Chemo and Herceptin

Hi Jude, welcome to the network, I hope you find the support and information you're after. The ladies have already given you some great information, and I'd definitely agree about having a portacath inserted, if possible, mine really helped as I only have a few viable veins in my left arm for needles / cannula access.

I had 6 cycles of chemo (Taxotere & Carboplatin) and 12 months of Herceptin in 2012. The Herceptin was given every 3 weeks and started at the same time as the chemo. The first cycle of TCH was administered very slowly as the nurses keep a close eye on how you go and it took me about 6 or more hours to complete, so it's good to be prepared with lots of distractions; reading, music, ipads etc. Chemo days were all pretty non-eventful as they give you anti-nausea and allergy suppressors, so often any side-effects kick in a few days later. Everyone seems to react differently, so hopefully if you get any side-effects they will be minimal :-) You do need to make sure you keep an eye on your temperature / feeling unwell, particularly a week to 10 days after chemo as that's when your white blood cell count can drop really low and you can be at risk of developing an infection. This did happen to me after the first chemo and I had to go to hospital for antibiotics for about 5 days but was then given neulasta injections (a white blood cell booster) after each subsequent chemo which stopped any further infection issues.

Herceptin tends to be tolerated well by most people and Doll has given a good description of how they monitor your heart throughout the 12 month treatment. I did get some lowering of my heart function towards the end of treatment but this was managed well (low doses of heart drugs) and was only temporary as my heart function was back in the normal range within 6 months. As always, talk to your team about anything you might be concerned about, even if it seems small or insignificant.

Best of luck with it all and feel free to keep asking questions! Cheers, Jane xx