Body odour after axillary clearance
After right axillary clearance ten years ago, and following the weird chemical odours during chemo, I realised my right armpit (where clearance was) was heaps whiffier than the left. I have tried so many deodorants, anti bac soaps, anti bac wipes - everything - yet could get out of the shower and still have a horrible strong and stale BO situation in that armpit. Does my head in over summer when it’s hotter! I had despaired of ever finding an answer. Plus worried about the chemicals in these strong deodorants I was using. I tried No Pong, a natural paste deodorant, a week ago and I am ecstatic that this is doing the trick. No more stinky pit at the start of a day when you should be fresh! I would recommend trying. I’m pretty happy with results.
Advocating for Exercise in Breast Cancer Groups
i just wanted to raise some awareness on an issue that has been bugging me and say something here. i have stopped participating in cancer groups because even though groups like this called "get active and keep well", the general fear and disapproval from other members is if someone starts exercising "more" than the generally accepted idea of what exercise is. anything more than that idea is frowned upon, and people have made me feel so angry and sad for sharing something that i am proud of and something that empowers me. with this group and other ones for breast cancer, after i share information about doing some exercise and training after my surgery and after chemo, i have had comments that really shot me down and basically either flat out said that i need "a reality check", or alluding to the fact that the best thing that i can do right now is rest, NOT exercise, and some had attacked me saying that i am putting myself up to put her down (!!). some saying "i wouldnt do that if i were you". well guess what... they are not me. and i am not them. most of these types of comments i have found came from people who have not had the same powerlifting training as me. or from people who did not have an athletic or regular exercise routine at all prior to diagnosis. and these comments have not only hurt me, but made me feel angry and frustrated with the very little emotional energy i already do not have. what i decide to do with my cancer experience is safe FOR ME. for example, women, let alone cancer survivors are fearful of anything to do with strength training. i will not go into the reasons for this and i will not go into the enormous benefits for strength training for women. but i'll give you an example. yesterday i went to the gym and felt great for it. amongst other things, i did 50kgs deadlift. now, if my best deadlift prior to diagnosis was 3 reps, 3 sets of 80kg deadlift prior to diagnosis, and i lifted 50kgs (3x2) nearly 2 months since recovering well from surgery with full range of motion, and 11 days after chemo, and assessing myself as i go, feeling fine and not really even puffed out, and not even sore the next 2 days, to me that means that it is safe for ME to do this. if i felt not ok before, during or after doing a 50kg deadlift 10 days after chemo i would stop. why would i stop doing something that is manageable? for me manageable means something different than the next person who has had recovered from breast cancer surgery and 11 days out of the first chemo session. i trained nearly for around 9 months prior to diagnosis. 50kg deadlift would be a different story to a competitive powerlifter who can lift triple digits in kgs, and would be different again to someone who only did walking as exercise prior to diagnosis. why are other people not to be trusted to their own intuitions and experience in something they already know? do we need to tell someone how to live their life? not usually. so why tell someone how to go through their cancer journey? i have my surgeon and oncologist's approval and support for powerlifting before, during and after chemo, and i have the utter wonderful and strong support from the fitness community groups. why must i be told like an idiot that i am doing the wrong thing for my body? why tell me that i am not doing what i should be doing? with all the new realisations in the medical field that building stamina, strength and muscle can help to improve the lives of people with cancer even during treatment, and that these increases in fitness and muscle can trigger lots of previously unknown properties for the body to heal itself, generate more energy and stamina to better handle treatment, why is that exercise and strength training is so frowned upon by the standards of 30 years ago? maybe we do not have that much information on the subject but at least what we do know 100% for sure is that even if you don't have cancer, and you did no exercise, and no resistance training, that your body will function very very differently than someone who does regular cardiovascular as well as strength training. you add muscle bone and energy