Starting Chemo May 2008

Rockthebald

Wow! Mazel tov on your Fulbright....shhh! Went out bald --naked bald for the first time today. People stared. Lots of people ....like....whatever! Went to Target. America's melting pot.  

Speaking of hair. I still have lots of hair hanging on so I look scraggly. And, can we talk about arm hair for a minute? I thought that was coming out. Do I wait until chemo three? And, by the way, (going to get a little graphic here) can we talk about the "bikini" area for just a moment? How come my pubic hair flies out while the hair in my "bikini" area is hanging on? Can we talk fair for just a minute? Okay, no more ranting about that. Sunday before chemo is good for me. Same with Saturday which means I have three more good ones. Last time I had a whole week. Wonder if it will be fewer and fewer days each time...okay, I am rambling. Let me get to some other stuff here.

Otter, feeling better I hope by now.

Sable, a report please on your port ASAP and how are you feeling?

Karin, my onc tells me to eat and enjoy and that we are supposed to survive chemo so we eat what we want and retain our weight (who ever told me to retain my weight??) and that we need to be careful not to do things that we might want to do after chemo as we might develop an aversion to them because, let's face it, women, chemo is not fun. So....eat well. Eat what we want. Follow our cravings...try to eat healthy and stay healthy...and enjoy banana cake or anything else yummy as we wish because we deserve it. Cheers. 

All of your mom stories are pretty good. Maybe I'll spare mine for a while. 

Hey Rock,

Thanks for the well wishes. And congrats on your good news. I used to work at Harvard (and still do freelance, in addition to my full-time job in DC). My  former dept. has a sister program in SA that fosters innovative gov't programs, including ones that are in your area of expertise (I read your blog). If you like, I could put you in touch when the time gets closer.

I read that you were in DC. I just moved from DC back to Boston last week for treatment. Too bad the timing wasn't right; I could have shown you my new (I had only been in DC for 8 months) haunts (i.e., the biker bar that has Gothic belly dancing night; the hole-in-the-wall place that stays open late and only has two items on its menu: falafel sandwiches and fries)

I have been loading up on fiber today and just packed my lunchbox for tomorrow's chemo day, including apricots, prunes, and Fig Newmans. I am vegan, so laying off cheese is not an issue. And I've got my constipation-fighting armament ready (thanks to your Tips list). 

I don't have friends that have gone through bc, so these boards have been invaluable. Some times I get overwhelmed trying to learn everything and do everything myself, so having all this info at my fingertips is helping me manage.

Ewesterman, thanks for the good wished on the June thread. I lost weight these past six weeks from running around to all my different appointments (literally as I rely on public transportation and walking) and just not having time to eat. My onc hasn't said anything to me about whether I might lose or gain weight on chemo.  I hope I have an appetite and don't lose even more weight. I am starting to look haggard. Which is not a look that goes well with bald.

How are others doing in that regard? Have you gained or lost weight? 

Jo 

Jo - Good luck tomorrow!  I had wondered what happened to you - I remember you posting before.  I know I lost weight prior to chemo (anxiety + stress = a decreased appetite!).   I think I also lost a little between days 3-6 after chemo, but I have "caught up" during the rest of the time!   

I have another one for the dessert buffet - strawberry shortcake with whipped cream!  Mmmmmm...that was our Father's Day dessert.  I couldn't have the fresh strawberries  so I just had the frozen, but it was still good. 

I don't have anyone claiming tomorrow, so I hope no one's been forgotten. 

Angels - When will you know if you go on Tuesday and what # tx will it be?

Jo, I hope all goes smoothly today.  (As I'm sure it will.)  Your chemo nurses will probably tell you this, but be sure to call your dr/nurse if you feel ANY nausea.  They can always adjust your medications.  (I suffered some from nausea on days 3-4 after my first round of AC, didn't call because it was the weekend and I didn't think it was "too bad." Next round, they changed my meds and I was fine.)  On your weight question - mine has maintained. 

Eddie, your hair comments were too funny.  My arm hair seems to be totally unaffected by chemo.  (As an aside . . . my daughter tells me that arm hair is gross.  She and all of her teenage friends shave their arms as well as their legs.  When the heck did that become the norm?)  And you're right -- let's just not talk about that not-quite-nether-hair that seems to survive ANYTHING.

Otter, I'm setting aside one of the two remaining tarts for you.  I've also found myself craving tart/sour things through chemo.

Linda

Hello May Ladies,

I am a June lady.  I have a question I hope some of you could answer. I have only had one treatment on June 4th...next is 25th.

Someone commented to me that the more treatments you go through,  the harder the side effects and the worst you feel.  With my June 4th.. I was out of it for 4 days but since that I have felt alright.  Can you give me some feedback how it has been for you.

Thanks for anything you can tell me.

