Extreme weakness!
Ladies please tell me this won't last ,, im only a week into my first cycle and im struggling to be on my feet for more than a minute or two. Thursday I could barely lift my head to drink. Is it the Docetaxel, Cisplatin and Herceptin? My Oncologist must think im a super hero.. No nausea as yet, but mild belly pain and thank goodness for Gastro stop š mild to ouchy bone pain and muscle aches,, and thismorning my toes are a bit tingly lol these I can handle, its the feeling of exhaustion after a trip from lounge to loo thats getting me down.. I'm incapable of doing anything for myself.. I was not prepared for this!! I know you ladies won't look at this post as a winge, I just wanted to share my experience and possibly help other ladies who are about to start chemo.. I've been used to pushing through, mentally and physically for a long time (depression) im not a woman who let's small things get me down.. I didn't think chemo would be easy but OMG !! Please share with me if your struggling like me..
Tips and recommendations during Taxol
I am starting my TH regime on the 22nd of August. I am looking for any tips or recommendations to make this part of my journey as less unpleasant as possible. Cancer centre has cold caps and cold glovesā¦ do they actually help or are they worth the discomfort? Please hit me with your top tips. Anything from shampoos, skincare, foods to what to take with me to the infusion centreā¦ anything to make it easier please! I am really feeling quite anxious about starting chemo. I have already had a nipple sacrificing double mastectomy with immediate implant reconstruction almost 4 weeks ago. Thank you š
26 & in complete shock
I never thought I would hear the words.. let alone at 26. I have been recently diagnosed with Stage 2 Triple Postive beast cancer after finding a 3.5cm lump in my left breast & lymph node spread after further testing. Although I have family history, my Aunty & grandma were diagnosed with estrogen Postive breast cancer. I guess I wanted to reach out & see if anyone has been diagnosed under 30 with a HER2+ with little family historyā¦ I just feel so alone, Iām the youngest person at the cancer clinic. I am two chemotherapy sessions in & I feel like Iāve been in survival mode since I heard the words. So much to wrap my head around - losing my hair, not working, being so sick, seeing my family so upset.. willing to take any suggestions on processing my new normal!
How do you decide on treatment?
Hi, this is soo not a me thing to do - I'm basically a very private person and struggle to ask for help, but I was filling in some sleepless hours reading some posts and decided I should bite the bullet... I was diagnosed late May initially ER/PR+ HER2- grade 2 from biopsy, so suggested treatment was BCS followed by radiation for 6 weeks, then probably tamoxifen for 5-10 yrs. My immediate thought (not really listening) was that it wasn't bad as I could just have the lump + a bit out and it would be gone - haha!! So after telling each of my family separately (ie repeating it 5 times) I suddenly came to the realisation that I would never cope with (over 1hr each way) trips to the hospital 5 days a week for 6 weeks, so a call to my surgeon to change my mind - and a mastectomy was had. New pathology results suddenly meant new treatment regime - my Her2 came back questionable followed by Her2+ after further tests. Thankfully nodes -. So now I'm looking at 12 weeks of Taxol, 12 months of herceptin, 3 years of zoledronic acid then letrozole followed by tamoxifen. So everything has basically gone to shit and I'm in the midst of trying to decide what to do, hence another sleepless night š I had my 2nd appointment with my oncologist today and asked a heap of questions and I'm still unsure.... I had almost decided to not do chemo or herceptin, and possibly just do tamoxifen.... I'm a bit all over the show... I think I just find it really hard to accept that I should do something to my body that is most likely going to make me feel like shit!! I haven't been sick for absolutely ages - why would I choose to be??? Now I think maybe I should just do what they suggest, but I'm quite concerned about the effects of the herceptin on the heart ... And how is all this treatment going to affect life in general... So many things to consider. So I have to somehow decide this stuff before my next appointment in a week and he wants to start the chemo next Thursday if I agree.... Do most people just "listen to the experts", or pick and choose what to do - and how the hell do you make those decisions?!!?!?! Sorry - such a long rant.... XxFeeling overwhelmed and anxious
hi everyone i have been diagnosed with breast cancer with HER2+ , stage 2a. I saw the oncologist for the first time yesterday and I will be having the following- FEC x 3 cycles, 3 weekly then TH x 4 cycles, 3 weekly, followed by Herceptin only for 13 cycles, 3 weekly. I am considering a port as I had such a horrible time with needles recently when I went back into hospital with an infection in my breast. The thought of a cannula every 3 weeks is making me feel sick. The oncologist thinks I should give the cannula a go the first time and I can have a port or picc if I want for the following treatments. I only have one good arm they can use due to an auxiliary clearance. He also said that I could have the 13 cycles of Herceptin injected straight into my leg rather than IV. Has anyone had experience of this? thanks so much.
