questions about being careful

irishrosebud
irishrosebud Member Posts: 10
in Breast Cancer #1
hi all...just had some questions for you all...my mom has her2neu pos. breast cancer is undergoing double mastectomy in a week just finished 6 rounds of chemo, possible radiation after surgery and then herceptin for a year...her white bloods are down 2,000 from last week even though her last chemo was 3 weeks ago...she has some open cuts on her hands that are healing but VERY slowly, been almost a month now...her surgery is in a week and has already been postponed a week because of having out of town company...am I out of line to not have her do the dishes even with gloves? they let the dogs lick out the pans, some folks around who have eaten off the plates had the sniffles...I just don't want her to get infection as she's already down for no apparent reason and her surgery is in a week so she will really need to be up...also sweeping...read before that herceptin can make you prone to upper respiratory infection and she already has respiratory weakness before she had cancer, not a smoker or anything, jsut has a weakness in her lungs from years ago flashing a positive tb test while working as a nurse in a hospital...my dad walks in and out of the house with his boots on after working outside, so there is a LOT of dirt...not your average sweep up a spoonful...more like a cup at least...muddy, dusty, dirty dirt...:) we've been going back and forth about it this week and I know it's hard for her and I'd be the same way...she's hard to keep down :) but we keep trying to tell her she's the princess for now and it's not over yet! she's doing great, but would like to keep it that way...any comments are appreciated...and if any of you have ended up with infection, difficuluty recovering from surgery or inability to get surgery on time because of infection please let me know...it's like because it has gone so well for her she doesn't believe it'll be her that might get infection, be unable to get her surgery right away, or have a prolonged recovery...besides all of this, we don't know what's on the horizon as far as radiation which would be after surgery and as you all know, that's 5 days a week for a month and a half...i just want her to be strong and be ok...thank you all

Comments

  • LoveBabyJesus
    LoveBabyJesus Member Posts: 1,679 Member
    #2
    Sweet of you to care so much...
    You are a great daughter. I wish I had people like yourself around me all the time as I'm too careful even with no sickness.

    I completely agree with you about watching out for germs while getting treatments. The body is weaker and it's more prompted to getting infections, specially if she has cuts on her hands. It's even important to clean the bathtub since bacteria collects there as well (have to be careful with toes and nails). No manicure or pedicure, no cutting of any kind, must wash all foods very well before eating them, wash her hands a few times a day, even if she hasn't touched anything. I don't see any problems with what you suggest, it's just being careful and caring for your love one. So I would do the same.

    I had sores in my nose that lasted weeks. They wouldn't heal. I also developed a strange skin discoloration in my private area that lasted weeks. Couldn't use any soap because it burned so much. And the worst of all, a chronic constipation that caused me to have cololateral bleeding that also lasted weeks. The good news is, everything goes back to normal, considering the hit we get from chemo and radiation. It takes a while, but your body usually recovers. You just need to keep telling her to be extra careful.

    Wishing the very best to you and your mom. Please keep us posted on how she's doing.

    Hugs
  • Double Whammy
    Double Whammy Member Posts: 2,832 Member
    #3
    Nadir
    I was very careful during nadir about being around sick people, crowds, etc. The rest of the time I was simply cautious - hand sanitizer, etc. I ran a fever and had an infection every single cycle in spite of it all. I didn't do dishes the last cycle because I developed a skin toxicity and heat really aggravated it, but up until then I did them. I did wear gloves, tho.

    About healing - I started chemo for breast cancer 3 weeks after my hysterctomy. My vaginal cuff took a very long time to heal and the surgeon thought it was probably because of being on chemo. When you mom has her surgery, she will no longer be on chemo, tho, and hopefully her white cell count will have recovered.

    That being said, they really do put our bodies through the ringer with the surgeries and treatments. I think it's really important to take good care of yourself and avoid potential sources of trouble.

    Hope your mom does great for the rest of her treatments.