Karen

Hi, all--

Yes, Eddie, I am feeling better today... especially since I just talked to my onco's nurse and she said it was OK to take ibuprofen.  My onco agrees that what I have is almost certainly just my usual seasonal sinusitis, superimposed on chemo.  The on-call onco put me on Levaquin, which is what my family doc would have used for sinusitis anyway.  In the past, I've taken Levaquin, ibuprofen, guaifenisin, and Sudafed for sinusitis.   So, I'm now on Levaquin, ibuprofen, and Mucinex (OTC guaifenisin), and feeling much improved.

Jo, I currently weigh 10 pounds less than I did at the time of my mast/SNB in February.  Most of that I lost during chemo, because of eating less, but healthier, food.  I craved veggies but had no appetite for bread or rolls or chips.  I also filled up more quickly at mealtime because of the various GI effects of chemo. That translated to a minor weight loss that never alarmed my onco and really pleased me.  OTOH, because of the birthday cake, I've gained back 2 pounds in the past 3 days!

Cristine, I need to take lessons from you.  If my mom had said, "I just hate it when you do this," my mind would have extrapolated that to, "I just hate it when you do this to me."  Like on Sunday when I called to wish my dad a happy father's day, I asked my mom about the family reunion that I was missing.  I asked her if she had told everyone how much I'd liked to have been there, and why I couldn't make it.  (I had asked her earlier in the week if she would do that.)  She paused for a minute, and said, "Well, they know."  She went on to tell me how everyone had been asking about me and wanting to know how I was doing.

After I hung up, I didn't feel a bit better about the situation.  So, all my cousins and aunts and uncles have been asking about me and wishing me well... yet, since my BC dx in January, I've received exactly TWO communications from any of them.  Those were get well cards, one from an uncle and one from one of my mom's cousins.  I've received better support from some of the graduate students who took a course I taught right before I retired last year.  One of them even wired me a beautiful bouquet of flowers.  Naturally, I'm figuring this is all my fault, since I'm the one who moved a thousand miles from "home" and insists on living here.  My mom told me once that she was not going to let me take family heirlooms down to this muggy climate; I could have them when I moved back "home".  Sheesh.  She can't help it, I know.

Linda, my arm hair has hung on better than the hair anywhere else, but it is thinner. Oh, and I still have full eyebrows, although my lashes are thinning.  I expect to lose the brows in the next month or so (yes, that's well after my last chemo tx), if mine follow the pattern of the others on the Taxotere/Cytoxan thread.

angelsaboveus, let us know what your onco says about the lump. That is scary, for sure.  The good news is that, even if it's a node they missed with the dissection (and you did have other positive nodes), they can still remove it if necessary; but you are getting chemo and rads, which is how they would treat positive nodes anyway. I don't know about the heart thing. My heart beats faster than usual, but I know I'm anemic and I assume that's why.

Hi to everyone else! 

otter 

Hi all!

Just got back from my Look Good Feel Better class. I know that most of you have already done it, but I was in the hospital for the one last month, so couldn't go. It turned out to be good. I was definitely the youngest one there...everyone else was over 60, I'm guessing. Got a TON of makeup, and I'm very picky about my makeup, but most of it actually worked and looked good.  Also, I got to pick out another scarf, and I even got a wig. I was very skeptical, since most of you have said that the wigs from the ACS look like some sort of furry animals laying on top of your head, but I got a long, sexy one, that actually looks good!  I was very pleasantly surprised!  They didn't feed us though, which would have been nice. :-(

Gotta go for TC #3 tomorrow, so I'm trying to drink a lot of water today. BTW, which tropical locale am I going to tomorrow? Did we ever decide?

Other info-I'm maintaining weight; still have arm hair, eyebrows and eyelashes; pubic hair thinned a LOT, but has stopped; underarm hair and leg hair stopped growing about 3 weeks after tx #1 (YEAH!!); not much head hair left; and nails all still look okay. All in all, can't complain!

I also made a strawberry rhubarb pie with a crumble topping for my dh for Father's Day. It's his favorite. Turned out good! Personally, I'm partial to chocolate...

Rock-Glad you had a good trip to DC!

Otter-So glad you're feeling better.

Angels-Keep us posted on your lump...I'm praying it's nothing.

Karen-#2 was definitely better than #1 for me...hoping it continues!

Hope everybody else is doing well!

Sharon

Hi All,

Counts were ok again, so I just returned from #3. No shot again this time, so I'm set until bw on next 2 Tuesdays. #4 (last!) will be July 8th. 

Family wedding Sat and reunion picnic Sunday this coming weekend. Should be past nausea by then (meds ready if not). Weekend will be my tired days, but I'll find shady lawn chair to chat with family and friends. Wig is ready, but I have scarf to match dress too. Either way will be fine. It'll be first time in 6yrs my folks and all 6 of us kids have been together. That's fun no matter what I wear or where I sit.

