Starting chemo next week

@GinGin @Paris_24 @Blossom1961  thank you all for all your tips and helpful info.  It helps a lot in calming me down and get prepared for the day and the side effects chemo might bring.

Thanks blossom1961, hopefully the thyroid ultrasound I'm having this week before chemo is good news. I also hope to waste my money on getting prepared for the medications too.  Fingerscrossed.  

Hi @pollytps. I just found this message in my drafts. Not sure why it didn't send but I sending it again. Better late than never.

 Rest assured, many other things may cause the scan to light up which is why they need to follow it up with other scans. My Pet lit me up like a Christmas tree and the CT confirmed node enlargement. This was due to me (unknowingly) having shingles at the time of the scans.

Your doctor should have given you a list for what you may experience. I always tell people to have medications on hand just in case as you do not need to suffer unnecessarily. My list of high suggestions is anti heartburn tablets, vertigo tablets, constipation and also gastro relief, panadol, anti histamine, the hospital will provide you with anti nausea. You may not need any of them but I reckon you are better off prepared. Stock up your freezer with precooked foods as you may not feel like cooking (I personally couldn't stand the smell of food cooking). Drink lots of water the day before and after chemo as it helps to flush it around.

I hope this helps. Hopefully you will have wasted your money getting prepared by not needing any of it. The nurses will prepare you for everything as they do this all the time. Rest assured, you will be in great hands.

Sending big hugs

@pollytps - same as you my oncologist advised would lose hair usually in first round of AC - for me this occurred in cycle one week 3.  I also had long hair which I cut short for surgery and then as chemo came closer I had my hair cut to a number two all over.  I was sitting on the phone to some one and rubbed my hand in my hair and went what is that?   My hair then came out in clumps within two or three days then and is down to a very fine fuzz all over.  It can be distressing when it occurs no matter what length your hair.  Great you have a wig to wear - no hair can be cold inside the house with the wind and cooler weather.  I have some little caps and scarves.   I understand the taxol will likely take all remaining hair and there are posts that show there are many others who are in progress or have finished this regime their hair grows back.  Keep asking good questions there will be some who can share their experiences.

I had shoulder length hair when diagnosed with BC. Like you, I cut my hair to a bob before I had my surgery. After the second dose of AC, I couldn’t deal with the emotion of watching my hair of falling, so I had it cut (using no 2 ). I cried when my hairdresser cut off my hair 🤭 even though I knew it will grow back. During Taxols, all my hair came off. I was completely bald, I also lost my eyebrows and eyelashes 🤪. It’s almost 4 months after chemo now and my hair has grown back, so have my eyebrows and eyelashes. I should also mentioned that I would recommend moisturising your scalp, mine got extremely dry and it was when I attended a BCNA hair loss presentation, that I was advised to moisturise it. The presenter recommended using Vit E. I highly recommend signing up for that presentation as I got a lot of tips out from it.

I got a lovely wig through Think Pink Foundation. I also purchased a couple of beanies which I used quite frequently as it was winter when I was going through chemo.

by the way, I hope you found the discussions around icing feet and hands. It’s very important to start them 15 minutes before chemo and leave it on for 15 mins after), some of the nurses where I had my chemo are aware of this requirement and they make sure to start the infusion only after 15 mins.

please let me know if there’s any other  questions you may have.

Thank you for the tips @Paris_24 Congratulations on completing AC. I’m thinking to take up the port option too.  My vein is difficult to find and I get bruised very easily. And I really don’t like needles! Will talk to my onco nurse tomorrow about it. So many things and questions going through my head and I’ve found the help and support here has been great 😊 

Thanks for the tips again @GinGin I’ve just ordered cold gloves and socks, hopefully they arrive soon.  It’s nice your hubby learnt how to cook 😊

My oncologist also advised me majority of her patients lost their hair even when cold cap was used. I still haven’t decided if I want to not even try. But then, I prefer not to stretch the treatment time. I’ve got myself a wig from the cancer council, so I’m a little bit prepared. Did you shave your hair or just let it fall off? I used to have very long hair and cut it to bob length just before my mastectomy.

@pollytps good luck for this week!  I am on the same regime and have finished the AC component and am on the last recovery week before moving to taxol.  I have a port which makes accessing for bloods and giving of chemo and other meds so much easier.  My tip is be kind to yourself, fatigue is real and hopefully your breast care nurse has gone through all the side effects and suggested meds to buy to be prepared.  I found the AC rough and it took me 10 days to come right, - others don’t have many issues so hopefully you are in that bucket. It helps to be hydrated, as this helps flush the drug through.  I wish some one would have told me the effects lift and you will start to feel normal again.  I couldn’t understand why I felt so unwell, nausea, difficulty swallowing, talking (oral thrush), brain fog and then the fog starts to lift in your head.Keep talking to your oncologist because they are brilliant at giving you meds to manage side effects that crop up each round.  

My medical oncologist informed me that only Taxols may cause neuropathy. So I started ice only during Taxols. However, I wish I started ice even during AC as I found my hands were extremely sensitive to heat during AC. I couldn’t even cook😬, my hubby had to step up and learn to cook🤭🙈.

I did have a chemo bag for my first treatment but subsequently realise I didn’t need it as my treatment wasn’t as long as others who had cold capping. I did not do cold capping as my oncologist told me with AC+ Taxols, I will still lose majority of my hair, he advised me not to waste my time as it stretches the treatment time.

if you have any questions on the other posts, do not hesitate to ask. Those of us who have already done the walk, will gladly answer the questions. I had many help from the ladies here, I couldn’t have completed my journey without this fabulous online network.

p.s I didn’t have a port or PICC line for the infusion.

Thank you so much for your tips @GinGin , very helpful. I’m still learning my way here and will try to search for other related posts 😊  Going for my chemo education session early next week and thinking to prepare a chemo bag ready for the big day. 

Hi @pollytps
i have the same chemo treatment plan as you.. there’s quite a bit of discussion on chemo in this network amongst the ladies here. Try using the search icon and all the discussion should come up. I completed chemo in mid Jan 2024. As there are numerous discussions about chemo, I will share what I wish I knew before starting chemo.
1. see a dentist before starting chemo. My oncologist nurse said it wasn’t necessary but during the last few sessions (during Taxols), my gums started bleeding at the slightest touch of brushing.
2, wish I knew I should be extremely gentle when brushing my teeth.🤣
3. wish I had moisturize my whole body more thoroughly. Chemo drugs cause the skin to be extremely dry.
4. Wish I cover my right hand with ice properly ( my right hand was used for the infusion so I wasn’t able to cover my hands properly with 🧊. It’s now has neuropathy. And I didn’t complete the last taxol due to concerns the neuropathy could have gotten worse.).

Everyone has very different side effects from chemo. A few ladies on AC dense dose +Taxols, had nausea. I didn’t have any nausea. I had to have red blood transfusion due to low red blood count, I understand it’s a rare side effect of chemo which many people didn’t experience.

Hope my ‘wish I knew’ list help you. I hope your oncologist is right that the lit up is nothing, don’t need to have more worry added!

wishing you all the best for your chemo treatments 

💝😘💝
Gin