Starting Chemo May 2017

Breastlessb.  I mentioned to my family members that I had no problems whatsoever with mosquitos this year, not ONE bite!  I guess insects are smarter than we think.  ha ha.  They see us glow in the dark and run away screaming.

Lovepugs.  I am on Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin. 

bcfighter2017- sorry to hear about your SE. My MO told me if I didn't have bone pain from Neulasta, I might not get it with Taxol but I sure did. MO told me to try Aleve so I take one every 12 hours when bone pain/joint pain starts. I had a treatment Wednesday and so far bone pain has been very minimal. Hope you can find what works for you soon

hello, sisters.

Please excuse if I sounf like a broken record or quack naturopath(spelling)

I just completed 4DD AC and 4DD taxol. I know for sure my dosages were very strong. Ex my red devil was 1160 mg and taxol dosage was about 320 mg. The main reason I was able to survive was Epsom Salt scrub/bath. Yes I did have to get low dose hydrocodone for taxol pain. Please try it at least once. Magnasium sulfate is good for you body. It soothes muscle aches and.pains. it helps you sleep better. It even moisturizes and exfoliates skin. And the last, I never got to ice my hands and feet but have zero problem w neuropathy probably thanks to the salt.

One more thing, if you have had any lymph nodes.removed, please ck w your health insurance company about flexitouch pump. The pump makes a huge diff for me.

Mimi

Taxol weekly #7 / 12 now done. I kept hair thru week 4, held out a week before shaving to about an inch. Still have few hairs on top, more on sides and back by neck, could wear baseball cap but got folliculitis this last week, rubs on sores, little red pimple marks on head, Dr prescribed Mupirocin ointment today, should clear it up. Use nothing at home, have a thin tye-dyed beanie that is soft that I use when I go out.

For me, first 3 weeks were harder, probably learning how to get along, nap or rest in afternoon and eat blander foods both helped. Now less intense, sure happy about that, more consistent and tolerable side effects...day or 2 of muscle aches, thank God no constipation but have most meals run thru me, less stomach pain since taking Omeprazole, nose runs, usually have 1 day that I am out of it and feels better to rest more. Even though RBC running below normal, energy levels good most days.

Last week, I got to switch benedryl infusion to lower dose pill. Doesn't knock me out so much, more enjoyable infusion day.

I agree, concentration is more difficult and get little bouts of light headedness or dizzy, but doesn't last long.

I think my eyesight is changing but probably just age. I think it's about time for yearly eye check up.

Only 5 more weekly Taxol + Herceptin infusions, then DD Herceptin every 3 weeks for 9 months with no pre drugs. It will be 30 minute infusion versus 3.5 to 4.5 hours for blood work, pre drugs, Taxol and Herceptin each week. Crazy what puts a smile on my face.

This is infusion day or what I call my steroid night, even my sleeping pill doesn't help me much on this day. I still have lots of energy evening of steroid night and next morning.

Hope everyone has a good week.

Just finished taxol/herceptin #6 today. Went well, port behaved. I got about 4 hrs sleep last night. I found if I lay awake for more 1-2 hrs I just get up. Each week seems better, settled in to routine, know what to expect and how to manage things. Looking ahead to finishing. Thankful everyday that this has so manageable and know how lucky I am. This group has been so helpful and supportive.

Sca - Hi. Taxol does affect your eye sight. I was told it was temporary and not to get new glasses until a couple months after chemo is done. Just an FYI for what it is worth.

Thank you all for your updates on Taxol. With any luck I'll have my first Taxol treatment on 7/13. I say that because yesterday I went in for my "low point" labs and my WBC was not just very low (as expected), but the lowest yet by .1 (not expected). Since my 4th and final AC chemo treatment on 6/29 the SEs seem to have suddenly shown up. Must be cumulative in my case. The skin of my hands both front and back have turned a gray hue. I've totally lost my sense of salty and savory flavors, making it impossible to enjoy food (everything tastes like cardboard) and difficult to cook. Sweet and spicy are over-accentuated so just as unsatisfying. Because my WBC goes so low at nadir I have had to forego raw fruits and vegetables from Day 4-10, which brought on constipation. The Senna-S prescription I was given eventually works, but I should have been more proactive in taking it. Despite my use of Biotene rinse and water/salt/baking soda mixture, I did get one mouth sore that was quite painful. Thankfully, it quickly cleared up with use of a magical ointment from Japan (Sato Oral Ointment). Still, I haven't yet suffered through nausea, muscle or bone pain or extreme fatigue, so I'm going to focus on building my immunity (staying away from crowds, getting enough rest, forcing myself to eat well, and visualizing hard working bone marrow) so I can move forward with Taxol on Thursday. I hope my SEs are manageable and that I "settle in" as you all seem to be doing. It's going to be a long 12 weeks, so I'll be sure to keep reading about your progress for motivation and strength.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and that you're each enjoying your summer, wherever you are!

