Don't just accept fatigue after end of treatment/chemo as normal

Nadi

Just wanted to let others know about an experience I've had. I finished 4 rounds of docetaxal and cyclophosphamide chemo Feb 2016, finished radiation May 2016 then finished 12 months of Herceptin Nov 2016.

Since finishing treatment I have continued to experience random episodes of absolute knock down fatigue. In March I fell asleep while driving which was a real wake up call - pardon the pun. My breast surgeon, radiation oncologist, chemo oncologist and GP all said that while it was unusual to continue to feel fatigued so long after chemo and radiation, they thought it must just be an ongoing side effect of treatment, afterall there are plenty of fact sheets from Cancer Council, Peter Mac and other organisations that say post treatment fatigue can, in some cases, last years. So I just accepted, rather reluctantly, that that was what it must be.

Then last month I began to have palpitations. They didn't hurt but were uncomfortable and got more frequent and stronger over the period of a week. Then my blood pressure started to get high and I ended up in hospital where they detected my heart was in Atrial Fibrillation (AF) and tachycardic - basically an irregular and very fast heartbeat.

Now I am back under the care of a cardiologist. My MUGA pool scan after Herceptin didn't pick up any issues. I am told the AF could be caused by the toxicity of chemo, be inherited (I have a strong family history of AF), and in some cases caused by hormonal changes (chemo slammed me into menopause!)

Just wanted to suggest if others are constantly experiencing ongoing fatigue after chemo, maybe ask your doctor to check you heart and ask for a halter pack where they monitor your heart rate for 24 hours - this is the best way to 'catch' how your heart is operating.

Best wishes to all.

PS. I am now back at work full time!!! WOO HOO so happy to finally feel normal again.

melclarity

Nadi, great to hear you're back at work after everything you've been through. I was told the fatigue can last a year or more, I like you, suffer the fatigue and have nodded at the wheel and its frightening. I used to suffer palpitations, but in 2012 after radiation they actually got worse!!!! 2013 I had a massive attack and ended up in hospital. So I had the heart ablation done, fixed it so easily, as it cauterizes the nerve pathways across the heart that cause the irregular rhythm. 

I do say too, 2015 chemo threw me into menopause, uuugh and there are times now where my heart tries to go into that rhythm but doesnt, its weird. Im glad I had its done though. I found the chemo absolutely made my heart beat faster, but wasnt palpitations.

Great share Nadi! as I know theres alot of ladies that will relate to this!

xx Melinda 

Hulos

Hi Nadi, thank you so much for this information.  I still have a long journey with op on 31/5, followed  by radiation. 
Sharing your experience and knowledge will assist  us to know what can/ may happen...god for bid..xxx

LMK74

Nadi, that's good information. I had a heart attack last year in February. I'm currently doing ac chemo and im petrified of what might happen. Although I'm on lots of heart meds I'm getting the odd palpitations I guess is from the chemo. Good to hear your doing well. 

fairydust

@Nadi thanks for the information. Many things go wrong with our health naturally without even having cancer. Its good to cover all basis if things do not seem quite right. Glad to hear you are working full time. Its great to share information. Okay some of it may be scary but I would rather be a little worried than ill informed

primek

Great to hear that finally you know why it was still ongoing and now sorted. Although not brilliant news...its treatable. So medication was the solution Nadi?  I have had some palpitation issues,  my last MUGA showed complete recovery so I am odd captopril . Mind you,   I did have the odd palpitations prior chemo, especially when my thyroid was running high. I will definitely keep this in my mind though if it jeeps happening...and I still get very tired.

Nadi

melclarity said:

 So I had the heart ablation done, fixed it so easily, as it cauterizes the nerve pathways across the heart that cause the irregular rhythm. 

Thanks Mel. Just managing this the usual way with blood thinners and monitoring. I'll ask about the heart ablation  next time I see my cardiologist. Sounds like a good idea if you can avoid the usual warfarin and the frequent INR blood tests. 

melclarity

Nadi, definitely look into it, the last attack of it I had was horrendous, I left it too long collapsed at home and rushed to hospital. They threw it back into rhythm but I was in ICU that night with possible heart muscle damage, as it went on too long, they said it was equivalent to me running a marathon!!! me thinking it will stop and tried everything I knew to jolt it back. Thankfully and they don't know why, but I made a full recovery. Never again I wanted to risk that, it was an overnight stay, really was nothing, surprised me, but the benefit OMG. So glad!! xx

Jane221

Hi @Nadi, thanks for posting this, it's acted as a prompt for me to talk to my doctor next time I see him as I frequently get heart twinges and I'm still getting very fatigued 5 years on - although some of that lately could be due to commuting 4hrs three days a week to a pretty full-on job. Like you, I've been putting these symptoms down to the ongoing joys of breast cancer, so thanks for the heads up.

Glad to hear you are enjoying being back at work, it does help to normalise things somewhat. Hopefully the heart treatment plan works well for you and you start to feel less fatigued very soon. Jane xx

Nadi

primek said:

   I did have the odd palpitations prior chemo, especially when my thyroid was running high.



When i was in hospital Kath they did bloods straight away to rule out thyroid. Apparently it is the culprit a lot of the time. Take care of yourself.

Nadi

Jane221 said:

Hi @Nadi, thanks for posting this, it's acted as a prompt for me to talk to my doctor next time I see him as I frequently get heart twinges and I'm still getting very fatigued 5 years on - although some of that lately could be due to commuting 4hrs three days a week to a pretty full-on job. Like you, I've been putting these symptoms down to the ongoing joys of breast cancer, so thanks for the heads up.

Glad to hear you are enjoying being back at work, it does help to normalise things somewhat. Hopefully the heart treatment plan works well for you and you start to feel less fatigued very soon. Jane xx

I absolutely love my very full on job. It has really helped me get back to normal. I don't know how you do it with a commute like that.