TRIPLE POSITIVE GROUP

@SpecialK - yeah they called me and told me they would bill my insurance and if the insurance didn't pay there were options. I make too much for the free or $100 tier/price but they said there were options available.

jam - sorry that you had difficulty during the chemo plus targeted therapy portion of treatment, hoping things ease up a bit now that the chemo drugs are complete. The eyes tearing is not really rare and you may continue to experience it for a bit longer, it took time to subside for me - probably within the first four weeks PFC, but it finally did. I did continue to have a runny nose on Herceptin though and a low grade headache towards the end which was eased with Tylenol, both cleared when I was done. I felt immensely better after chemo was over - but it did take the better part of 6-8 weeks to feel normalized, but that was also slowed by another surgery. My first Herceptin only was run faster at 30 mins and I did experience pretty intense bone pain when I hadn't during chemo. I requested the infusion be slowed to 90 minutes as it was when I received chemo with it, and never had that issue again. There are others on this site who had that same experience, which is anecdotal but there are enough of us that had this happen that it is worth pursuing if it happens to you. I believe if there is residual disease at the time of surgery most are on Kadcyla. I did not have it as I was treated so long ago that it was not available, but others on this thread have and can advise. I also did not have rads as I had bi-lateral mastectomy and ALND, so I can't address any of those questions, but I am aware that with left sided rads you may want to discuss positioning/duration, etc. to avoid cardiac or pulmonary issues down the line. Do you happen to have a regularly scheduled MUGA or echo prior to rads to check heart function? Good luck!

Hey Jam!

Glad you are done with TCHP. My eyes watered like mad too!

When I had surgery, I had 2mm of residual cancer and was switched from Herceptin only to Kadcyla. It was very doable. He did discuss this option before my very first TCHP so I was aware and comforted that there was an answer for that residual cancer.

Hi, Special K, thank you so much for your detailed response! So glad to know what to expect over these next few months. I’m really better when I have knowledge, even if I don’t like what I hear. I’m sure I’ll be back here as things unfold with me. Take good care. -

So glad to hear that the eyes tearing is fairly typical. It has driven me crazy! Any suggestions for ways to reduce it or deal with it? And does it go away after TCHP

I still have some eye tearing and blurry vision -- mine got worse on kadcyla, it is getting better slowly now. I saw my eye doctor who had me start doing warm compresses on my eyes followed by lid scrub (available at the pharmacy) and then eye drops without preservatives (the natural tear type) and that is helping a lot, but I keep forgetting to do it!

cowgirl - you're sweet, thanks! I too have learned an immense amount on this board - it is such a valuable resource when the learning curve is so steep!

yeslama - have you tried lubricating drops? My understanding is that the tearing is actually a form of dry eye, as counter-intuitive as that sounds when your eyes are watering. I struggled a bit with the lubricating drops during the day because my eyes are naturally sensitive and I felt like the drops affected the clarity of my vision, but using them at night was helpful. I kept them on my nightstand to remind me.

SpecialK: yes, I am using the eyedrops as well as the gel at night. But not doing any of it as regularly as I should!

sail - here is a link to a thread that discusses nail issues from chemo with some helpful info about remedies.

https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/6/topics/880002?page=1#post_5676447

I thought I would post about what I did with my nails during chemo since we are discussing this. None of this is proven or trialed, but it did protect my nails from too much damage. I also realize this is after the fact for those who have completed their chemo portion of treatment, but someone new may come along just starting and read this. I did ice fingernails and toenails during the taxane infusion (Taxotere for me) for every treatment. I painted my finger and toe nails with dark opaque polish for the day of treatment so there would be no light penetration - thought to be a problem with taxane based treatment. The next day I removed that polish and painted on a coat of clear nail hardener - Sally and OPI both make it. I received a little kit at one of my initial appts with the MO from Sanofi Aventis, the manufacturer of Taxotere, that included a bottle of of the OPI brand of clear hardener. I put on a coat each day for the next six days, then removed and started over - so did this three times between TCH infusions. I had no darkening, ridges, or lifting. Full disclosure - I did injure my wedding ring fingernail when I was done with chemo and it did indeed lift. It could never quite re-seat itself so it was removed by the dermatologist about six months later. So even if you are finished be careful! It took another full six months to grow to the end of my finger and I kept the nail bed covered during that time - it looks really weird to have no fingernail!

morrigan - did you have one white line for each chemo session? They are known as Mees lines if they are horizontal across the nail - usually without a ridge, and associated with chemotherapy, poisoning, or kidney failure.

JamG- today’s day 5 and I’d describe TCHP as sucking the life out of me. I did not have nausea and for that I’m thankful. My surgery is next month then depending on the pathology, HP and rads. I hope you are on the upside at this point.

Hi Everyone,

Thanks for the input on hormonal therapy. Here's an update recap-.I took a break from tamoxifen in June after 8 years based on the recommendation of my MO's NP. I met with my MO today.

While she said it was my choice whether to take hormonal therapy for another 2 years, it seemed like she thought it a good idea to continue for 2 more years if I tolerate it well since I had a very aggressive pathology.(nasty micropapilllary for some of the tumor, multifocal, lymph nodes etc).At the same time she's still optimistic as recurrence rates are statistically low and showed me recurrence rates graphs.

For now, I will continue my break for the summer, see how I feel without taking anything (establish baseline normal) . Then, I will try taking Exestemane in September.We chose that one because cholesterol risks are less. We will closely watch bone density. I have been exercising a lot and will continue to do so before starting this treatment. She did say Dr. Paul Goss (Mass Gen/Dana Farber) has been studying effectiveness of varied HT usage (for instance, every other day) and she is open to that if comes to that.I also could return to tamoxifen which I tolerated fairly well.

For those early on in the journey, I started Tamoxifen when I was halfway through radiation. I have tolerated it well. I just want to see how life is without the drug-it's hard to know what is normal menopause and aging and what's the tam.

@SpecialK - I don't recall if there was one line for each cycle exactly. However, yeah there were a few white lines going horizontally across the nail. I never knew what they were called just that they were common SE from Chemo

Jumpship,

Who is monitoring you? You could always ask about a scan at your next appointment, just for your peace of mind. I see you got a BMX, which probably means no mammograms.