the Cedars Breast Center that exercise programs usually waited until after!)

I've bought a little exercise bike but I haven't set it up yet! Haven't been to the gym since before DX (and not often even then!) I'm definitely not one of the most physically fit people around...! (Not to mention eating ice cream when I'm type 2 diabetic! But I've had it for 10 years and the tests show my numbers aren't bad... I get away with everything I can!)

I love ice cream! I was eating a lot of sorbet through chemo... it was about the only thing that still tasted good and felt nice to eat. And drank Carnation Instant Breakfast in milk... that was OK, too. Everything else== bleh! So that definitely contributed to weight loss!

Even now, I'm still getting diarrhea which is keeping me from absorbing all the calories I'm eating (from a fair amount of ice cream!). I've added a few pounds, still. I might as well enjoy eating like crazy while I can, though. If I go back to normal I'll have to go back to watching everything I eat (and usually failing!).

I'm hitting the half-way point of rads: 16 of 35 treatments. So far nothing dreadful happening, but they say most things will happen after this point, if they are going to happen... I've been applying aloe and calendula lotion, as they suggest. So far rads has been OK... but I think that's because it's not chemo!

My nails are wanting to lift, still! --mostly my little finger nails are separating at the tips--a bit over 1/3 the way down. Bleh. But so far haven't fallen off... Weird that it's happening months after chemo, but I guess people still do have chemo reactions for quite a while after.

Tomorrow is a holiday for the rads people, so I'm free, too! I'm just going to head home to OC and water my plants and relax! I'd stay up here with my sister's family, but I've been seeing them enough, lately, I think! It's nice for us all to have a little away-time!

I hope you have a good 4th of July!

Nash54 -- Thanks for stopping in! I had a nice 4th, thanks. I hope you did, as well.

SlowDeepBreaths -- Well, I'm starting, with treatment 23 done, to feel some effects. The whole treated area is now pink/red... I can see square area where I'm getting the rads. No blisters or anything... just tenderness and redness. I've been slathering lotions on. And thinking of getting something more comfortable to wear instead of my normal bras!

I have 2 more weeks to go...

So now I'm getting used to having red skin! I'll just have to hope nothing blisters and I'll be happy. Thanks for the good thoughts, Beppy!

Oh, I just started my Boosts. I had 28 regular treatments. The tech said they were protons and go all the way through the body, but in my case, was aimed so they went through my breast, first one side, then the other to get the angles right.

Now I'm having 8 Boosts of electrons. The electrons are bigger than the protons and will get stuck in the top layers of cells (skin and breast tissue) and shouldn't shoot all the way through the body, so they have the machine directly over me, instead of on each side.

They use a block of copper, about 4" square and an inch thick, with a cloud-like hole lasered through it. It's made just for me and should limit the radiation to the area of my tumor and incision. And the pulses don't even make a sound (unlike the humming/buzz of the regular treatments), and is very short. BUT, they told me that my skin will definitely get redder and will peel! Bleh.

They said to just keep slathering the lotions on... and that's it. It'll be interesting to see how it goes.

Have a good week, Beppy!

Hope it's not too hot and humid for you. We've been getting some weird rainstorms this summer... although I didn't mind. Saved me from watering the plants outside last weekend!

I thought we were in for more humidity and maybe some sprinkles this week, but it seems not. Hot, but not humid, so it actually feels OK to me! I couldn't believe how humid it was that rainy weekend! Felt like I was in Florida or somewhere like that!

The boosts seem to be different depending on the location of the tumor, or at least that's what they told me. I'm guessing that the block is instead of a bolus. The bolus concentrated the radiation, and the block seems to block the radiation from everywhere but the exact spots they want it, so it's sort of like what a bolus would do...??? The cut out cloud shape was pretty odd! You'd think a sort of oval shape would work just as well, but I guess they figure if they are going to make an individual stencil-shape, they might as well follow it exactly!

The tech seemed pretty certain I'd get red and peel half-way and/or until a week or so after treatments ended. Hmmm! Oh, well. If that's all that happens, I guess I can deal.

