Starting Chemo any advice?

Breast Cancer
#21

Hi Karina,

Somehow I got an email from you. Not sure how we have crossed paths. I
have only
been diagnosed with breast cancer February and had a Mastectomy in March. I
just had my pet scan, brain mri and heart scan this week so do not have
results as
of yet. This thursday I will find out. I am diagnosed with Stage 2B and it
spread to
three of my lympth nodes and ouside of one of the nodes. I am ER+ and HER2+
I had a problem during surgery and as a result a problem with healing. I
have spent
the last three weeks doing daily Hyperbaric Oxygen Chamber Treatments to save
the underlying tissue. I am still in the process of healing.
I am glad to hear you are doing well. Any advice is always welcome:)

Sue in USA (Pennsylvania)

************************************** See what’s free at http://www.aol.com.

#22

Hi Monique,

I promise not to stray too far away from you again.  I will be better are checking the forum.  You know shaving your head might give you more control over the situation, which may make you feel like a stronger fighter.  You do what feels right to you though.  It will only get better.  

Lot of love,

Susie 

#23

Hi fullobeans, Hi teachermom,

It make me feel so much better to know I am not the only one with liver cancer from my breast cancer and they are still here to talk about it.  Apparently, I do not have to have chemo yet because I am not sick. Does this sound confusing? Yes.  I am estrogen positive and at this stage in the game I have a 70% chance of remission with chemo and a 70% chance of remission with the drug.  So, if the odds are the same, why not take the easier route.  For now anyway.  My oncologist sees no reason to make me sick right now.  In 12 weeks we will scan my liver again, and if the lesions are not gone completely, then we will move on to other options, if it is working, we will keep it up.  Lets keep our fingers crossed for the later.  I did feel like the walls were crashing in on me.  But, I know it is important to live everyday to the fullest, and enjoy every minute I have left.  I just hope that is a very very very long time.  I have seen people die from metastic cancer and it scares the hell out of me.  Thank you for all the support.

 

Susie 

#24

Sorry you guys!!!!!

I don't know why Suzie and my emails were going to all of you.  Maybe to bring everybody together, that's weird. Oh well, thanks for the advice for Suzie, this is tough having breast cancer and then to find it somewhere else has to be the worst. I am glad to read that what Suzie has can be controlled so she can live a good life, she is so great and I want her to be better. Today I did take the rest of my hair off, it was coming out all over the place. When I swept the kitchen floor it looked like I had a dog living in the house!YIKES!!! So it came off today and boy I look scary. Thanks for each and everyone of you guys responding to us. It was very kind of you, hope to talk to you guys again,

Monique

#25

Monique,

I am so proud of you for shaving your head.  See, you are stronger than you thought.  The worst is over, and you will soon be able to see the light at the tunnel.  After next week, only 4 more to go.  You are almost half way there.  Hang in there.

Suzie 

#26

Hi Suzie, I saw this e-mail after I wrote to you the first time. I guess
that I wouldn’t consider myself strong or be proud of myself in that way. I
truly wish that someone would just put me to sleep for the next two years
and tell me that it was all a bad nightmare. I’m not sure of your age, but
please be careful with Tamoxifen. One of the really bad side effects is
uterine cancer, and I’ve known women to get it many years later. Of course,
what medicine DOESN’T cause side effects?
Maria

From: Suzie bc-cpt2052@lists.careplace.com
Reply-To: bc-cpt2052@lists.careplace.com
To: mariasatha@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: [bc] Starting Chemo any advice???
Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2007 11:17:38 -0400

#27

Hi Maria,

Well, I am pretty young for stage IV breast cancer. I am only 32. And I am strongly considering meeting with my gyno more often than he would probably like. I really don’t know what else to do at this point, but take the medicine. If it will clear the mets out of my liver than I guess the rest I will have to deal with later. It is terrible to take a medication for cancer that will give you cancer. But at this point in time, it is out of my hands. I will do everything I can to stay healthy and strong, but if it comes back it comes back. I could spend the rest of my life, which they probably already think will be short, worrying about it. But I am too stubborn to go out like that. This will not beat me. Nor will I let this medicine knock me down. And anyone who has this disease is a hero in my eyes, whether you believe it or not. You have every reason to be proud of yourself. You could have gave up already, but you haven’t, because here you are helping others. That is very admirable. Thank you again for the tips.
Suzie

#28

Suzie of course this will not beat you, you are a fighter and thats why I like you sooo much. You will take your medicine and we will keep our fingers crossed that it will work. And if you have to do other things then you will and you will succeed, you have to, you are my sister!!! I say bug your gyno as much as you need to feel secure. When I went into this I thought I was young but you are even younger then me but you are strong!!! YOU STAY STRONG!!!

