Back Pain

Cherryblssm
Cherryblssm Member Posts: 19
in Breast Cancer #1

I'm currently on week 7 of 12 weekly Taxol treatments. The fatigue is killing me. It's worse than A/C I went through. All the side effects seem to be worse or more noticable to me on Taxol. 

The main thing I'm dealing with is severe lower back pain that intensifies as I walk. The further I walk, the more pain and the more exhausted I feel. It feels almost like pressure pushing down on my lower back and hips. If I keep trying to go, I start to feel faint and I'm completely out of breath.

I'm not sure if it's just a back thing as I have 2 compressed discs (but it's never hurt or felt anything like this). Or if it's a side effect of the Taxol and all my WBC and RBC counts being low. Or if it's something else.

Does anyone have any experience with feeling like this?

Comments

  • mheck
    mheck Member Posts: 3
    #2
    I am having similiar issues

    I did 12 weeks also of the taxol and AC before that then surgery for a double masectomy. The chemo keeps adding upon the previous sessions which makes it worse. It was after the surgery that I had the lower back issues and my tailbone are bothers me as well. I am almost done with my 33 sessions of radiation. The doctor said that chemo attacks places where you my have had an injury before or other issues. I am going to try physical therapy to try to help. My white blood cell count is also still low from chemo and said it takes a while to come back up. Hang in there let me know if you have gotten any other helpful info.

  • Mariangel43
    Mariangel43 Member Posts: 79
    #3
    Hi, Cherry and mheck

    I am on oral chemo and also have two compressed discs in my lower spine.  Back pain has become an unwanted company.  I wish appointments were given more frequent because I need to talk to someone about the back pain. Any position increases the pain after a while and I don't know what to do.  I can't rely on pills cause I want to avoid any addiction problem.  As my neurosurgeon said once, I have to get used to it.  However, it is easy to say it when one does not have a pain.

    Dear, we ask our physicians and depending on their answers, decide on what is best for us.  Take care,

    Maria

  • Apaugh
    Apaugh Member Posts: 850 Member
    #4
    I go to PT

    Since this all began I just keep asking the docs to send me to physical therapy.  They teach me new things to help with the pain. 

    The SE of cancer, chemo, and rads, suck.

    Hugs,

    Annie

  • HapB
    HapB Member Posts: 527
    #5
    Back pain

    I had the same pain in lower back and hips on Taxol and I never had any back problems before. The MO said it wasnkt from the Ta ol, though I know 100% that is was all from the Taxol. Never had it before and never since. It was excruciating. My research showed that it was a known side effect of Taxol and Herceptin. I could not walk. 

  • mheck
    mheck Member Posts: 3
    #6
    HapB said:

    Back pain

    I had the same pain in lower back and hips on Taxol and I never had any back problems before. The MO said it wasnkt from the Ta ol, though I know 100% that is was all from the Taxol. Never had it before and never since. It was excruciating. My research showed that it was a known side effect of Taxol and Herceptin. I could not walk. 

    How long did you have it or

    How long did you have it or do you still have it? I feel it is all my joints that bother me especially.

     

  • mheck
    mheck Member Posts: 3
    #7
    Apaugh said:

    I go to PT

    Since this all began I just keep asking the docs to send me to physical therapy.  They teach me new things to help with the pain. 

    The SE of cancer, chemo, and rads, suck.

    Hugs,

    Annie

    I also started physical

    I also started physical therapy. I just get worried if it side effects for treatment or something to worry about. 

     

  • Apaugh
    Apaugh Member Posts: 850 Member
    #8
    SE from cancer treatments are rough

    Side effects from cancer treatments are rough.  Some are permanent.  While we go through simular things, we all handle it differently.  Like others, I would wake up every morning in pain, all over.  There were  days I could not walk well if at all. 

    If you look up the drugs they give us throughout this horrible disease you will find most have the side effects of bone/joint and muscle pain and/or even damage. 

    I did not have taxol.  I could not handle it because due to my other treatments, I had already had nerve damage.  I moved on to Herceptin.   Same thing, can cause bone/joint and muscle pain. 

    Now I am taking Tamoxifen because the Arimidex was too much on my bones/joint pain.  I now have osteoporosis in all my joints.  Especially my neck, mid back, low back and hips.  This is not reversable. 

    I am alive and dealing with it.  I refuse to be a prisoner to pain meds.  I do Physical Therapy to learn how to manage my broken body. They teach me how to manage without pain meds.  I made sure they specialized in therapies for breast cancer patients (not all do)   I am just finishing up my fourth time (12 sessions ea. time)  of Physical Therapy, not to cure me but to teach me how to manage it.  I hate physical therapy, it is time consuming and at times it can be painful, but I am learning and as I learn how to manage my pain and loosen up my joints the pain decreases.  So far (since about June of 2016) my insurance company has not given me any guff about it.  My doc just recommends, the PT place puts in the request, the ins. company says ok. 

     But over time, it does get better, but we all need help and we have to learn all over again how to take care of ourselves. 

    I started this journey as a very very negative, depressed person.  If you go back and read my older post you will see that anger, that pain, that desperation in my words.  Some days, I still , do that.  We all have our moments and that is ok.  What works for one might not work for another and I feel so blessed to have this group to learn from and share with. 

    Hugs,

    Annie

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