msrobin58 - my MO said Taxol would be much easier than AC and overall, so far (6 of 12 Taxol completed ) Taxol is easier than AC in that I don't feel nauseous at all and am not out of commission on days 4-5 after AC

But- Taxol is definitely cumulative in its SE and since my plan is treatment each week so I miss the week of feeling good between AC treatments. Right now, my best days are the treatment day plus those 2 days after where pre-meds rule

My MO said if I didn't have bone pain from Neulasta, I probably wouldn't have any with Taxol but that wasn't true for me. I have treatments on Wednesdays and now take Aleve on Saturday thru Monday each week. Doesn't eliminate the pains but makes them tolerable. My most annoying SE is how dry my sinuses are making it feel like I can't breath thru my nose which dries out my mouth and lips. I use Ocean saline spray to try to keep moisture in my sinuses and use Ayr Gel to keep the tissue just inside nose well moisturized.

I also have my first mouth sore. Recommend water,salt, baking soda mouth rinse after eating.

No neuropathy or nail raising yet but there is still time for that SE I am icing hands and feet during Taxol.

I have had to take Pepcid a couple of times a week with Taxol.

Regarding white blood cell counts- no Neulasta with Taxol but each week my WBC number is lower than the week before. Last week it was 5.2 which is plenty high enough for the next treatment but is keeps dropping 2 tenths of a point weekly

Just new/different SE to deal with and no breaks between weekly treatments makes me miss the week off with AC but overall, I function much better with Taxol than AC

Wishing you the best as your journey continues.

Well I have finally managed to put the Red Devil of AC behind me. I can't get too excited yet because treatment day itself isn't the hard part. The difficult two weeks that follows are the real challenge. I just never know what's going to happen exactly, since I've had all manner of SE on my journey. All I know is that soon AC's ugly effects will be behind me, and I can move forward into the Taxol adventure.

While they keep telling me it will be easier, it sounds like it will mostly just be different. Less nausea and less neutropenia will be most welcome! But the trade off sounds like more pain related SE. I'm more confident in my ability to handle pain. After all, I've had a bone on bone bad knee that was excruciating and was eventually fully replaced. That stuff is not for sissies, so pain doesn't scare me as much as the tummy troubles I've been dealing with.

Either way, my last AC treatment is behind me and I sure won't miss it!

Yesterday i had my #2 DD Taxol (half way done with taxol :-) ) . Infusion day went fine and today because of steroids feeling ok.

My White blood count was critically high this time (42.27) so Doctor cancelled the Nuelasta shot for me . Hopefully when WBC go down in a week i dont get sick

Since i had joint pains last time , MO told to take aleve so will take it first thing tomorrow morning and will continue for another 4-5 days.

Praying for less SE this time

yes - I have been searching for others! Just has my fourth AC THIS Monday - awake on Steriods lol 😂

please let me know how you go on Taxol - just had my last AC (was every 3 weeks) and start my first of 12 taxols in 19 days - waiting on my last lot of AC SE's to kick in... lol not a fun wait!

Hi I'm triple neg as well just finished my AC on Monday July 17 - staring 12 weeks Taxol on August 7th - wishing you well

Sca- had Taxol 8 yesterday and here I am almost 2 am WIDE AWAKE again. Like you, with weekly Taxol, my best days are the day before treatment and the day of treatment. Developed my 2ns mouth sore over the weekend-- the first one cleared up with salt, water, baking soda rinse that I took after eating anything and Blistix Kanka directly on the sore a couple of times a day so doing that with the 2nd treatment. Having restless leg syndrome now. Finding it hard to just sit even during infusion. Found out yesterday that SE is probably from the Benadryl in the premeds

I just keep looking down the road -- 4 more treatments. We can do this. Maybe sleep is overrated (said sarcastically). Wish I could just get a good might's slee