Still on the Journey
Well its a while since I posted, last November when I was diagnosed with HER 2 positive BC I was surprised to find out how many different Breast cancers exist. I suppose I have just followed what the doctors have suggested, but have always felt that it was my choice in what treatment I undertake. Because the cancer was already in the lymph system I started with Chemo, Hercepton and Perjeta. 6 rounds of chemo and I made it through, though I still have the other drugs till December. Waiting for surgery, deciding what to do was the toughest call. My female surgeon gave me the choice, take the front off the boob and all the lymph glands under the arm, wait for the results and see if I need more surgery. Its been 9 annoying days, but tomorrow is D Day, of course I could have just opted to have the breast off, but I wanted the choice. It's strange that the breast is not really sore but the drain under the arm is very annoying, I keep forgetting it and it gets stuck on the furniture lol. So whatever happens tomorrow, it's just a part of God's journey, and this is a hiccup on the way.
Experiences with Docetaxel, Herceptin, and Perjeta
Hello ladies I am newly diagnosed with stage II, HER2 pos, E/P receptor neg breast cancer. I have been reading your posts this week and feel very comforted by the great combination of information and support. The process has been very confronting for me, but the kindness of others that I have experienced along the crazy path of investigations has been very welcome! Next week I will start on Docetaxel, Herceptin and Perjeta. I will have breast surgery after 4 cycles, and then stay on Herceptin for 1 year. I was wondering about other people's experiences with this combination - how were the side effects and any tips for treatment days? I am also wondering about making the choice for surgery between mastectomy and lumpectomy/radiation. This seems to be left up to each woman to decide. My gut instinct is to get rid of the breast tissue to decrease further risk in the future, but is this the best option from a recurrence perspective? How have others made the decision?Breast and thyroid cancer combination
Hi everyone I was diagnosed with HER2 positive breast cancer in October last year. I had 4 courses of chemotherapy to shrink the tumours in my breast and under my arm pit. This was followed by a lumpectomy and clearance of the axillary lymph nodes. I am also on 3 weekly doses of Herceptin for 12months. I completed 7 weeks of radiotherapy in May. I was starting to feel like my old self again but a bit of a shock changed all of that. I discovered a lump towards the end of my radiotherapy treatment. After investigation and numerous biopsies, I was diagnosed with metastatic papillary thyroid cancer. I have just had a total thyroidectomy and neck clearance and am waiting to have a follow up consult with my surgeon regarding the cancer pathology and next steps. My question is has anyone else had this combination of cancers? My endocrine specialist told me that the thyroid cancer is totally unrelated to the breast cancer. So in other words I have had 2 separate primary cancers. I am wondering if this has any impact on recurrence and survival rates. It has been a double whammy to get my head around this diagnosis on top of the breast cancer. I have an appointment with my medical oncologist next week and will discuss it with her. Also I am concerned regarding a seroma that has formed on my neck since the surgery and any advice people may have regarding managing ongoing lymphoedema from these 2 operations would be most welcome.