Hi,I am interested to learn of stories where chemo has been terminated earlier than the planned treatment.I was diagnosed with TNBC mid Aug 2020 - GPʻs words ʻvery aggressive grade 3, 3 cm tumour). The following week, I started AC, short break due to some challenges and then commenced Taxol weekly. I have now had 9 taxol sessions and am wondering if anyone on this forum has stopped early and by doing so any insight on the risks to survival and of recurrence.Also, any insight on surgery - what drove your final decisions?I have raised this topic with my onc and she suggested, I take some time to think about my final decision; her advice was to see the Taxol to the end. My finger tips and nails have become increasingly sore, with brown discolouration and a few black specks on my thumb, since my last consultation with her. She may very well, alter the taxol now.The med team plan is surgery after chemo (not sure type of surgery yet, I have a meeting with the breast surgeon this coming week), followed by 5-6 weeks of rad and then who knows.I had a Genetic Blood test for BRCA mutations in September but something went wrong at the lab and no results provided. I have a history of BC in my maternal streamline. xx

Hi @Tasia,Ive just finished taxol a week ago. About 9th cycle i had similar issues. Like @Afraser i was very worried about my feet and could barely walk and also my hands which were just all pain. I had a week off and then my oncologist reduced my dose. I think this helped my mental game. I daydreamed at week 9 about being told i could just finish chemo. 3 cycles seemed like forever. But i was oddly annoyed by the delay. I had been telling myself chemo would be done by end of 2020 but now it would flow over to 2021 which i hoped would spell more positivity. (Really made no difference). On the plus side my hair started growing back with furvour so i now have a light carpet of long fluff (not full coverage). My hands are much better. My nails are sensitive to pressure and my feet are still bright red and have some pain but nowhere near the pain they were. Im sure given another week or two will subside. Hope this buoys you along. 3 cycles isnt much when you havecalready gone through so much particularly at a reduced dose.M

Hi @SoldierCrab,Many thanks for the link, I requested to join :)I have stopped chemo - what turned out to be a blend of decision outcome; I really didnʻt want to proceed and the onc assessed my PN and said she was happy to support my decision as PN would worsen with each weeks dosage. Now heading for surgery.

Just remember that no-one is really sure how many chemo treatments are necessary - they just go for the maximum most can tolerate. When I was having chemo my onc said that he would be very pleased for me to get to 9 out of 12 if I could and I have since read this many times. I did get to the 12 but was closely monitored for the second part. So it sounds like you have probably reached the goal that is recommended but even if you hadn't, it is only the recommended dose.

Dear @Tasia I nearly stopped Taxol - my problem was quite serious peripheralneuropathy, particularly in my feet. My toenails had badly discoloured, fingernails much less so but I wasn’t too concerned about that - the pain in my feet, particularly the toes before dose 10 made me concerned about my ability to walk if it got worse. My oncologist and I agreed to continue on a week by week basis - and I almost certainly would not have had my 12th dose - if I hadn’t found a lumpunder my good armpit! Long story short, completely unrelated and benign. But I went for all 12 - I felt that I wanted to do everything I could to not go through it a second time. I’d already had surgery and had 12 months of herceptin as well. My feet still have some side effects, nails all recovered in time, but I have no regrets. I started taking Vitamin B about dose 10 - may have been entirely coincidental but things got better after that. Best wishes. PS Eight plus years on, well and active.

Hi Tasia, I'm going to tag you in the post I wrote which has anecdotal evidence from people who tried cold therapy about their experience so you can read about it for yourself. I don't agree with your BC nurse. My oncologist is now recommending this therapy after seeing my good results.It sounds pretty bad but it is just uncomfortable (and thats from someone who did 12 weeks of it!) It can't hurt anyway. There are a few positive studies but it hasn't been well researched, perhaps because there is no money to be made. I have a friend who had symptoms early in her treatment (on AC) who started cold therapy before Taxol and made it through the whole course - so I've seen it work. She was TNBC too. I used cold therapy and only had one week where I experienced symptoms and that was when the infusion dragged on and my thumbs didn't stay cold. Whichever way you go I wish you well :)

TNBC Has anyone had chemo terminated early - by choice or Onc decision?

28 Replies

Tasia
Member
5 years ago
Thank you @shs14
I look forward to learning more and furthering this discussion with the onc on Monday. I have been sitting on the fence re terminating chemo (some weeks ago, I was even contemplating ceasing treatment completely). I will embrace anything that will take away any of the inner unwellness chemo causes whilst in warfare with the cancer.

