1st Chemo and scalp cooling

JoeyLiz

Tomorrow I have my first (of 4) cycles of AC chemo.
i know everyone reacts differently but was wondering when the side effects generally kick in? I am hoping to work throughout treatment.
also did anyone do the scalp cooling cap? I'm not sure I can handle being that cold!
thanks ladies x

Afraser

Good luck for tomorrow. I managed relatively well on A/C - I had no nausea or fatigue, just lost my appetite entirely for the first two or three days, then recovered. I did find some changes to my sense of taste, inclufing a rather metallic taste. Lost my hair but wasn't offered the scalp cooling cap nearly five years ago. Don't know if I would have tried it or not. My hair went 15 days after my first treatment - it felt really weird for a week before and I had it cut really short before it fell and then wore a wig. I chose to work throughout but it's really hard to know how you will be affected till you have done the first couple of cycles. A/C can be very hard to take for many and if there is a way of working out what makes the difference, I never found it! Seems pretty random. So good luck. Either way you are on your way with treatment, and that's a positive step. 

primek

They give you a pre med so usually not too bad on the day. I felt a bit weird and needed to lay down within a few hours and not too well that night. I generally was flat, tired and squarmy a few days. I could go out for short periods but really I would say I rested the entire week as felt too light headed. 

I wasn't well enough to work. Light headed all the second week so not able to drive or be up too long. Week 3 I was okay but still not well enough to go out by myself.

I needed 2 different anti nausea tablets plus steroids over 4 days to settle nausea and motion sickness. Constipation and wind pain was a huge issue for me. And I eventually sorted the constipation by cycle 3 but not the wind pain....had it until switching chemo.

Some people are fine and have little issues. Fingers crossed you are one. Kath x

LMK74

Good luck tomorrow. Ac chemo for me was feeling so fatigued I barely got off my bed. I barely ate for the six  months of chemo due to no appetite and vile taste in mouth. I had no nausea at all but was very constipated on it. Best of luck and tell us how you go.
Lisa x 

Zoffiel

I worked through AC, I really only needed a couple of days off after treatment for the first two. Unfortunately I needed neulasta shots for the last two and was unprepared for my reactions to them--terrible bone pain on days 4 and 5. In the end I had to take a week off but bounced back pretty well after that.

 I had TC earlier this year and used Claratyne tablets to help with the bone pain as I had to have neulasta right through treatment --they certainly helped with the pain but I was too sick to work for other reasons. I think working helps if you can do it--it maintains some feeling of control and normalcy which is soo important during this process. That said, if you can't work, you can't work and beating yourself up about it is stress you don't need. One step at a time, and the best of luck. Marg xxx

Unicornkisses

Hi @JoeyLiz and good luck with the chemo, I hope you have minimal sideeffects and wonder what all the fuss was about!
I had FEC which is a little different, but because I had migraine after each infusion, I had icepacks on my head and neck during the infusion and for the day afterwards.
I didn't have it for the 1st infusion, as we didn't know it was going to happen, but I did for the next two and it reduced the headache, didn't completely prevent it.

This is not as cold as the scalp cooling is supposed to be, but if you get headaches, keep it in mind. The nurses supplied them at the chemo ward and I had them waiting at home for the rest of the day.
No one mentioned scalp cooling at the chemo ward at the private hospital where I was, and being prone to headaches I didn't ask.
My hair started to grow back while on Docetaxel though, don't know if the icepacks helped that.

Jennie

JoeyLiz

Thank so much ladies for your kind words and stories.
they got the specialist cannulation nurse in to ultrasound my arm for a good vein, she's glad I'm getting my port in before next cycle!
scalp cooling was like the worst brain freeze imaginable for about 15 mins then you got used to it.
everything else went well, I went to work for a few hours after, now I just have a headache so will see how I feel in the morning x

Zoffiel

Excellent start @JoeyLiz ! It's a lucky dip and you have, indeed, been lucky. Which is bloody fantastic. 

You  are a tough chicky going back to work after your first treatment. Even though I wasnt that  sick, I was so stressed I would have been useless--it took me a couple of days to get my act together even without the medical side effects. OK, it's safe now to admit that I was probably my own worst enemy, I sulk like hell if I don't like what I'm doing. Marg xxx

Fiona2

Best wishes to you as you start out on your chemo.  I had scalp cooling with my FEC treatment and I can say that I still lost pretty much all of my hair.  Apparently most women do on FEC but not sure about AC.  I stopped the cooling after the second cycle as the hair was gone so there seemed little point.  However,  I did resume it for my 12 cycles of taxol and the hair did start to grow back whilst on the treatment.  However,  I did find the weekly scalp cooling to be very grueling.  My oncologist had prescribed me lorazepam earlier in my treatment so I started taking some of that on the day and basically it helped me to pass out during the ordeal.  Worked for me!