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Melg's avatar
Melg
Member
14 years ago

The good,the bad and the ugly of Taxol

Hi I have just completed 4 three weekly cycles of AC and am so happy they are over. I had 3 hospital admissions including bilateral lung clots so have found it a little challenging. Next on my treatment plan is 12 weekly cycles of Taxol to commence this coming Thursday 5/4. My oncologist assures me these treatments will be easier on my body and mind than the AC. I would dearly love to hear from anyone who has experienced Taxol, especially weekly doses similiar to mine. I am feeling very anxious about starting a new chemo cocktail especially the possibility of having an allergic reaction as it is administered. Really hoping to hear the about the good, bad and ugly of Taxol. I know everyone is different but I like to know what I could expect. I hope everyone has had a relaxing weekend. It has been a beautiful weekend here on the NSW central coast. I took our new old caravan out for the first time to a local van park on the beach. This morning I had a lovely breakfast with some baby magpies then a fox joined us till the littlies nearby chased it away. I spent time dangling my feet in rockpools full of tiny starfish. It was great to have a weekend where the C word didn't get mentioned once. Look forward to hearing from those who have experienced taxol Mel xxx

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  • Al's avatar
    Al
    Member
    14 years ago

    I had a lumpectomy with clear margin and no lymph node involvement. Very lucky as it was a grade 3 but level 1b. I am also on tamoxifen - which I think you said you were going to be offered too.

    Good luck- you will be fine! Thinking of you on Thursday.

    Alison xxx

  • annie2's avatar
    annie2
    Member
    14 years ago
    Hi Mel, I too did 4 rounds of AC and 12 Taxol with herceptin as I was Her2 positive. I had no reaction with Taxol they give u a lot of pre meds in your drip before hand. I found these drugs were like a speed drug and i couldn't sleep that night after chemo.So I ended up with a very clean house cleaning out cupboards at 3am! My family thought I'd gone mad! I found it way easier than AC however after about the 3rd treatment I started to be in a lot of pain. Especially my joints and bones. The bottom of my feet felt like the bones were shattering esp first thing in the morning. I still have a lot of pain and it's been over 4 months since my last Taxol. I also had a lot of gastric problems. ulcers in my mouth throat and gut.was prescribed Nexium which helped almost instantly. Good luck on Thursday.I hope you manage well. We all react differently. Cheers, Annie x
  • pamjau's avatar
    pamjau
    Member
    14 years ago

    Hi Mel, I had AC followed by Taxodere (which is similar to Taxol), I had no nausea or vomiting on it which was a relief, but it did affect my bones qnd muscles, had  a lot of pain and  stiffness expect finger and toe nails to discolour I also had the feeling I was walking on glass. Joint pains continued for quite a while after. But I got through it . It will soon be a distant memory.

    Pam

  • Melg's avatar
    Melg
    Member
    14 years ago
    Hi Al Thanks so much for your reply. Sounds like I am having nearly the same treatment as you. My cancers were oestrogen positive... I Havnt heard my oncologist mention herceptin... If you don't mind me asking did you have a lumpectomy or masectomy. I had a bilateral masectomy as I had ductal, lobular and one other type of cancer in each breast. Can't remember the other type. I had a choice at first to attempt a lumpectomy on one breast but it had 3 cancers and I thought both off was the way to go. My surgeon agreed with me but still allowed me to make my own decision. I feel much better about Thursday chemo... Still anxious... Had heard so much negative stuff about taxol... Still uptight about having a reaction when it's administered... It's worried me from day one. I try not to worry but my bc was diagnosed after I had a dream one night telling me to have a mammogram... I had no lumps or bumps... Just a strong feeling to follow my dream... Thanks again for your reply Mel :)
  • Melg's avatar
    Melg
    Member
    14 years ago
    Hi Al Thanks so much for your reply. Sounds like I am having nearly the same treatment as you. My cancers were oestrogen positive... I Havnt heard my oncologist mention herceptin... If you don't mind me asking did you have a lumpectomy or masectomy. I had a bilateral masectomy as I had ductal, lobular and one other type of cancer in each breast. Can't remember the other type. I had a choice at first to attempt a lumpectomy on one breast but it had 3 cancers and I thought both off was the way to go. My surgeon agreed with me but still allowed me to make my own decision. I feel much better about Thursday chemo... Still anxious... Had heard so much negative stuff about taxol... Still uptight about having a reaction when it's administered... It's worried me from day one. I try not to worry but my bc was diagnosed after I had a dream one night telling me to have a mammogram... I had no lumps or bumps... Just a strong feeling to follow my dream... Thanks again for your reply Mel :)
  • Al's avatar
    Al
    Member
    14 years ago

    Hi Mel,

    Forgot to say that I'm still on herceptin until Oct ( 3 weekly) as my cancer was HER2+. Heart scans every 3 months but apart from this things are good. No obvious side effects from this and it also very quick - 1 hour total in the chair.Take care,

    Alison xx ( Perth)

  • Al's avatar
    Al
    Member
    14 years ago

    I too had AC ( same regime as yours) and 12 weeks of taxol/herceptin combined. After AC I found this much easier to tolerate. I also had some reaction to the AC - very low neutraphils which lead to a hospital stay of 8 days! But other than that the Taxol was a walk in the park compared to AC. Very few side effects - fatigue, mouth ulcers and dry mouth about the worst. Diarrohea was a bit of a probelm at times too but manageable. I finished Taxol on the 6th Jan this year and have just finished 35 rounds of radiotherapy, on 15th of March. I also started taking Tamoxifen in Jan. So far so good. A few hot flushes and night sweats but not too bad ( average 3-4 per week) My hair has grown back - very straight and white!!

    Take care and if there is anything else you would like help with just blog away. This is a great site!! My saviour!

    Thinking of you when you start your new cocktail. Hopefully it will be ok for you too. Stay positive - this really helped me!

    Alison xxx

     

  • Al's avatar
    Al
    Member
    14 years ago

    I too had AC ( same regime as yours) and 12 weeks of taxol/herceptin combined. After AC I found this much easier to tolerate. I also had some reaction to the AC - very low neutraphils which lead to a hospital stay of 8 days! But other than that the Taxol was a walk in the park compared to AC. Very few side effects - fatigue, mouth ulcers and dry mouth about the worst. Diarrohea was a bit of a probelm at times too but manageable. I finished Taxol on the 6th Jan this year and have just finished 35 rounds of radiotherapy, on 15th of March. I also started taking Tamoxifen in Jan. So far so good. A few hot flushes and night sweats but not too bad ( average 3-4 per week) My hair has grown back - very straight and white!!

    Take care and if there is anything else you would like help with just blog away. This is a great site!! My saviour!

    Thinking of you when you start your new cocktail. Hopefully it will be ok for you too. Stay positive - this really helped me!

    Alison xxx