Period is Back, Is that Normal?

frog08

I started chemo on Aug. 6 and had my period that same week. However, when it came due the same time in Sept., it never came. Now it is the end of Sept. almost Oct. I've had 4 Adriomycin treatments and all the sudden I start my period again. Is this normal? I thought it stopped with chemo? I stay confused with the side effects of these drugs. Can anyone tell me of their experiences?? Also, I start Taxol next Wednesday. I read one of the discussions that talked about how Taxol was worse than Adriomycin and Cytoxin. I'm really dreading it now and scared, because the Adriomycin really wore me out and made me sick. Any advice?
Thank you, Linda

kecarman

Linda -
Here are some observations based on my experiences.
Your crazy period is normal. Mine was all over the place. I was actually hoping that I would go into early menopause like the doctor hinted. No such luck. Keep track of your dates and flow. I ended up with a really heavy flow at the end and ended with a D&C just to clean everything out. Too many periods that were sporadic and didn't do the job effectively, I guess!
As for A/C vs. Taxol: Taxol for me was harder but in a different way. A/C bother my stomach somewhat (and wiped me out) but Taxol hurt. My joints, legs, and just bones in general ached for about 4 days of every treatment. It would start about day 2 or so after treatment and last for about 3 days. It wasn't muscle pain, but pain deep inside. My onc. gave me permission to use my leftover pain meds for relief. On the plus side, my stomach was fine with the Taxol.
I don't mean to scare you, just trying to get you prepared. Don't hesitate to ask for pain meds if you need them.

- Karen

frog08

kecarman said:

Linda -
Here are some observations based on my experiences.
Your crazy period is normal. Mine was all over the place. I was actually hoping that I would go into early menopause like the doctor hinted. No such luck. Keep track of your dates and flow. I ended up with a really heavy flow at the end and ended with a D&C just to clean everything out. Too many periods that were sporadic and didn't do the job effectively, I guess!
As for A/C vs. Taxol: Taxol for me was harder but in a different way. A/C bother my stomach somewhat (and wiped me out) but Taxol hurt. My joints, legs, and just bones in general ached for about 4 days of every treatment. It would start about day 2 or so after treatment and last for about 3 days. It wasn't muscle pain, but pain deep inside. My onc. gave me permission to use my leftover pain meds for relief. On the plus side, my stomach was fine with the Taxol.
I don't mean to scare you, just trying to get you prepared. Don't hesitate to ask for pain meds if you need them.

- Karen

Thank you for your response. Everything is soooo weird now. Nobody really understands what I'm going through. The people where I work just keep asking me, "Is it better now". Have you adjusted to it. Are you less tired? Is the next treatment better? It doesn't seem to get better. I just get more tired. Thanks for letting me know about the taxol too. It helps to not be so scared when someone else has been there and can share. Blessings, Linda

llange

I would agree with Karen on the side effects. I was very achy with Taxol for a few days after treatment, but it was controllable with ibuprofen. I found it much, much easier than AC treatments. Also, my period was all over the place during treatments - it would stop for a few months, then be very light, and at the end I had one very heavy period. Since I started Tamoxifen, my periods have been about 6 weeks apart and last only 2-3 days. I was diagnosed in Nov. 2001, when I was 37 (age makes a difference with the menopause symptoms), and finished all treatments in Aug. 2002.

Hope this helps.
Lisa

hummingbyrd

kecarman said:

Linda -
Here are some observations based on my experiences.
Your crazy period is normal. Mine was all over the place. I was actually hoping that I would go into early menopause like the doctor hinted. No such luck. Keep track of your dates and flow. I ended up with a really heavy flow at the end and ended with a D&C just to clean everything out. Too many periods that were sporadic and didn't do the job effectively, I guess!
As for A/C vs. Taxol: Taxol for me was harder but in a different way. A/C bother my stomach somewhat (and wiped me out) but Taxol hurt. My joints, legs, and just bones in general ached for about 4 days of every treatment. It would start about day 2 or so after treatment and last for about 3 days. It wasn't muscle pain, but pain deep inside. My onc. gave me permission to use my leftover pain meds for relief. On the plus side, my stomach was fine with the Taxol.
I don't mean to scare you, just trying to get you prepared. Don't hesitate to ask for pain meds if you need them.