Monique

#29

Hi Suzie, I had no idea about your situation, and here I am complaining. I
will continue to pray for you and for all of us. It’s as if we were thrown
into a group of which we never asked to be a member. When I first
discovered the hideous news, I seriously almost gave up all hope. I still
feel that way at times. My children, 23 and 25, are who keep me fighting.
Steph sounds a lot like myself. Such intense anger at so many issues that I
never knew existed until I was thrown into this against my will. The FDA
approves so many drugs that are later found to be harmful or even deadly to
people. Between the AMA, the FDA, the American Cancer Society, etc., and
the pharmacies, they are all partners in this together making such obscene
amounts of money - tens of billions - each year from victims such as
ourselves, and yet they pretend to care about our well-being. My toughest
question to anyone: why Why WHY can’t our government allow treatments that
are working and curing this ugly illness that are successfully in use in
other countries and let PATIENTS decide for themselves what treatment to
take. What are our options now? Let’s see, there’s chemotherapy (poison),
chemotherapy, oh, and then there’s chemotherapy. Thirty years ago, I
thought that this treatment would be looked at as barbaric “in the future”.
Well, this is the future, and they have done NOTHING to improve anything.
I’m so completely sick of hearing a newsclip on tv that "stay tuned for info
on a new treatment, etc.’, and then they report that it’s either a drug
that’s 5-10 years away from being approved, or it’s a breakthrough for
cancer patients!! - and then to find out that it’s just more medicine to
cover up what’s already being given. The whole thing is so frustrating.
People had better start facing that fact that there are cures out there -
but our government and the other above entities will not stand for it.
What? Put them out of business?
They wouldn’t stand for it. I have a friend who was given three years to
live - and that was over 14 years ago. She decided against the conventional
treatment in the states and flew to Mexico to Oasis of Hope Hospital. To
this day, she still receives unmarked packages through the mail of laetril.

From: Suzie bc-cpt2052@lists.careplace.com
Reply-To: bc-cpt2052@lists.careplace.com
To: mariasatha@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: [bc] Starting Chemo any advice???
Date: Mon, 23 Apr 2007 20:19:53 -0400

#30

Monique,

What ;you are feeling is natural!!! I was the same way last summer as a matter of fact I started losing my hair July4th!!! The next morning the rest of what was left feel out but a little in back. So I went to my beutician and she buzzed the rest for me free of charge!!!

I finished my chemos this last Oct 3 then finished my rads dec 4th, Now I am happy to say I have a full head of hair that is very curly!!! and it is silver!!! (refuse to call it grey)!!! lol

Hang in there! You and suzie will make it through,

I still have my bad days! It seems when you are finally done with treatments is when it really finally hits you! I guess during treatments all we can think about is getting through each one. Then when it is finally over you mind finally had time to comprehend everythnig. It will be a year May 8th that I got my dx! All the 5 year and longer survivors do tell me it gets easier year by year! I sure hope so!

You are both in my prayers!!! Oh by the way rads are a walk in the park after you have had chemo!!! You just need to protect from trying to get to burnt. I tried everything all the ladies told me to but I still burnt, It was just like having a bad sunburn on the boob!!! lol But that is they only thing that bothered me during rads!

Hugs Steph

#31

Hi Steph,

I read in a book that you have a sort of let down after you finish all your treatments. You are taking such an active role in fighting your cancer that it gives you purpose. Once the treatment is over, you no longer have that sense. It makes prefect sense to me. And I am sure that there is a worry that it will come back. I am that person. The continual fear that it will show up somewhere else. I know that I can not live like that. I just have to live full.

Suzie

#32

Thanks Steph,
My post didn’t go through last night don’t know what happened. Thanks for the encouragement, actually I am doing pretty good now. I even feel better then last times treatment. I am taking Darvacet for the pain. I got really bad pains last time in my joints and muscles. I started and then I took one and it went away. YEAH!! Thanks again for your support, Suzie and I need it.

Sending HUGS:) to you,

Monique