I hope you had a good time with your visitors!

Yes, I am finished with rads!!!! I JUST finished last Wednesday. I had 28 whole-breast and 8 boosts. I only had a lot of reddening of the skin but no blisters or breakdowns... I guess that's why they added a boost (originally they said 7 boosts... so I wasn't sure I'd be finished until the day before the last!).

Now I'm 5 days out and boost area got very red and is still red, but peeling is very light--not noticeable except that the brown skin has gotten a lot lighter and there's a bit of shiny pink in the boost area that must be the new skin peeking through. I was worried I might see blistering or big patches of skin peeling--but nothing like that! Whew!

I think it's the worrying about what MIGHT happen that contributes to a lot of the worries. Now that it's over, I have to say that RT was just fine. I only had some fatigue--wanted to nap on some days, but not constantly. I didn't feel sick at all--no nausea, or fever or any other SEs. No pain. I still have a seroma filling the tumor bed and at the incision--it just feels hard under the skin, but it's not visible. It kind of feels tight sometimes, but nothing bad. Skin feels itchy at times, and hot/irritated, but not bad. I loved chatting with the friendly RT techs and nurse and receptionist. They were so upbeat and cheery. They gave me a certificate and a card signed by them and the doctors--it was very sweet! I sent them a little gift (snack) box. They totally deserved it because they really made the experience pleasant and even fun. The treatments got me out of the house every day and I felt good--went out to eat and walk about a bit for some exercise.

Now, I have no excuse not to go back to my house and do all the repairs and cleaning that I've been putting off since November! aaaagh! It's a bit weird to have all treatments all the time almost over (I'm still getting Herceptin every 3 weeks and will start on hormonal treatment of some kind). Oh, geesh...

and I'll have to get back to other medical problems like my thyroid nodules (might have a surgery in my future there... but at least I'll have more of an idea how surgery will be like now). Ah, the joys of dealing with real life!

So far I haven't noticed any SEs from Herceptin, but who knows? Something could happen down the road. My MO said I'd be getting it for a year, but they start counting from cycle 1 of Chemo, so that's less time than I thought!

I was worried about my skin from the RT, but it's just a week and a half after and already the skin is looking a lot better. It's surprising how quickly all that red/brown color goes away. I've still got hard lumps of seratoma at my tumor bed, but it doesn't hurt.

Thyroid nodules. I've had them for years, actually. My endo biopsied them right away and they came back as the typical benign nodules. I was getting ultrasounds of them every year and a bi-annual check up with biopsy maybe every other year? They weren't growing... until right early last year! Then my endocrinologist said I should probably get them out, since they can biopsy, but they can't check every bit... Although the risk of cancer is still low in them. Usually they just get big enough to maybe interfere with swallowing, so they need to get removed. I had a surgical consult when I was at Kaiser. Surgeon said he didn't think it was a problem unless they bothered me. He gave me his card and just said to call him if I felt like getting them out. And that's where I was when I got my BC dx.

Now... my new general wants me to get a biopsy since I haven't had one in a while. They don't seem in a huge hurry about it. I've been getting thyroid levels checked all this time and they fluctuated during chemo, but before that and after that, they have been in standard ranges.

My nodules are getting pretty big, though! I can feel the lump in my left side, although it doesn't look obvious. It definitely sticks out a bit. I haven't had any swallowing problems... but I'm guessing it's only a matter of time before I have to get one or both sides removed...

Nodules are pretty common, as far as I know. They mostly watch them in case they show abnormal growth, I think... But in most cases, the nodules aren't cancerous. But they often will remove the tyroid just in case...

Good luck with yours! It's an easy biopsy-- tiny needle, wasn't ever painful for me. Usually they do ultrasounds, and those are easy.