killing chemotherapy on top of someone who doesn't exercise for months at a time, and you get far greater levels fatigue, far greater loss of strength and more difficulty regaining strength after treatment (and guess what helps combat loss of bone density, muscle mass and loss of energy? -strength training). i know that before my diagnosis if i do not exercise for 2 weeks i loose strength and stamina, i feel more fatigued and my lupus will take over and i will be more prone to simply staying in bed. why do people like myself, other fitness pursuing women and athletes who had been diagnosed with breast cancer have to feel like we cannot be supported in a group like this and other groups that advocates exercise? i want to feel like people respect my decisions to do what i need and what i want with my life, especially because i feel ok and great after what i do in terms of exercise. and i want to say to other women here who do exercise/athletic pursues, PLEASE share what you do for exercise! because the community needs to know that if someone knows their body, got doctors approval, and does exercise that makes them feel great not just physically, but mentally and that empowers them, that they should be celebrated! that they should be allowed to say and share and be proud of what they did especially whist going through cancer! you need to share your experience until it is normalised in our society. i have been made to feel so angry and ashamed because i went back to the gym when i felt ok to, during MY cancer experience, and i do not want that for anyone else. i am excited to share this with you as a last note in a couple of links. thanks for those who read and are willing to understand. https://soundcloud.com/abcnsw/resistance-training-benefits-breast-cancer-survivors http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/4459555.htm <-- ABC catalyst documentary (chemo and exercise) http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0067579 <-- the exercise cancer killer cells research https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Julie_Gehl/publication/294870149_Voluntary_Running_Suppresses_Tumor_Growth_through_Epinephrine-_and_IL-6-Dependent_NK_Cell_Mobilization_and_Redistribution/links/56e954d408aecf036b315403.pdf <-- how killer cells work on tumors 2016 research
Skin checks
This is just a reminder to get skin checks along with every other checks ✔️ we all do. In some cases breast cancer has links to melanoma. Chemo too can bring out skin issues. I had 3 melanoma before my skin cancer diagnosis in 2020. I have had a history too of abnormal cells in many of my moles. Post breast cancer and chemo I have had 2 more malignant melanoma ( one recently diagnosed) and a SCC. I am ok as these are detected early. I am waiting for surgical removal in July. The message is to get your skin checked so if any issues arise they can be found early and treatment is available.
Blood Pressure changes with Chemotherapy
During my Paclitaxol Chemo last year I required a reduction in my anti-hypertensive drugs. My BP is still lower than my pre cancer diagnosis. I'm going to have it reviewed again as my BP is still lower. I haven't had any other significant changes. My weight is stable. Has anyone else noticed a lowering of blood pressure, like I have? It would be a great side effect, if permanent.
Armidex
Hi I have been on Armidex for 6 years and I get really bad pain in my heel of my foot some days does anyone else experience this? Also I am thinking of getting off it now due to not sleeping well but am worried about recurrence. I have put on 10kg since I was diagnosed 6 years ago at 47 years old and worried if I don’t get off it I will gain even more weight. Thanks for your help
Ode to missing hair
Hi All! Half way along on my 12 weekmy taxol, monthly Herceptin regime. The hair started falling out after about week 3. I didn’t think this was going to be a big problem for me, was looking forward to trying all sorts of interesting headwear. The reality, though, has been quite confronting, and by far the hardest thing to deal with so far. The head is itchy, with infected sores, pimples and incredible sensitivity. All of this you guys know, right? It’s a pretty common theme on here. So, my hair was my ‘thing’, my way of expressing myself, my way of aging disgracefully, and complimenting my zany personality. Now I feel that identity has been ripped away and all I’m left with is a slightly sad, exhausted, pimply visage in the mirror. Even my super cool tshirts have gone by the wayside as I don’t know what to wear on my head to go with them and everything is pretty uncomfortable anyway So tonight I made a movie looking back on my hair over the years. It’s a kind of homage, celebration, and memorium to what was, and hopefully what will be again. Tell me I’m not the only one? Share your lovely locks on here and we’ll commiserate together (and maybe get a bit of a nice giggle too) Onward and upward, my spiky goddesses! Thanks for listening. Here’s my short movie https://m.facebook.com/770892291/posts/10158089672392292/?d=n
