TCh vs. ACTh

Cathy - I'm happy to hear that everything went well yesterday.  We are just about going through this together as far as the calendar goes.  I had my first TCH on January 11th so I am a little ahead of you.  I have had side effects but nothing serious.  The worst was bone and muscle aches and kind of strange shooting pains that started about 24 hours after the Neulasta.  I am going to ask about the Claritin when I see my onc this Thursday because if I can avoid those, I'd be really pleased!  Other than that, I've had the metallic taste, a little queasiness (I run for the anti-nausea med immediately - have only used Zofran which has worked the couple times I needed it).  Also, my face broke out in a weird rash about two days ago.  These things are more like annoyances than anything else, not deblitating at all.  I just came from an hour long walk and feel just fine.  Hope all continues to go well for you.

Cathy - I'll let you know what they tell me on Thursday.  The only standard meds they asked me to use are Emend (for nausea), Decadron (steroid to offset any reaction to the Taxotere) and Zofran (another nausea med).  These are all taken right around the day of chemo (day before, day of, and for one or two days after).  I also used Tylenol for the bone pain from the Neulasta.  But no benadryl was recommended and nothing about B6 (although I have seen both of these recommended by others on these boards.)  The bone pain from the Neulasta was definitely the worst side effect I've had (I feel lucky to say that!) and so I'm very interested in the Claritin idea.  I hope you are still feeling well.

Cathy,  I remember my first day...it was a LONG one as you just experienced.  The first one is by far the worse...but now you have that all behind you.  I'm glad all went well and no bad side affects.  I always HAD to go back the NEXT day for my neulasta.  I hated that...I would of rather had it all the same day verses going back and forth.  I'm glad they are letting you have yours the same day.  I have never heard of taking Claritin to get rid of the pain?   That's interesting...if it works please let us know.  That could come in handy.    That must be something new.  I say "whatever works is GREAT". 

On a different note...everyone can respond differently...but its usually the 3rd day it will hit you so don't be surprised.  I felt great the day of my first chemo...sailed through it.  The next day I was fine too...but about 5:00PM on that 3rd day it kind of hit me like clock work.  But just make sure you take your nausea pills AHEAD of time.  Don't wait till you start to feel sick to your stomach.  If you take those ahead of time things will go ok.  Just listen to your body and rest when you feel like it.  Keep us update and hang in there.  You will have this all behind you in no time.

Chelee

I too have never heard of Neulasta being given on the same day. I was told it had to be 24hrs after chemo. But I only had one--my onc doesn't believe in giving it unless your wbc's are below a certain point. Mine never were and the only time I got Neulasta was when I was going on vacation the day after chemo and we didn't want to take a chance that I would need one when I was across the country from my own doctor. So I avoided the pain from that. Got plenty from Taxol though! I'm very interested to hear how the Claritin works. That would be great if it works.

I did not have any nausea from Taxol but of course I did from the AC. You are "lucky" to not be getting that. Emend worked the best for me--and I tried them all.

Whoever said day 3 was the worst, that was the case for me too and that was with both the AC and the Taxol+herceptin.

I am having a side effect that no one seems to have heard of. I got pink eye the last two times I had herceptin. I'm on a 3 wk cycle now so it cleared up after about a week and a half then the day after my next herceptin I had it again. This time it was cleared up in about 3-4 days. I've been getting herceptin since last Sept. so it might not be related. Has anyone else ever heard of that? Also, I asked them to stop the benadryl after the first herceptin since I didn't have any reaction except the runny nose. But maybe I should try it again for my eyes.

On a positive note, rads have been a breeze so far and I'm almost done!!

Cyndi

Hi, 

I'm a first-time user on this site, and I wanted to tell you that I have already learned SO much in reading these posts. Diagnosed 12/12, I had a lumpectomy 12/17, which found additional DCIS. Since I'd already been diagnosed with atypical ductal hyperplasia in the opposite breast 5 years ago, I've been told that my best chances are with bilateral mastectomies, chemo, and anti-hormonal therapy.

