Apparently I Am "Just Diagnosed." :(

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    Hey -2. I'm glad we are back to "Houston Winter"... 76 degrees today!!

    I'm having my second chemo tomorrow at MDA main building. I'll have to get there early to figure out where the heck I need to be in that maze. My hair decided to start shedding today, dang it.

    Hope everyone is doing well.

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited February 2021

    LW - my house was 82. Eeek. RE: hair - I was told to do a buzz cut and not totally shave my head. I did that after my 2nd Taxotere and it worked out well. Find a nice soft "cap" that you can wear. It kept the hairs off my clothes & my pillow. You can remove all the pointy little hairs with a lint roller

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    Thanks, -2. I guess I'm going to have to call my hairdresser or my daughter and get that buzz cut after all. :( I have a couple of soft knit caps I ordered from Amazon; I was hoping not to need them but so far I am 0 for 10 with "cancer wishes."

    Hope you are doing well. Our poor yard is going to need re-landscaping after that stupid extended freeze. Everything out there is dead.

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited February 2021

    I spent most of today trimming & pruning dead mushy plants & bushes. Ugh.

    I really found a buzz cut better than a total shave. Maybe more hassle but not so itchy.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    Well, I called my hairdresser and she will cut my hair on Saturday after the shop closes so no one else will be in there. I'm not going for a buzz yet... more of a pixie I think. I dread it but I see the writing on the wall. :crybaby:

    I'm off for chemo #2. Hope it goes smoothly today.

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  • Beesy_The_Other_One
    Beesy_The_Other_One Member Posts: 274
    edited February 2021

    LW, I really understand your emotions. So many of us have been there. I literally fell apart the day I lost the eyelashes (after chemo was all over, which is common with TCHP). I appreciate hair and eyelashes so much more now. A real bonus that came from this is that I never thought I could wear short hair, but it turns out I can and love it. I would have NEVER been brave enough to have done it pre-cancer and it turns out, I was wearing my hair the wrong way--for my whole life. You have to try to find the positives in this big mess of negatives. I really learned a ton about wigs and ordered two--one was great looking but less comfortable. The second looked so much like my hair and was so comfortable (there are things to look for) that my surgeon who's known me since I was 35 said after my BMX that he didn't recognize me when he walked into the surgery because he assumed I'd preserved my hair with cold caps. When I ditched the wig when my hair was ¼", I had friends who were then surprised because they did not think I'd lost my hair during chemo because the wig was so good. If I can help you, I'd be happy to help assuming you're interested in a wig.

    For what it's worth, I think you are smart not to buzz. I let my daughter shave my head and to do it over, I would chop it short and not completely buzz it. Hope chemo is smooth sailing today!

    ps Minus, you were so smart to deal with the mushy plants before it is going to rain for a week! I was not so wise.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    Hey Beesy. Yeah, I think the pixie will be a better choice for me. I don't like to think of short buzzed hairs being all over everything...I guess it seems like slightly longer hair will be easier cleanup but I'm probably wrong. The fact is, none of us wants any of it but here we are. I'll be a pixie-head (at least for a few days) on Saturday.

    I had kind of a weird thing happen at chemo today; posted it in the February 2021 Chemo thread so I won't clog this thread with the redux.

    Thanks for posting about your experiences; I did buy a couple of wigs so we'll see how it goes. I hope you are doing well these days.

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited February 2021

    LW - be sure to have lint remover rollers on hand. They work great on your head for those short hairs, and on your pillow. I slept in a cap so didn't have the issue in bed, but the rollers worked great on the cap too.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    I've got my lint rollers ready, -2!! I need a rake to get all the long hair out of the bedroom carpet; it really decided to "let loose" today.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    I didn't do so well at the salon. When my stylist made the first cut, big ole' tears started to fall. It's like cancer is taking everything from me these days. Anyhow, now I have my "boy hair" and I really hate it, but it will all be gone in a few days so what difference does it make anyhow. :-s

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited February 2021

    LW - I hated 'boy hair' too, but as you said - it won't last long. Hang in there girl.

    When my hair started growing back, I was so excited to get enough for a 'pixie'. Still, I've spent 95% of my life with long hair - at least shoulder length but often much longer. It was a major downer. I actually never bothered to grow my hair out again since 2014. But now...Covid hair and I look sort of like a witch. Hmmm - what to do. Think I'll try to get it trimmed to shoulder length.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    -2, I'm just having a couple of down days. My cup is half empty right now and I'm in full blown "poor me" mode.

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  • Harley07
    Harley07 Member Posts: 164
    edited February 2021

    LW422 - please be good to yourself. You have had your world turned upside down in the past few weeks so allow yourself to grieve the loss of what was. Hang in there - we are thinking of you

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2021

    it is horrible LW, but you can do this.image

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited February 2021

    Harley and Astrid-- thanks bunches. I'm having one of those "circling the drain" days. Boo hoo, poor me. :crybaby:

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  • Beaverntx
    Beaverntx Member Posts: 3,183
    edited February 2021

    LW, one of the many books I read/looked at about being diagnosed with cancer devoted an entire section to giving permission to yourself to cry when you need to. So go ahead and boo hoo today and then show up tomorrow.