    Suzanne
  • mamolady
    mamolady Member Posts: 796 Member
    #4
    It's good that your mom has
    It's good that your mom has you to help. I agree, it is good to be careful before surgery however, it really is up to your mom what she does. Make the suggestions but try not to have it be a battle of wills between the two of you. If she is doing well, it could be because she is healthy (besides the cancer!) and will continue to do well.
    All the best with the surgery, she will probably need your help even more then....
    Cindy
  • New Flower
    New Flower Member Posts: 4,294
    #5
    mamolady said:

    It's good that your mom has
    It's good that your mom has you to help. I agree, it is good to be careful before surgery however, it really is up to your mom what she does. Make the suggestions but try not to have it be a battle of wills between the two of you. If she is doing well, it could be because she is healthy (besides the cancer!) and will continue to do well.
    All the best with the surgery, she will probably need your help even more then....
    Cindy

    yes please be careful
    after Chemo immune system is very weak. After I finished Chemo I was picking up infection from the wind or from nothing. My body was not fighting at all. The same was with healing, it feels like taking forever to heal. Diet and good sleep did help. I took naps every day for 12 months.
    Wishing you and your Mom the best
  • laughs_a_lot
    laughs_a_lot Member Posts: 1,368 Member
    #6
    germs
    I was not in public much right after surgery so no new germs were introduced. However, I never was miss Suzy Home maker and so there were plenty of germs in my environment because of that. I think the body has a way of dealing with the familiar germs and you kind of become immune to those. It is the unfamiliar germs that are the threat. Whle on chemo I went to church every Sunday and I went often to the second hand store. I am not the kind of person who stays down long as it would be bad for my mental health to be isolated. I quickly got out of situations in public where I thought someone was ill.
  • BetsyJane
    BetsyJane Member Posts: 127
    #7
    laughs_a_lot said:

    germs
    I was not in public much right after surgery so no new germs were introduced. However, I never was miss Suzy Home maker and so there were plenty of germs in my environment because of that. I think the body has a way of dealing with the familiar germs and you kind of become immune to those. It is the unfamiliar germs that are the threat. Whle on chemo I went to church every Sunday and I went often to the second hand store. I am not the kind of person who stays down long as it would be bad for my mental health to be isolated. I quickly got out of situations in public where I thought someone was ill.

    I agree with you
    I have to agree that our bodies do deal better with familiar germs....I live on a farm --- and believe me, there are plenty of germs on a farm but I couldn't just stop living the lifestyle that I loved. I love working on our farm with my husband. I continued to feed and care for all our chickens (21 of them) by cleaning their coops, also caring for the horses, dogs (one is a Saint Bernard and believe me, they are sloppy and drooly but oh what mushes, they love to kiss and be loved as do our shepherds), our beloved pet cow, four parrots which sit on our shoulders each night, a pet squirrel and all the wildlife that comes to eat at my feeders.

    I was starting to get depressed with my chemo treatments and from my operations, so my thoughtful, loving husband bought me some little baby chicks in spring that totally uplifted my spirits and helped me come out of my depression.

    I did make sure to STAY AWAY from sick people and children. I do wash my hands alot as well. But I didn't change my lifestyle....during and after each operation and chemo, I continued to go to church every Sunday and went out to eat and shopped as usual. It helped with my overall health and outlook on life. I think my husband and I go out nearly every day after our chores are finished. When I am tired, I rest. Go according to what your body tells you.

    P.S. Just reread your post and saw that you mom has cuts on her hands....she must BE CAREFUL and wear gloves. Any cuts I get I always put neosporin on them for healing.
  • DianeBC
    DianeBC Member Posts: 3,881 Member
    #8
    New Flower said:

    yes please be careful
    after Chemo immune system is very weak. After I finished Chemo I was picking up infection from the wind or from nothing. My body was not fighting at all. The same was with healing, it feels like taking forever to heal. Diet and good sleep did help. I took naps every day for 12 months.
    Wishing you and your Mom the best

    Everyone is right in the
    Everyone is right in the fact that your Mother has to be careful. Chemo and rads will knock down your immune system and you are very susceptible to anything.


    Prayers and good luck to your Mother,


    Diane

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