Taxol & Herceptin

Kitty,

Just like Lesley said you are through the really losey chemo. When I had finished my last A/C... I really thought thank goodness their wasn't another one to go. I actually felt a good bit better with Taxol & Herceptin at least at the beginning. I happen to be one of about 10% of people who have a problem taking Herceptin. But it even wasn't a problem for the first 12 that was done with Taxol. My Doctor wanted me to do 52 weeks of Herceptin. We made it through 28 after having to stop twice due to my heart.

I also had tingling in my hands and feet. But compared to A/C it was much easier. While I has taken me awhile to get back to normal (I did the same trip you are on (A/C, Taxol/Herceptin, Radiation, and now Armidex for 5 years), I really felt like things got easier after A/C, and for me radiation was a breeze.

If I can help more I would be glad to respond to emails. I even kept a log of how I felt each week of treatment.

Take Care... God Bless... and know that their is light at the end of the tunnel....

Susan.

KathiM said:

Kitty,
Ok, get ready for Suzi Sunshine....
My AC experience was soooooo bad that I had decided to quit after #3. My onc convinced me to at least try the Taxol. I didn't have Herceptin. I had had 5FU with my colorectal cancer, so the 'Tingles' were nothing new.
So, my secret. Because, believe it or not, 7 weeks post chemo...I HAVE NO TINGLES at all!
I started drinking water...ALOT the day before my taxol infusion...and on the day of infusion, and on my 'magic day' the day after the infusion. I peed a river, but as I kept more hydrated, the tingles lessened. The Taxol was a piece of cake compared to the Adriamycin...I was sick as a dog on that. And now I am on day 14 of the rads....19 days left....
I STILL keep very well hydrated...I found that ice water, the colder the better, in little sips, was HEAVEN.
Hugs, and you are thru the worst in my opinion!
Kathi

Hi Kitty-
I went throught the A/C and agree- that was the worst! Very sick for the whole time... Taxol was much easier to tolerate. I had terrible joint pain with it but not much nausea. Also lost feeling in my hands and feet- most of that has returned thankfully.
Also had 36 rads. That was tolerable. Was exhausted through much of it though.
I'm now on my last few weeks of Herceptin (every three weeks for 52!) Side effects from that I have are mostly sleeplessness; stomach issues (diarrhea for about 4 days after each treatment); watery eyes and nose; just kind of flu-like symptoms---still very tired. I usually come home after a treatement, take tylenol and benedryl and go to bed. I know of a few people that had NO side effects from Herceptin- felt like they weren't even on it. So you may be lucky with it... but the joint pain from the Taxol is pretty severe.
Taking Tamoxifen also so some of my side effects could be related to that also.
Good luck with your treatments! And- now that you've gotten past the A/C the rest is much easier!

I completed 6 high dose (282 mg) rounds of Taxol (Paclitaxel) as a standalone chemo drug on a clinical trial. This was administered every two weeks. I had slight tingling which was helped by Glutamine for the first four to five days after Chemo. I had joint pain at night which was helped with a heating pad. I never took the anti nausea medicine except the first night. I took Adavan to help me sleep when the joint pain was bad and when the heavy steroids kicked in and I was wired. I also drank LOTS of water before, especially during and after chemo. Taxol takes 3-5 hours to administer. I was usually tired the first day and then 3-4 days after. So I had my chemo on Tuesdays and I usually had a bad weekend but then I felt pretty good. Try to stay active even if it is hard. I jointed the gym and did a palates class and walked 1 1/2 every day. I did cardio workouts on my off weeks. I start herceptin on June 14th.

Hello

I did Taxol/Heceptin for 12 weeks every week. I had no problems at all. But I didn't have any problems with A/C either. I did radiation for 6 weeks everyday. Never had any problems with it either. I worked everyday. When I was doing A/C I would get it on a Thursday and I would be off Thursday and Friday and back to work on Monday. When I was doing Taxol and Herpceptin I was just off on Thursday, back to work on Friday. When I did radiation I would go at lunch or early in the morning and then go to work. I am currently doing Herceptin alone I have 3 more treatments of Herceptin. I haven't had any problems, I do go get the usually Muga.

As far as the fear of bc coming back I think each and everyone of us, deals with that fear everyday. And when something hurts or we don't feel well, that is what we think.

One thing that I can tell you about Taxol, is to watch your nails closely. Watch for discoloration. Try and keep them short, try to keep clear polish on them. And if they start looking funny, have a doc check them out. Taxol could make your nails fall off, no one will tell you this, but its is possible.

You could develop nerve damage in your arms and feet, I didn't at the time I have developed tennis elbow and I have a problem with my wrist when I sleep at night. Now the tennis elbow had passed and I have problems with my wrist.

Its one heck of a journey that none of us wanted to have happen to us.

If you want to ask me any questions, please feel free to do so any of you ladies, I have been through it. It was easier for me than it might be for others. But I did discover that if you have something in your stomach it seems not to be so hard on the body. I am not a breakfast person, when I did chemo I was I ate breakfast everyday and that was oatmeal. Maybe not alot but something that would at least stick to my ribs.

Hugs-Marianne

Hello Kitty.
Although I did not have Herceptin, I did have Taxol. First, then A&C. I had barely any reaction to the Taxol. Other than losing my hair, I felt fine, never got sick, and actually worked at my full time job through the Taxol with no difficulties. There were minor symptoms, like tingling or numbness. But the A&C killed me. So from my point of view, you've been through the hard part and hopefully you'll sail through the next batch. As far as radiation, I did burn severely, but as with anything one day at a time it was bearable. I went for 30 sessions, and the last 5 had to be delayed because of the burn. All in all it's 10 months after my mastectomy/ TRAMM reconstruction and i feel like myself again. so hang in there.