Putting it out there to my networks - Pyloric Stenosis, anyone???? Also, be your own advocate
Hi all I got my 4 year all clear mammogram and ultrasound in October (Yay). But some of you know that after BC treatment (surgery, chemo, radiation, Herceptin) was finished I was diagnosed with Achalasia a disease that makes it difficult for food to get into the stomach. I had major surgery for Achalasia last year. Things were good for a while. Then in the last couple of months I had severe bloating and several ambulance trips to hospital with the worst abdominal pain I've ever experienced in my life. I found myself back on the medical roller coaster for the third time. Scans showed a thickening in my small intestine. However, the CT I had last week showed nothing abnormal. Finally, after an endoscopy, on Friday I was diagnosed with Pyloric Stenosis - a condition which is apparently rare in adults, that blocks food leaving the stomach. I just want to reach out to anyone who has, or know of someone who has Pyloric Stenosis. It's hard to make decisions about surgery if I can't find information on what others have personally experienced. I would be grateful to hear from anyone. I also want to emphasise how important it has been for me to be my own health advocate. It took ages for me to be diagnosed with Achalasia and thankfully I was only stage 2. I had Achalasia symptoms for 2-3 years before being diagnosed with BC. During BC treatment all my Achalasia symptoms were put down to side effects of chemo or radiation. Nobody was even looking for something else, despite me telling them I thought something was going on. With BC, despite me being the one to find changes in my breast during a self exam I was initially told it was nothing as it wasn't a lump, just a thickening, and chances were it was nothing as I wasn't 50. This third time round even with an abnormal scan from back in August 2018 and problems that were escalating over a few months, the doctors still thought my symptoms could be par-for-the-course side effect of chemo that I had in 2016! It's only when I kept on going back to my specialists that they finally did extra tests and the endoscopy which showed that the scans were correct and there was a physical abnormality that explained all my symptoms. I used to feel silly when I would tell a doctor I thought something was wrong. But now I acknowledge that I know my own body better than the medical professionals and it serves me well to listen to it. I will never feel silly again. Wishing you all the very best. Nadine
Swelling in the reconstructed breast
Hi all, this is my first post. September 2017 I was diagnosed with 6cm tumour with node involvement - not visible on ultrasound or mammogram. May 2018 I had a skin sparing mastectomy ‘L’ breast with a spacer. In July 2018 I had the reconstruction done. Since then I have been just getting on with life. This included taking up running which of course gave me weight loss to the point where my implant was quite visibly outlined. And I was happy with that. However, a month ago I noticed swelling of the reconstructed breast. I thought nothing of it. However, yesterday I noticed it was quite noticeably enlarged. Has anyone else ever had this before? Thanks Sonja
Feeling frustrated
One week tomorrow since I finished radiation treatment. I was told it would peak this week and they wore not wrong. It has been a very trying time. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were the worst and now the tiredness has kicked in. Feeling very low today. I am over being sore and uncomfortable but it is the tiredness that is really getting me down there are so many things I want to get on with and yet I just don't have the energy. Very frustrating. Perhaps tomorrow will be a better day.
Trigger Finger/Thumb exercises
I've found a Youtube presentation that explains how Trigger Finger/Thumb occurs & some rubbing & exercises that may help it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0FfMzemLnU The info from the 2min 20sec mark is more about locating the nodule at the base of the thumb/finger that is restricting the tendon from working smoothly - and how deep tissue massage may help to help break down the scar tissue. This is very similar to what my husband has done in the past when he gets a running injury - he will give deep massage to the muscle, to 'free it up'. I found that I have quite a BIG nodule at the base of my left thumb - it is much smaller on my right thumb. I started the rubbing of the nodule quite aggressively yesterday & I am surprised to say that it already feels 'freer' today! I still can't bend the thumb tho the pain is less (the magic oil may also be helping here too!) - so I am stretching it & forcing it to bend as well, to try & free it up more. Good luck - it is definitely worth a try!