Your swallowing might not be affected that much by your thyroid... maybe this would be a good Crazy Town story, but I sometimes would swallow the wrong way and start coughing my head off and I was sure it was my thryroid nodules growing big and messing with my throat... but oddly enough, after my nodules grew bigger last year I've had LESS swallowing problems (although just did it again a few days ago--didn't have a problem all through chemo and surgery and rads...). So maybe it's a mental thing-- I get all self-conscious and THINK about it and then choke myself by swallowing down the wrong pipe??? Now I'm back to worrying about my thyroid so it happens again???

I'm not keen on getting rid of my thyroid, either, since nothing weird shows up on my tests (no hypo- or hyper-), or at least, nothing that they actually test for! I've heard women complain of stuff that could be the thyroid, and might still be, but test normal... of course, it's stuff like lack of energy, which I complain of... and that's mostly because I hate house-work, so I'm not sure...! But getting rid of your thyroids means taking more meds! I asked the docs about it, but they seemed to poo-pooh concerns, saying "Oh, that's no problem!" Huh, well not for THEM!

My nodules are pretty darn big and I haven't had any real problems yet. I was envisioning them getting to be those huge growths that people sometimes think of 3rd world people having when you call them goiters... (same thing, just nodules gone crazy)... I definitely don't want to wait until they get that bad! Mine seem mostly disguised by my sagging neck, I think! ...bleh.

Well... I hope your nodules aren't going to be a problem and will stay the size they are and are all benign (as most all are!).

I've had friends who have had theirs out and seem to be fine, so there's that, too.

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Thanks for the invite to your thread! It looks interesting! I'll put it in my Favorites and post there... maybe tomorrow when I might be a tad more coherent (it's late-ish now... I should try not to stay up all night, but it's so nice and cool now--unlike in the daytime when it's still been pretty warm, although not as bad as the weekend...)

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Take care and have a good week!

I thought my nodules were just neck-fat, too! But my general doc saw it when I was lying down on a table for some sort of exam and I'm sure he thought I should have noticed... But really, I was just used to a puffy, saggy neck! I think I had a slight double-chin since I was 5 years old! Of course NOW I can really tell I've got some pretty huge nodes.

I haven't done anything about my thyroid since the bc DX... These days, if the docs aren't dragging me in for some treatment I'm not going to worry about pursuing something like that. I KNOW they know about it... Next time I go in for my general doc for a followup I guess I'll see what he wants to do...

I just started on my Hormonal treatment today. I think it goes on for 5 years? Hopefully I won't get brittle bones and more hot flashes... I thought I was done with the hot flashes! And I thought we already had a big risk for osteoporosis? Geesh. Oh, well. What can ya do?

'Hope you are doing well!

I was talking to a woman in the infusion clinic today and she said she was trying to fit tests around a trip to Greece! Now that sounds like a great trip! I don't have any great trips planned, sadly. I DO need to get my skylight fixed before rains start, especially if there's going to be an El Nino... I just worry that if they mess with the skylight it will end up leaking worse, those things are so tricky that way! But, gotta just do it instead of procrastinating, I suppose... *sigh*

I've only been on Arimidex for 2 weeks, so it's hard to say if I'm going to have SEs... I had some rapid heart-beats last Sunday, but I think it was just dehydration. And lately, I've been more fatigued than anytime during rt... but I think it's just my body still recovering (or maybe I just really needed a nap?).

Anyway, nothing dire so far, so I'll be hopeful!

Did you have Herceptin for a year? Or only during chemo? --I'm still getting it until December, I think.

Hope you're doing OK with the crazy weather! It was almost like living in Florida for a few days there, with the hot, humid weather. My stupid skylight leaked a bit more during the rain. *sigh* I really do need to get that fixed, I guess...!!!

I was feeling pretty good all through RT. But NOW I've had some fatigue and my joints are creaky and my hands hurt... Might be the Arimidex? I'm on that and Herceptin every 3 weeks... So hard to tell! Might just be me getting old and creaky! I was on Herceptin through RT and wasn't all that fatigued...

Anyway, I'm sure you are fine not having that last dose. So you felt less fatigue after that? I hope I get some energy once I'm off Herceptin. DId you have a port? DId you get it out after that?

Still warm weather! But not as bad as last week, at least.