My Last Chemo is coming up April 10, 2007

JUSTAWORD

I am looking forward to my last chemo, I think so far all my chemo AC/taxotere 4x4 3 weeks apart, handled all side effects pretty well. this last taxotere chemo is making me feel anxious. so I think the last one may finally do a number on me. But my concern is reading about Ms Edwards and Snow. I thought we are getting screened for re-occurances, how can they now both be stage 4 without any warning, or am i just now getting overly concerned? what happens next after the last chemo to the body, hair growth, aches/pains, did this effect anyones teeth etc. anyone experiences will help calm my concerns.

duggie

Hi,
I had my last chemo about 2 years ago. The last dose was Taxol. I have had very bad results from this treatment. I was given this at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. The only reason that I was given this treatment was that I was diagnosed as a high risk, stage ll, Node-positive. Elavated AST
This seems to be a new web site. I really have not looked for them before. I hope that you are doing well. I know that it is hard to feel well. Depression can be a big B!!! If you want to yell, I'm here and I have really big ears.
Barbara

Susan956

Dear Just a Word....

Hopefully you are over the hard part... at least physically. I had similar treatments and I am now 2 years clean. I found the period right after my active treatment was completed to be pretty difficult mentally. It was like when I was in treatment, I was fighting the beast and then when it finished it was like I was waiting for it to come back without fighting.... for many of us it never comes back... so after awhile I figured out how to move on.... still very attentive to changes in my body and make sure that I go to every check up... but back to living life.

Take Care... God Bless....

Susan

LesleyH

Congratulations. I loved being finished with treatment. I had A/C and Taxol and radiation - took 9 months of my life and it was so great to get it done. I didn't simply sit back though. I read everything I could about minimizing risk. I know we cannot eliminate the risk of recurrence but we can make it less likely. Elizabeth Edwards is very overweight. That doubles the risk of recurrence. You will take some kind of hormone treatment if you are hormone positive. Basically, you now see your oncologist every 3 months and they will monitor you for recurrence. They will also tell you that if you have any unusual pain, coughing or lumps then you need to go back. Anything that lasts 2 weeks, that is.

So, it doesn't matter if you were Stage I or II, if there is a distal (e.g., bones) recurrence then you are Stage IV. I try not to think about it more than about 100 times an hour. :-)

What can you do? Remember, nothing is certain. But if you are overweight, lose weight. Exercise every day for at least an hour. Eat at least 10 servings of fruit and vegetables every day. Take 1000 IU of Vitamin D every day. There are other supplements too. But Vitamin D and a multi are key.

Hugs.

Lesley

KathiM

Living life without a net. Most people do it without thinking about it. Cancer survivors DO NOT. We are vigilant, most of the time. I think that these 2 people just forgot the lesson....and let the stress build again.
Our bodies are relatively delicate things. The balance is, at least, between health and illness. Whether cancer is there from family lines, or just lifestyle choices, once the beast is in the door, we MUST treat our body with even more care.
I am almost to 2 years NED on rectal cancer, 1 year breast cancer. I still have my 'panic attacks'....I don't know anyone who doesn't. But, my onc said it very well....
"Kathi, you know the signs. You missed them before, but they were there. Should anything go amiss, this time I am certain you would be on the phone with me, and together we would check them out."
As far as what's next. Well, for me, Tomoxifen. And learning how to work this new body. My teeth haven't been looked at (blush) since 11/2004, when my first diagnosis came in, but I don't seem to be having any trouble.
Hugs for the concern, and we will Naked Happy Dance together on the 10th!!!!!

Hugs, Kathi

AuthorUnknown

LesleyH said:

Congratulations. I loved being finished with treatment. I had A/C and Taxol and radiation - took 9 months of my life and it was so great to get it done. I didn't simply sit back though. I read everything I could about minimizing risk. I know we cannot eliminate the risk of recurrence but we can make it less likely. Elizabeth Edwards is very overweight. That doubles the risk of recurrence. You will take some kind of hormone treatment if you are hormone positive. Basically, you now see your oncologist every 3 months and they will monitor you for recurrence. They will also tell you that if you have any unusual pain, coughing or lumps then you need to go back. Anything that lasts 2 weeks, that is.

So, it doesn't matter if you were Stage I or II, if there is a distal (e.g., bones) recurrence then you are Stage IV. I try not to think about it more than about 100 times an hour. :-)

What can you do? Remember, nothing is certain. But if you are overweight, lose weight. Exercise every day for at least an hour. Eat at least 10 servings of fruit and vegetables every day. Take 1000 IU of Vitamin D every day. There are other supplements too. But Vitamin D and a multi are key.

Hugs.

Lesley

Hello all,

Be sure to speak with your doctor regarding recommendations on exercise, diet and supplements. For further information on these subjects and their impact on recurrence and survival rates, please do not hesitate to contact the American Cancer Society's National Cancer Information Center. Cancer Information Specialists are available at 1-800-227-2345.

I wish all of you the best and a healthy future!

Take care and be well,

Dana
CSN Dana

billswife

My last chemo was March 15 and I too did well as far as side effect were concerned. I meetwith my doctor on Thursday about what comes next (originally there wasn't goint to be any radiation but we're going to "revisit" that and in light of everything that's gone on, I'll probably go for it-- no coulda, woulda ,shoulda for me)
Talk to you DR. Tell him /her all your concerns,
post here often. Waiting for the other shoe to drop is perfectly normal
Each one of us is different and we really don't know thw whole story on Elizabeth Edwards and Tony Snow. There are far more people who don't have recurrences and those that do have treatment options and HOPE. We have cancer--it doesn't have us.
Enjoy being able to scratch "chemo treatment" off you "things to do list"