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  • YesIamaDragon
    YesIamaDragon Member Posts: 363
    edited March 2021

    Oh my goodness LW< you were JUST diagnosed and JUST started chemo! Holy cow, give yourself time to cry, take a nice bath, it is all ok.

    I shaved my head when my hair just started falling out ALL AT ONCE! It was weird. I had long very thick curly hair. I was surprised how people didn't notice that I was wearing a wig! They just thought I had suddenly gotten a hair cut, straightened and highlighted. At any rate, as my family joked, it has so far grown back straight, but given that it is still quite short and I have been having to cut it myself during COVID, that is probably for the best. Growing out curly hair is a nightmare.

    But none of that do you need to even think about yet. Right now, you are of course completely allowed to be as glass-half-empty as you feel! It is completely fine to be not fine!

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited March 2021

    LW - when's your next chemo?

    On the plus side- with 82 degree weather your head won't be cold - I'm LOL even though I KNOW it's not really funny to you right now. Hang in there girl. And yes, do take time to grieve.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    Thanks, all. It's just "one foot in front of the other" these days. My next chemo is on Wednesday. Other than emo, I'm feeling pretty good these days and not having significant SE's, so I'm grateful for that at least.

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  • ShazzaH
    ShazzaH Member Posts: 5
    edited March 2021

    Hi, I’ve only just seen your post from December because I haven’t logged in for ages. I just wondered how you got on & what they eventually diagnosed you with, and how treatment is going if it was BC? 

    I was diagnosed with IBC 3 years ago. 

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    Hello Shazza. I was diagnosed with IDC and IBC. So far my treatment has been chemotherapy (Taxol). I will follow Taxol with AC, then mastectomy, then radiation.


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  • pesky904
    pesky904 Member Posts: 402
    edited March 2021

    Hi LW422, just wondering how you're doing? Can I ask your age/are you pre/peri/post menopausal?

    I too had a thickened endometerium last year (3 years post stage III TNBC dx). Had the biopsy, turned out okay and was supposed to have a follow up transvaginal US last fall but because of Covid I've been putting everything off.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    Hello Pesky (cute nickname!) I'm way past menopause; in my late 60's. I'm doing OK except I have cancer. :biggrin: I'm certainly no expert, but I'd say if you had a clean biopsy last year, it's no biggie to postpone the followup for a bit. I hope everything turns out well for you. I had already decided that if there were malignant cells in my uterus, I'd be happy to let it go. My GYN said a hysterectomy would be done at the same time as my mastectomy, but as it turned out I don't need it after all.

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  • DH320
    DH320 Member Posts: 23
    edited March 2021

    Hi,

    I've been diagnosed in January and are still trying to process. I stumbled across your pages googling.

    I still got one more mri guided biopsy in front of me and then my docs deciding which way we're going.

    I have a invasive ductal carcinoma 2.8cm right breast with axillary metastasis. After a mri they found a 1cm irregular mass and enlarged lymph node in the left breast. At the moment I'm feeling helpless and overwhelmed.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    Hello DH320 and welcome to the club no one wants to join. We can all understand how you are feeling right now, so feel free to talk about your fears and ask any questions. We'll try to help if only to let you know that we are here, and we understand. Once you get a full diagnosis and a treatment plan in place, you won't feel quite as anxious. It is a bumpy ride, but we are here for you.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    So today my treatment room was near the nurse's station. Two of the nurses were discussing another patient who had died and I found it extremely distasteful. Apparently the woman had been diagnosed and then lived less than 6 months, and they were saying how sad it is.

    Yes, it's sad. It also does not need to be discussed where nervous people currently in treatment can hear you. I guess I'm more sensitive than I used to be about stuff.

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited March 2021

    Absolutely. Sensitivity to working environment is key. A word or email to N.IC might benefit them and help fine their care.

    How are you doing L-Dub?

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    Hey Astrid. I'm doing well; how are you? I have Taxol #3 under my belt as of today, so moving right along.

    I get "patient surveys" periodically so I will definitely send my thoughts on the nurses' discussion today. I was surprised that they were not more sensitive to their work environment.

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited March 2021

    Hi and welcome DH320.

    So sorry you are going through this, but glad you found this wonderful website.

    Once you have your full diagnosis you can find a few threads here that you relate to, like for chemo or radiation treatment, staging, or type of cancer like your IDC and also your hormonal status.

    So much to go through yet, and no wonder you are feeling overwhelmed!

    Keep us posted as you get more unfo. It sounds like you might have bi-lateral breast cancer. I had that..and went through double mastectomy and lymph node removal. I'm stull here many years later, despite some local recurrences.

    A day at a time.

    Sending you a cyber hug

    Astrid.

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  • LW422
    LW422 Member Posts: 1,312
    edited March 2021

    So Taxol #4 is in the record books, and so far all is well. I am noticing some improvement in my cancerous breast; swelling has gone down and it is not as tender feeling. I'm very hopeful that this is an indicator that the Taxol is doing its job. I have settled into my treatment and finally have reached a level of calm. I wouldn't have believed it possible a month ago and I'm so grateful.

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