Always looking for ways to help my body heal as it navigates this path x
Afraser
Member
5 years ago
PS Ice therapy wasn’t offered when I had treatment but seems helpful - may not however be as helpful when you are through most of the treatment and issues are already apparent. No
harm in trying though.
Afraser
Member
5 years ago
Good endings are what we work for! Although I am hoping mine is a long way off yet!
I had the problem about the same time - I went through A/C pretty easily - hair went of course but otherwise nothing much. Taxol was one irritation after another but PN was a pain in every sense. All oncologists will want you to complete the course - they are using all resources at their disposal and you’d want that normally. Many oncology nurses will say that 85% of the permitted dose is of equal therapeutic value. A bit extra is ‘just in case’. Even my good but cautious oncologist was OK with missing one treatment. Some things you have to
decide on your own, I’m afraid. Overall, most people with PN recover pretty well. I do have continued funny feelings in my feet, but it doesn’t really stop me doing anything and it’s unusual to linger this long. It is still improving, just the speed is glacial.

Herceptin is part of a chemotherapy regime recommended for people with HER2 receptors. My tumour wasn’t affected but the only malignant lymph node was so they treat you as if all is. Herceptin has been proven to be very effective. As far as I am aware I had no side effects at all, but you are monitored for any heart issues.
shs14
Member
5 years ago
Hi Tasia,
I'm going to tag you in the post I wrote which has anecdotal evidence from people who tried cold therapy about their experience so you can read about it for yourself. I don't agree with your BC nurse. My oncologist is now recommending this therapy after seeing my good results.
It sounds pretty bad but it is just uncomfortable (and thats from someone who did 12 weeks of it!) It can't hurt anyway.
There are a few positive studies but it hasn't been well researched, perhaps because there is no money to be made.
I have a friend who had symptoms early in her treatment (on AC) who started cold therapy before Taxol and made it through the whole course - so I've seen it work. She was TNBC too. I used cold therapy and only had one week where I experienced symptoms and that was when the infusion dragged on and my thumbs didn't stay cold.
Whichever way you go I wish you well :)
Tasia
Member
5 years ago
Hi @Afraser,

Initially, symptoms popped up in my feet - my big toes but somehow the toe/feet situation jumped over the hurdle. health free. My fingers have taken the hit.
Iʻm moisturising, keeping my finger nails short, cotton gloving and cotton/latex gloving for any hand water chores. Iʻm salt soaking and applying tea tree oil to keep control of further deterioration. All was going reasonably well until week 8 and this week, it has moved up a few notches.

I also would have had concerns around losing the ability to walk or use of hands/fingers. So many truly hard decisions one is confronted with. Is herceptin a chemo med?

Thank you.
A good ending story Afraser :)
Tasia
Member
5 years ago
Hi @shs14,

I had mentioned the use of cold therapy to the BC Nurse and she said it didnʻt really make a difference to use of Taxol (?)

I will address it with the Onc on Monday.

Many thanks x
Afraser
Member
5 years ago
Dear @Tasia

I nearly stopped Taxol - my problem was quite serious peripheral
neuropathy, particularly in my feet. My toenails had badly discoloured, fingernails much less so but I wasn’t too concerned about that - the pain in my feet, particularly the toes before dose 10 made me concerned about my ability to walk if it got worse. My oncologist and I agreed to continue on a week by week basis - and I almost certainly would not have had my 12th dose - if I hadn’t found a lump
under my good armpit! Long story short, completely unrelated and benign. But I went for all 12 - I felt that I wanted to do everything I could to not go through it a second time. I’d already had surgery and had 12 months of herceptin as well. My feet still have some side effects, nails all recovered in time, but I have no regrets. I started taking Vitamin B about dose 10 - may have been entirely coincidental but things got better after that. Best wishes.
PS Eight plus years on, well and active.
shs14
Member
5 years ago
Hi Tasia, have you read the posts about cold therapy for periphal neuropathy while taking Taxol. A few of us have found it helped us avoid the worst of the symptoms you are having. All it takes is some latex gloves and a bowl of ice during infusion. Worth trying at least maybe.
I wish you luck with your cancer treatment. Susie

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TNBC Has anyone had chemo terminated early - by choice or Onc decision?

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