The decisions on the type of chemo and the sequencing of events are just now falling into place. Next week I'll have a port placement and sentinel node excision/biopsy on the opposite side. After that, I'll start chemo.  When I'm done with the 18 week chemo, and getting only Herceptin, I guess it will be time for the mastectomies.

Thank you so much for all your postings. It's so helpful to know what to anticipate from the chemo, and to hear your different experiences. You've helped confirm my preference for TCH without the "A".

Emmy 

Hi Wendy,

Congratulations on completing your chemo! That definitely gives me something to look forward to! Thanks for the comment on the port, too. I just hate the thought of having this foreign object placed in me, but I do know it's a better option than recurring IVs.

Emmy 

This is precisely why I love my Onc so much.  When I was first dxed and my onc recommended TCH, all my other Drs were confused as to why he wasn't going with the better known txs. He explained the recent findings to them that TCH is nearly as good as others w/o the heart toxicity and they were all on board.  I researched it myself and was glad to see he was on top this since while I don't have any heart problems, I do have family history.  I was stage 1, no nodes ER and PR+ also strongly HER2+.  He said that in my case he felt the Herceptin was probably the most important part of my tx anyway so we might as well go with the least toxic option.  Funny, at that time it seemed there were not many of us on the regimen, but that's changing now.  I'm certainly no Dr but I do feel quite confident with TCH after everything I've read and hearing what all your Drs are saying.

I just got my Neulasta shot this afternoon and took Claritin-24hr this morning.  I plan to take it for the next six days to see if it works.  Thanks, Cathy for the tip!  The nurse and nurse practitioner at my onc said that they had not heard of doing this but were (mildly) ok with my trying it.  The main objection was adding another drug to the long list of anti-nausea stuff I'm taking.  But, I mentioned the Claritin to a woman who was on TCH and sitting in the chair next to me at the infusion center.  She said the first time she took Neulasta, the bone pain was terrible.  The second time, it was very mild ... and guess what, she was taking Claritin for a cold/allergy!  So I'm optimistic that it will work for me too.

Cathy - I am not getting Aloxi but I will ask about it for the next go around.  I am getting Dexadron night before, day of, evening of and morning after.  Emend day of, and for 2 days after. Zofran twice a day for two days after and then as needed.  Compazine and Ativan as needed.  Aloxi seems alot simpler! 

Thanks for posting, Janet.  It's great to hear from someone who has been through the entire treatment.  So far, TCH has been very doable for me (after two treatments.)  I'm keeping my fingers crossed!Going today for wekly Herceptin which has gone smoothly so far.

PS

I have my final herceptin treatment tomorrow, my last echo was stable, it feels great to be moving on

Carla - welcome and thank you very much for posting.  I am feeling more and more confident about using TCH.  It seems the tide is turning now and more and more oncologists are recommending it over ACTH.  Thanks for the info on the MD Anderson opinion ... that is a very strong recommendation for the regimen.  Good luck with your first treatment.  Cathy-CA - hope your treatment went well yesterday.

Finally I read someone else that had Carboplatin. I was beginning to wonder.  I am on Taxotere, Carbo, and Herceptin every 3 weeks,  I have my 4th of 6 treatments this week.  I am going to try the mouthwash someone mentioned to help with the taste issue.  I have not had any surgery yet.  Mastectomy some time in april or may.  I was diagnosed 11/21 and started Chemo 12/14 and am er+ pr+ and her2.  I had a tumor shaped like a dumbell.  Two 1.2 and 1.8 with a stringy like thing in the middle.  I had an u/s just a few weeks ago and showed the tumor had shrunk to just about nothing. YAY.. the mastectomy is because  I also have microcalc./DCIS in a different quadrant.

Kimby....Biotene is the mouthwash most take but I tried Oasis and loved that!  It also came in a little spray bottle that I could put in a purse or pocket.  But truthfully....I really didn't need it.  I was one of those lucky, lucky people that except for the hairloss...had no se's and no fatigue.   Well...except for chemobrain.

Congrats on the tumor shrinking...I like to hear stuff like that!!!

Cathy....keep up with the gym if you can.  Helps to move that chemo around and out!