Chemo choices for Triple Negative

I'm surprised they're giving you a choice. Option 1 is the standard for triple negative, even early stage. It's what I had, and what other women I know had as well.

The regimen is tough, but doable. You will lose your hair, but hair grows back. You may have nausea, fatigue, mouth issues. Make sure you tell your chemo nurses when you have a problem. They have meds to help with just about anything.

It's daunting to think about doing the heavy duty chemo. But I think, at least for me, it was totally worth it. You'll be amazed at just how quickly the time goes by. Before you know it, you'll be done, and getting ready for surgery.

Be kind to yourself, accept any help that's offered and hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

Best wishes.

Trish

I'm stage 1, triple negative, clear nodes. My oncologist was going to do #1 when he suspected my nodes were involved. He now is going to do #2. He told me that he wants to hold the big guns (#1) in case we need it later. There is only so much adriamycin that the heart can have, and he doesn't want to tax it unnecessarily.

In terms of "rogue" cells, he told me there may be one or two that broke free and got out, and that we wouldn't know it until that one or two was close to one million (the size to see). So, chemo, here I come!

I am TN, stage II, grade 3 with no nodes involved. Doctor suggest chemo before surgery. I will be getting option1 which was the only thing offered to me. No radiation was discussed. I would get Taxol in the 12 weeks. I read Taxotere causes permanent hair loss so I wouldnt do that one if I were you.

Question, If your nodes are negative after biopsy the doctors dont perform sentinal dissection during surgery anyway do they? or depends on situation? I've seen the risk involved with lymph node removals and I want no part of it if my biopsy was negative. any thoughts?

Faithmatters- did you ice during Ac or Taxol or both? Also can you take B6 with a multivit orbis that too much?

I would say the best time to visit would be towards the end of chemo when the SE’s are at their worst and the body is the most tired. Then she will also know how she reacts after chemo. Some people the first few days are hardest while others it’s 5-7 days out. It might also be nice, if you can, to be there for the first once since it’s her first time going through the whole process. sorry you both are going through this, but on the plus side you both can relate to each other and be a strong support

After treatment is done a lot of the side effects go away. There are some that can last for a long time or permanently. Some women become menopausal, develop neuropathy (ranging from slight numbness and pain to sever...could go away, get not as bad, or be permanent), chemo brain (this usually goes away after treatment although I feel more forgetful and not as sharp as I used to be and being only 30 I don’t think it’s the normal aging process).

I felt better every day once chemo was done. It just takes time. Like land healing after a war...that’s how I thought of my body anyways.

I’ve also had that combo

Dleon24 - I’m sorry you feel so bad. This is a hard diagnosis, but you’ll get through this.

First, many cancer centers don’t use thecancer markers because they find it unreliable.

Chemo is highly recommended in your case. I did AC and T. No, it isn’t a great time, but if I didn’t do it I think I’d really spend all of my time worrying. This TN is no joke - throw all you can at it.

For your own mental health, try not to google TN. We are all guilty, but the internet is not your friend. Your prognosis is very good! Remember, TN has a “poorer “ prognosis - this does not mean an overall poor one!

I am 22 months out from diagnosis. Yes, I still think about it every day, but I live a happy life. I remember that crushing fear and sadness you are now experiencing, especially with children. My advice is to love them hard and remember you are strong. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Cry and rage as necessary. You don’t deserve this. Life goes on and you’ll be happy again

You will get through this and we are here to help!

Dleon24, I'm sorry to read of your scary diagnosis, but it is definitely NOT hopeless! VL22 has an excellent point when it comes to the term, "poor" prognosis; that is, poor is mostly referring to a comparison to early stage estrogen positive cancers that have an extremely high survival rate. Surprisingly, there is a little good news about being triple negative. We don't have to endure 5 to 10 years of hormone altering drugs that often produce body aches and other side effects. A huge study some years ago show that while our cancer is more dangerous in the short term, we rarely have a recurrence after 8 years. I think it may be under the "You CAN Survive Triple Negative" topic that many ladies, like mb1024, check in noting that they are many years past diagnosis and treatment with no recurrence.

Lyn