Forum Discussion

Cath6053's avatar
Cath6053
Member
11 years ago

Cycle 1 done

Hi all, I was diagnosed 1 month ago today. I am having TAC x 6 (3wkly) chemo first to shrink cancer size. My cancer is in right breast and right lymph node. Had first chemo on Monday and took pretty much the whole week to recover. I had heartburn and nausea as the main issues. Which impacted my ability to keep hydrated. The Pramin did not work at all for me. Heartburn ramped up over the following 5 days until I was in burning pain on day 5. Onco has prescribed Pariet. I'm taking Zantac until Pariet starts working. My energy levels have returned today, day 7 and I feel like myself again!! I'm looking for your experiences with nausea and heartburn: 1) If Pramin didn't work for you, what was the drug that did? 2) Have you found the heartburn continues the whole time on chemo? 3) How long did you find until the Pariet started working? 4) Once the nausea and heartburn is controlled better, did you find your recovery time improved, or stayed same? I am also interested to know your experiences with sharing your BC news via Facebook. I am very hesitant to announce it this way. I've already spoken to or emailed my closest friends. Just wondering if you regretted sharing on FB/did you get responses that made you wish you hadn't? Thanks, Cath
  • Gillian2069's avatar
    Gillian2069
    Member
    11 years ago

    I have decided NOT to announce my health status on FB because my FB contacts are a wide range of people, and I'm a fairly private person.

    I have used FB's capacity to categorise contacts and I have a 'family' group. This means that I can put up a post that is seen only by people I have categorised as family. Occasionally, I post something there, but even this group includes very close family like daughters as well as more distant cousins in other parts of the world who don't need blow-by-blow accounts.

    A couple of days after each chemo session, I send a brief email to nearest and dearest, and to those friends who have stepped forward with good wishes.

    A couple of my FB contacts who know my health status have reached out to me through comments or FB messaging, to respond to some of my posts (e.g. "you go girl!" on my post about being back on the bike) and I find this tremendously heartening.

    I find it hugely helpful to scoop up all the love that people are sending my way. FB is one way to absorb this care and interest. If you are on FB regularly, I'd encourage you to set up a 'family' category, or even a 'BC' category among your contacts, and post something to that group only. FB is more casual than email and has a different vibe.

    Good luck!

    Gillian

  • Cook65's avatar
    Cook65
    Member
    11 years ago
    Hi Cath, I was already on pariet when I started TCH for gastric reflux due to another condition that I have had prior to bc. I found pramin did very little for me to help in the way of nausea. I was so sick that I couldn't keep them down. They gave me ondansetron wafers and these made all the difference. Although still nauseous, at least I was no longer continuously vomitting. As far as Facebook goes, I was having a lot of difficulty dealing with peoples reactions to my diagnosis. I ended up announcing it on Anzac Day last year on facebook. For me it meant that people were able to deal with the shock before they saw me. I didn't regret it at all. I do regular "booby updates" to let everyone know where I'm at so I don't have to repeat myself continuously. This was particularly helpful when I was so sick with chemo. I'm getting towards the end of my treatment now (only 5 months of herceptin to go) it also meant that if I needed help with something ie a lift to the hospital, I could put a post up asking if anyone was available to help out. Everyone was very supportive. Good luck with it all. Karen xox
  • Deanne's avatar
    Deanne
    Member
    11 years ago
    My oncologist prescribed Nexium for my heartburn. I found this very effective and took it the whole time I was on chemo (I had FEC X3, D x 3). I always had a little bit of nausea while on FEC but found that eating small amounts frequently helped. I tried to stick to healthy options but found that during that week after chemo, it helped to eat what you felt like. Lemonade ice blocks really helped with the nausea for me and I also found salty things helped (but keep drinking plenty of fluids). A lot of people say that they craved tomatoes. I found that my eating habits were quite different for that week of chemo but then I would get back to normal and eat very healthy again for that next 2 weeks. Sorry can't help with FB either. Hope that things go better next time. I did find that each chemo was different and the side effects varied. Best of luck with it. I am 18 months from last chemo and doing extremely well now. Deanne xxx
  • Wenz's avatar
    Wenz
    Member
    11 years ago
    I so remember the heartburn and it's been 7 years since I had chemo. I'm sorry I can't remember what was prescribed for me but I do remember I took a tablet daily for the whole time I was doing chemo and it certainly helped. Tell your Onco and the nurses anything that is worrying you. Don't hold back by thinking you are being a pain. I also remember that on the day of chemo and 2-3 days later I felt okay but on day 4 I was grounded at home for about 5-7 days. Keep an eye on your temperature too. If it spikes phone your Onco. I continued working whilst having chemo except for those days when I was grounded. I had a bookkeeping business and travelled to clients farm offices. With regards to the FB query - sorry can't help you with that one as I find FB very confronting (wrong generation). All the best - you'll get through it - look after yourself Wenz xx