Questions to ask 'Post Surgery' of yourself - to your Specialists - Tick Sheets - Self assessment
I know that after my own surgery, I didn't always quite know what questions to ask of my surgeon and 'the team' that we all see regularly for the first 5 years following our treatment - so I set about looking for 'tick sheets' that would help me, as these appointments approached! I came across some really interesting files. They are all 'multi paged' so I've put a 'sample page' from each document to give you an idea of what is in it. The first booklet is available at most Cancer Clinics and was put out by the Cancer Council - 'Living Well After Cancer'. It is a good one to give to friends & relatives to read as well - to give them an idea of the longterm affects of cancer even after successful treatment - as they often think that once you've had your surgery, chemo, rads & tabs - that you are now 'well'. We all know that that is NOT necessarily the case! :( It really is a lifetime sentence. This booklet covers a lot of areas that concern us all - and may be able to help answer questions in many situations that we face. (sample page) The 2nd one is: "Questions to ask 'post cancer' " - a 'tick sheet' - these questions could be spread across the whole team - your surgeon, Onc and Rad Onc as well as GP. Tick the ones that are relevant to you in the lead up to your individual appointments. (sample page) The next is "Self Care Specific Symptoms" - this sheet could also be for any of your team - with the 2nd section relating more to mental health issues that may impact you. (sample sheet) And finally - a Survivorship Care Plan - virtually a ''Self Assessment Yearly Checkup'' sheet .... which has more specific symptoms that you may be concerned about and also has pages for noting yearly checkups required re Dexa, Mammograms, Colonoscopy, MRI etc - almost a 'diary' to keep re future appointments. (sample Pages) Write down the dates you've had them, and when the next one is. Add any other exams that are not already there You can use any or all of these documents to track how you feel you are progressing - date them & further down the track, you can compare them to see how you are travelling. Take care & I hope these sheets help in tracking your health - both mental and physical. xxx
I'm bloody tired... Peri menopause, or Chemo fatigue nearly two years post treatments!
Hi Warriors, I was diagnosed with Stage 3 October 2018 aged 42, Lumpectomy, 2 nodes cleared and the four rounds of TC Chemo, and Rads that I finished late April 2019. I'm not on any long term medications as I cannot tolerate any of them as they exacerbate my other hormonal condition PMDD. I think I got through all of this pretty unscathed, however every year around this time, I have extreme bouts of fatigue and sickness, on top of the other year round physical symptoms (joint pain and aches, heart palpitations, insomnia, sleeping too much, memory issues etc) The main symptom I struggle with is the constant feeling like I'm about to get the flu, and the unbearable fatigue. I eat really well, don't drink or smoke. I work full time which can be physically demanding, two 12hr day shifts and two 12hr night shifts then four days off. I've been to the GP and Oncologist and had a swathe of blood tests but they always come back normal. My GP says its just Peri menopause, and my Oncologist says my workload is probably this issue. But I'm not convinced.. I'm wondering if it is Chemo fatigue?? I did't think the Chemo I had was harsh enough to cause long term effects. I'm starting to struggle with this, it is effecting my mood. I'm trying to push through and keep going, but I'm exhausted, and I'm worried I'll lose my job of 25 years if I have anymore time off. Is this life after a diagnoses and treatment??? Can anyone relate?? Thank you for any words of wisdom! Thank you Warriors for reading! <3
Iron deficiency
Hi all, has anyone had an iron deficiency post chemo/radio and whilst on hormones treatment. I have not had my period in over 12 months (I’m 42) and find it strange to have mild iron deficiency... especially when my diet has not changed. GP wants me to take iron tablets for 2 months. Oncologist wants to see me... thanks
Interesting article on Chemo Brain.
This was shared to me and made very interesting reading. Being told that "chemo brain" was vastly exaggerated by patients, and that if at all it existed, it would soon resolve after active chemo, is put in perspective. My brain certainly doesn't have a clue as to what my oncologist states, it still stays badly affected. True, not as severe as before, but two years later, still stuffed. Interestingly, the brain MRI scans that I had both before and after the aneurysm clamping showed micro calcifications in the white matter of my brain. Scared the living shit out of me, as my first thought was early onset dementia. Might still be that (vascular), but who knows?https://www.myelomacrowd.org/what-is-chemo-brain/?fbclid=IwAR0wg13Iwaq_eGW7NRJ-0QyEZ7wqKtD40X5vqisHEeB7h1D_mgRwclLIIKI