Still deciding about implants, but heavily leaning toward saline for both. I think I'd have better peace of mind with both saline, than the one/each type suggested by PS. I'll feel samples at PC visit 6/26 and have final discussion. But unless I see/feel something drastically different from the opinions I've heard and read here, I will still choose saline. Thanks for all opinions offered on both types. As usual, its great to have such info and support here. Especially from those who have been thru this already. Hope I can get past this and return that help to other newcomers.

Hope everyone has good results and a smooth week.

Janice

Just got back from the onc, and he has changed me back to thursday for tx #3,(he will have my doctor step in for him as he won't be there) he wants to give me a few more days to make sure the counts stay up...I guess i can slow down on the water for a day or two.   He said with this being an aggressive cocktail i will have to be cautious knowing how it kicks the butt out of my counts.

He has me doing the Neupogen this time starting on day 5 for 9 straight days, I should be a pro at handling a needle by the end of this! And i will have my counts done 2 x per week.

oh ya and the lump, he said not at all related to a lymph node... hooray! I was so happy with that news (also chemo brain) i forgot to ask him what it might be. Oh well he wasn't concerned so I will put it at the back of my list for next time. 

I also got some info on the Taxotare i will be switching to after this next treatment, se's sound doable. The chemo nurse even said they give you some ice gloves to wear during so you hopefully don't get the numbness in the fingers associated with it. 

Good luck to those with tx tomorrow and I will meet the Thursday girls...where are we going this time...how about a poolside bar in Jamaica!

Cheers !

Rock, Cristine, and Linda - thanks for the encouragement.

I am just a couple hours out of my first tx of TCH today. It went well. No reactions to any of the drugs. I am still pumped up on Decadron. I am taking that the day before, day of, and two days after tx. I got four hours sleep last night, but will take Ativan tonight in order to get more sleep.

I get my Neulasta shot on Wed. On Wed, I have planned to do a Look Good, Feel better class, get my Neulasta shot, go to a nutritional counseling appt, and take a drumming class in the evening. It might be too much, but I'll see how it goes.

My ex-not-quite-bf accompanied me today. I was such a motor mouth due to the steroid, he kept teasing me for babbling (I am usually fairly quiet). Finally, he left my bedside and went and took a nap in an empty infusion chair as I worked on my laptop.

The nurse was far more encouraging than my onc about how I'll fare on treatment. My onc recommended AC/TH because she said I would feel more "wiped out" on TCH. In the end I decided on TCH. Well, today, the nurse said that in her experience women have fewer side effects on TCH. Let's hope she's correct. She told me to take Sennakot tonight to ward off any constipation issues resulting from the Aloxi (anti-nausea medicine) in the IV drip.

I had lost a lot of weight in the past few weeks and I took advantage of my tx time to snack on the free food (veggie sandwich, fruit cup, Odwalla bar, various kinds of teas). I am vegan (I don't eat or wear any animal products for ethical reasons) and I was pleasantly surprised that they had those vegan-friendly foods. "Dana Farber Cancer Institute: Come for the Food, Stay for the Chemo."

(I also posted this on the TCH and June chemo threads - so sorry for the repetition if you're on those threads)

--Jo

Sorry about the results rock.....

Okay, I had my 16 yo ds shave my head today...we used the #2 and I look great....lol....my girls are thinking that I look more like their dad, nice....they are so encouraging!  lol.....

Actually, I cried a LOT yesterday in the shower as gobs were falling out, but now, I feel strangely liberated and was thinking of going to the bank and for coffee with a friend hat less.....

Still fighting nasty indigestion, Pepcid and Tums are no help....will switch to Prilosec.  But, my bf told me that when she has indigestion, she takes Baileys and a soda and it clears it right up...hmmmmmmm

Asking for prayers right now, our 21 yo ds who is staioned in Germany with his 5 month pregnant wife was in the hospital all weekend for blood clots in his lung.  He had knee surgery an since he is an indesctructible soldier, decided that the pain he was feeling was from overworking his knee.  They sent him home yesterday and he has 6 months of Heparin shots to take.  Bonus?  That means he won;t be deployed anytime soon, and since his wife is pregnant, she's safe for another few months.....

talk atyou all later, randie

Hi Karin,

I get my treatment at our community hospital in Nelson, B.C. Canada. I'm  lucky to have a great onc and support staff right in town who do the best to make this a comfortable ride! 

I wear the gloves as well. My oncologist says it help prevent the nail loss associated with T

Wayne

Hi Karin,

I haven't physically seen them yet, but my guess is they are gloves with a gel liquid in them, like you would have for bumps and sprains in an ice pac.  Maybe  you could just bring a frozen gel ice bag to chemo and just wrap it around your hands ???