- Karen

When my period came back I didn't think it normal, but my tumor was ER+ and PR+. If you have periods that means you are producing estrogen and progesterone. You might ask doc about blood test to check estrogen level IF ER+(estrogen receptor).
I'd get an FSH and LH and one other test, I can't remember right now, but doc will know.
As for taxol.......cakewalk for me compared to AC....or the 'red devil'. Maybe it will be a breeze for you too! God bless. hummingbyrd

frog08

hummingbyrd said:

When my period came back I didn't think it normal, but my tumor was ER+ and PR+. If you have periods that means you are producing estrogen and progesterone. You might ask doc about blood test to check estrogen level IF ER+(estrogen receptor).
I'd get an FSH and LH and one other test, I can't remember right now, but doc will know.
As for taxol.......cakewalk for me compared to AC....or the 'red devil'. Maybe it will be a breeze for you too! God bless. hummingbyrd

Thank you for the advice. I wrote down the test names, so that when I go to the doc on Wednesday, I can ask him about it. My tumor is Estrogen positive. That's what worries me about the periods. I'm 42, so I thought they might go away all together with the chemo. Evidently not. Will having a period or producing estrogen negate the effects of the chemo in the long run??
Thanks for all your help! Blessings, Linda

frog08

hummingbyrd said:

When my period came back I didn't think it normal, but my tumor was ER+ and PR+. If you have periods that means you are producing estrogen and progesterone. You might ask doc about blood test to check estrogen level IF ER+(estrogen receptor).
I'd get an FSH and LH and one other test, I can't remember right now, but doc will know.
As for taxol.......cakewalk for me compared to AC....or the 'red devil'. Maybe it will be a breeze for you too! God bless. hummingbyrd

Am I expecting too much from my husband???
I know ya'll are probably sick of me asking these questions, but I appreciate your feedback tremendously. Sometimes I don't know what is normal or not. Last Wednesday I had my first round of Taxol. I was really nervous about it, because I didn't know what to expect. I also had some questions for my Dr. My husband took Wednesday off because he wanted to be there for me because he knew I was anxious about starting a different drug. On Wednesday morning I got the kids ready for school, picked up in the house, and got myself ready. At 8:45 am, it was time to leave, and Joe was not up. I didn't wake him up, I just asked my Dad (who lives with us) if he could drop me off. Daddy took me and as usual went in with me to the doctor appt. and stayed with me until they got me all hooked up and got the drip going. Finally a little after 10:00 a.m, Joe showed up. He said he was sorry he overslept, but he was tired. I didn't say anything then, but later I told him I was hurt, because if he really cared about me, he would have set his alarm to get up. He knew how anxious I was about this treatment, and since he had not seen the doctor since the initial visit, I thought maybe he would have liked to have been in on my progress. He got angry and said that he had said he was sorry, but he was just really tired and I should understand. Then he went upstairs to his den.

The next day was Thursday. He didn't speak to me or ask me how I was all day. Friday morning he said Hi and then left for work. I started hurting Thursday night, was up Thursday night, hurt all day Friday and Friday night. He and my kids worked at our church BBQ all day Saturday. My Dad told him I had been hurting all day Saturday. He did come in and talk to me then. I was really hurting, and when I don't feel good, my attitude usually is not good. It comes back around when I'm feeling better, but sometimes I just feel depressed when I'm hurting. I thought a husband was someone you could share your fears and your doubts to, so I did share with him how I was worried about the cancer coming back after treatment, how I felt left out at home and at my job, etc. He really didn't say much, but listened. I was up all night Saturday night and still hurting Sunday morning. Joe and the kids went to church. I called my doc and he prescribed some pain medicine and a steroid and told me to try the pain med first. Joe and the kids ate lunch at his Moms house. He went and got my meds. He took a nap until it was time to go to choir practice. Asked me if I felt better, which the pain med did not help and I was still aching, and left with the kids. They got home at 8:00 pm. He asked me how I was doing. I was still aching and I was upset. He told me I was going to have to try harder and hang in there. I told him I was to Shut Up, that I was trying as hard as I could. He told me that my negative attitude made him mad, that my talk of the reoccurence of cancer made him mad, and he didn't like me talking that way. I told him that I couldn't be Mary Sunshine all the time. He said I was going to have to get rid of the negativity, because he couldn't stand it. I told him to just get out, that that is not what I needed from him. So he went upstairs.

All I wanted was someone I could share with what I was feeling. It's hard to be Up all the time especially when you're not feeling well. I just wanted someone to take care of me for just a little while. I wanted to be able to share how hard it is sometimes. I don't act like this often. It's just when I'm not feeling well.

Am I wrong to be angry with him. Am I mean?? Am I wrong to want someone I can just let know all my fears without being told I am not trying and have a bad attitude?

He didn't talk to me this morning and probably won't until I apologize.

Can anybody help me? Am I mean?

Linda

cammie

Hello Linda! I also had periods throughout chemo then last A/C treatment it didn't come back. I started on Tamoxifin and low and behold no period yea. Well that was April now here in September I got my period back. My doctor told me to expect it to come back within the year since I was only 37 years old. I am still on Tamoxfin and that is suppose to keep the hormones away. So I don't understand how and why I still am getting the menstral cycle. Guess we are just the lucky ones Linda. Ya HOOOOO I believe if you have gone through chemo you should have some benefit like no more periods. It came back with a vengence and who knows what next month it will do. We will see. I am prepared this time, last time it was like so out of the blue I didn't even have anything in the house. Oh well. ((((Hugs)))) to you! Cammie

hummingbyrd

frog08 said:

Thank you for the advice. I wrote down the test names, so that when I go to the doc on Wednesday, I can ask him about it. My tumor is Estrogen positive. That's what worries me about the periods. I'm 42, so I thought they might go away all together with the chemo. Evidently not. Will having a period or producing estrogen negate the effects of the chemo in the long run??
Thanks for all your help! Blessings, Linda

Ladies I was only 38 soooo it's not like I was on the verge of menopause. Chemo knocked out periods like a light or maybe it was the combination of chemo and tamoxifen. At any rate, when I started having periods again I figured I had to be producing estrogen. ER+ tumors grow in response to estrogen. Blood tests showed tamoxifen was not completely suppressing estrogen. Doc recommended an injection of Xoladex to finish off estrogen production, but I opted for a hysterectomy. As far as effect of estrogen on chemo, in my opinion nothing negates chemo, it's a killer! However, it stands to reason it doesn't always kill all of the tumor cells or else none of us would have re-occurances. An ER+ cell feeds off of estrogen...
my personal preference was to destroy as much of the estrogen production in my body as possible. So I had a hysterectomy, no more ovaries, no more estrogen production there. Muscle does produce a little estrogen, so I take aromasin in place of tamoxifen. The Aromasin keeps cells in the body from 'picking up' any estrogen present. Now a hysterectomy is not for everybody. Some said I was being pretty radical, praise God that was 2 years ago, and I'm still radical! YEAH! lol
Remember, the greatest test is faith. Keep a positive attitude! because fear is the enemy and will destroy if allowed.
Thankfully when faith grows fear fades!
God bless!
hummb

TylersMom1

Hi Linda,
I was 44 when diagnosed with BC and my doctor told me because of my age, the chemo (AC and taxol) would probably put me into menopause but my periods could possibly come back. I had periods for the first few months of treatment and then they stopped. I am now on tamoxifen for five years and just recently had some spotting. My doctor said it was probably my body trying to have periods again.

As far as the taxol, I found it much easier to tolerate than the AC. The AC for me was miserable, made me very sick to my stomach. The taxol did cause alot of bone pain as Karen pointed out. I hate nausea more than anything so the bone pain I could live with. It lasted about 4 days and then it was over. Because of my low white blood count, I also was getting nulasta shots which cause muscle pain so between the two of them, I was pretty sore for a few days. I didn't want anyone to touch me. I would let my husband kiss me, but be very careful with the hugs!

One thing that did happen to me when I had my second taxol treatment was my heart starting racing. It was really scarey but the nurse was right there and she slowed down the drip and then I was fine. She said usually if someone is going to have a reaction it will be the first treatment but I was a little different. My last two treatments, they kept the drip slower and that I tolerated just fine.

Good luck and I'm sure you will do fine. If you can make it through AC, you can make it through taxol!
Cheryl

srobinson

Prior to chemo, my oncologist told me the chemo would put me into permanent menopause. I had my last period the same day of my 4th treatment of Adriamycin. Then it went away for 3 months, and I got to experience all the "fun" of menopause - I was only 35 so no periods sounded pretty good, but the hot flashes were unbearable - my doc prescribed Effexor for me to deal with the hot flashes without giving me estrogen. However, my periods came back again in April after my last Taxol treatment. My oncologist was 1st recommending a hysterectomy to get rid of the hormone issue but finally admitted that even with a panel of experts you couldn't get everyone to agree whether or not it was appropriate, so for now I'm back to normal. My obgyn is having me closely monitor the time frame between each since irregularity is a sign of uterine cancer, and my oncologist will not permit me to use any hormones to regulate them.

Re: Taxol, I didn't think Taxol was worse - just different. For me, it was better than Adriamyacin in that it didn't produce nauseousness and the prolonged general tiredness. The A/C tended to knock my counts down lower so I had to take the daily shots for my white blood cells longer which generated alot of bone pain. So the increased bone pain from Taxol was offset by decreased bone pain from the shorter stints of shots. The treatment times were longer and about 36 hours after my last treatment, I was in the bed for about 36 hours - but that very well could have been just the build up of all the chemicals rather than the Taxol.

For me, the main things were attitude and prayer.

Sylvia

bullfrog13

frog08 said:

Thank you for the advice. I wrote down the test names, so that when I go to the doc on Wednesday, I can ask him about it. My tumor is Estrogen positive. That's what worries me about the periods. I'm 42, so I thought they might go away all together with the chemo. Evidently not. Will having a period or producing estrogen negate the effects of the chemo in the long run??
Thanks for all your help! Blessings, Linda

DEAR frog..HEY IM a frog tooo.. wow.. sisters..lol
anyway.. my period have been all over the place for the last 3 years.. I was dx'd in march of 01 at 43 years old.. since my first treatment on May 1st on 2001 I have had a grand total of 5 periods..BUT ...the ones I did have last 4-6 weeks.. that is part that is NOT in the handbooks!
Good luck sweetie and God Bless
jerilynfrog13@yahoo.com