Post-treatment Tired and can't afford to be
Hi there, I am a 60 year old who has had a pretty-easy, early-invasive BC journey: Small, ER+, PR+, HER-; Lumpectomy with clear margins; 2 lymph nodes taken but uninvolved; Axillar seroma drained; 15 fractions of RT; Maybe some early lymphodema in breast, Letrozole from diagnosis through RT but then told I would not benefit much from it (0.6% benefit in reduced recurrence rates) and discontinued it due to side effects. I am 4 months post-surgery and 6 weeks post-RT, and have been off Letrazole for a month or more. I am back at clerical work (work from home) full-time now, after working back up gradually, and I am stuffed! I can barely get out of bed in the morning, and if I can stay upright in my seat and keep my brain focussed, by the end of the day I am completely useless. Rad Onc says the fatigue should not be RT related at this point. Now I feel like I should be able to just "snap out of it" but that's totally beyond me and I just want to cry and sleep. (For transparency, I should maybe admit (& remember for my own benefit) that since my initial biopsy my husband and I have organised a son's engagement party, done a road trip and purchased a home 1500 km away, organised renovations and done 2 more trips to keep tabs on the works, watched 2nd son sworn in as a cop, and seen no. 1 son marry. Maybe that's part of the fatigue ...along with the panic over working full-time, decluttering/downsizing, packing and moving in 3 months.) Maybe my problem is actually a dose of insanity...? 🤪 Can anyone with a similar, "straightforward" BC journey share whether their "normal" returned and how long it took? Thanks for "listening".162ViewsSign in to react to this post7Comments
Radiation burn treatment solution
Hi everyone! I just finished 3 weeks radiation. Breast care nurses gave me sorbolene which I trusted would help heal and keep my breast moisturised. The redness became redder after each time I applied the cream and I thought this is how it's obviously meant to be. A few days after my last treatment, I met some people at a social gathering. A lady who also had radiation, told me about an app called 'Yuki'. She looked up my sorbolene brand, Kenkay and it rated very poorly, 39 out of 100 and contained petrolatum which is a known carcinogen and endochrine disrupter!! I was horrified. My partner's sister got me a bottle of Lavaderm, which I sprayed on and it was so cooling, with natural ingredients. I then put on jojoba oil. The next day - I kid you not - my skin went from lobster red to mild pink!! My skin is back to normal after 2 weeks. Please check your products ladies for after radiation care!143ViewsSign in to react to this post1Comment
To remove or not to remove..... that is the question
Hi all, I am 2 years post diagnosis. Left Mastectomy, Chemo, Radiation, Oophorectomy and taking Exemestane. I looking for advice from anyone who decided after treatment was finished instead of a reconstruction have the other breast removed for "evenness". I believe that the reconstructive surgery would be a pretty long operation as I don't have enough skin to simply slip a implant in. I just think it would be simpler to remove the other breast but any advice on either the pros or cons of this option would be greatly appreciated.805ViewsSign in to react to this post20Comments
Muscle spasms - post radiation?
Does anyone else have trouble with muscle spasms? Prior to mastectomy and radiation I never had any issues, but since radiotherapy in Jan 2019 I have multiple muscle spasms every day under my ribs and across my chest and around the shoulder blade area (not necessarily all at once). It seems to be positional and things like bending down to tie my shoe, sitting up in bed, a low chair, twisting etc all cause really painful spasms. I can only relieve the spasm if I wriggle around and contort myself into various odd sort of counter positions and when I get the right position the cramp/spasm then ‘releases’, I can actually feel a shift, and the pain disappears instantly (until next time). Each episode is very short, but it’s stop you in your tracks, bring tears to your eyes pain. I already take magnesium and exercise daily, but this hasn’t helped. I’m at my wits end. Any suggestions?267ViewsSign in to react to this post5Comments
How long does recovery take?
Just wondering if anyway can remember how long after chemo finishes till you felt like you were feeling better? I finished 16 rounds last Thursday. I never felt terrible during taxol but the last three treatments I found that I was still fairly flat by the time the next one was due whereas early on I would feel pretty normal again by the time the week was up. A week has passed and I still have aching muscles, slightly nauseous and can’t make it through the day without a rest. Just feel like I have nothing left. Then I am up half the night with hot flushes and sweats and unable to sleep. I don’t expect to feel good but just wondering if it takes weeks or months to improve.343ViewsSign in to react to this post10Comments
So I have BRCA 2 mutation 🙄
I'm coming up to 12mths post chemo. 18mths post double mastectomy. 6mths post oophrectomy (ovaries out) after my IDC diagnosis after self detecting a small lump at age 46. Genetics is obviously something they put on a back burner during all this process but my sample was sent to the US after my recent genetics appointment. Results are in BRCA 2 identified.. I have mixed feelings tbh. First thought..oh my kids! Please don't let my family endure anymore elevated cancer risk. I have 3 children 2 daughters and a son i guess the chances are one of them does at least.. Then thank goodness i opted for a double mastectomy, and i chose to remove to remove my ovaries also. It looks like my risk of other cancers is also elevated now. Sometimes i really wish i could go back to the good old days, pre cancer! Oh how sweet was life! Today i have to talk with them about getting tested. 😕 but knowledge is power they say. Thanks for listening 💜118ViewsSign in to react to this post2Comments
nose bleeds
Have finished most of my treatment for breast cancer except for 3 weekly herceptin and daily arimadex. So far no serious side effects. My nails are terrible but I can live with that. However nose bleeding has restarted. Feels like I have a blocked nose most of the time. At night I wake up with a dry mouth because I can't breath through my nose. When I blow my nose in the morning - lots of blood clots and some fresh bleeding. have tried a non medicated spray with no success. Any suggestions????491ViewsSign in to react to this post12CommentsScan or not to Scan - Post treatment
I have now completed treatment and I’m on Letrazole. I had IDC grade 3 ER + clear margins, 2x lymph nodes with adenocarcinoma and High grade DCIS - margins involved. I had 3x FEC and 1 out of 3 Docetaxel (Nasty stuff) 25 rads. No re section for DCIS, I was told chemo and radiation would take care of any cells left behind. I had a meeting with my surgeon on Wednesday and I asked whether I was to have a scan to check effectiveness of what I’d been through. I believed that 3 months after treatment this was normal. I was given a long drawn out story about the pros and cons of scans and told I would be best to wait and see if I get symptoms of returning cancers rather than having a scan which could show nothing however I could have G zero cells hiding and waiting to become active at any time, proving a negative scan wrong. I was also told G zero cells are dormant and are not affected by chemotherapy and can become active at any time and return. There was so much more I was told, that was in some ways a total back flip to what I was told in the beginning. Long and short, has anyone else been told this?828ViewsSign in to react to this post24Comments
What a let down!
Got through 3 appointments with the all clear after breast surgery and then pelvic surgery last October November. Radiation treatment throughout Dec and Jan. 6 monthly checks over past weeks - breast surgeon very happy, gynae surgeon very happy, then PET scan prior to seeing gynae radiology oncologist. Then the shock - PET scan shows some concern at the site of original breast surgery - bugger! Back to breast surgeon tomorrow, maybe 12 month scan will be brought forward, who knows. Just when I thought things were getting back to normal, holidays being planned etc, etc and then another kick in the butt. Hoping it might just be scar tissue or something not problematic, but can’t help the negative thoughts. I just want to get off this ‘merry-go-round’285ViewsSign in to react to this post9Comments
162Views
7Comments