Shouldn't I be able to do this my way?

No
You are not being unreasonable. This is your body, your life, your treatment Jamie. You are the one that decides what is to be done. I didn't have chemo, so, I can't help you with any information on that. Just wishing you good luck!

♠♣ Susie ♠♣

outdoorgirl said:

My onc gave me the option of getting a port or not.
I asked him about it because a friend of mine had gotten one for her chemo and blood sticks,etc. and he said that with my A/C which was 4 rounds,that I should be okay without,but if I really wanted one,I could have it.
I would have to say for myself,if I have to do it again,I will get a port. I don't know if anyone else has this same problem after having had chemo,but my veins in that arm are shot and even to take blood from that arm,they have a hard time anymore.And I had a partial mastectomy and 2 lymph nodes taken from my left side(where my tumor was),so I can't have blood drawn,bp taken,or anything else like that done on my left arm,which poses a problem because of the threat of lymphodema .
This is your choice and if you are just going to see how the first round goes,I don't think there should be a problem with that-but then,I'm not an onc.
Chemo is doable-not fun,but doable. And truly,Jamie,you don't realize how strong you are until you go through it. Not everyone here has,but many of us have and there are lots of handy tips on here to help and we can help you too!And they have great anti-nausea drugs these days,and your health care team will keep good watch over you,I'm sure!But this is your choice,and no one can tell you what to do...
Let us know how things go.
Patty

Jamie
Sorry that you have to pay deductible, but cancer is expensive disease therefore you will pay your deductible anyway soon or later. Does it matter for you when and for what service? Yes, you can try without port but to put port before Chemo is much easier than during Chemo. Now your body is strong and your immune system is working well. Common sense that you would tolerate procedure better now than in the middle of the Chemo.
Good luck with your decision.
New Flower

pinkflutterby said:

ports
I have had my port since last April and as unsure (scared) as I was to get it I am soooooo glad I did. I see people in the chemo room getting IV's in their arms and it looks so painful. Getting my weekly chemo through the port is basically 100% painless, rarely theres a pinch when they access the port, but nothing near as painful as an IV. AND your arms and hands are free to do puzzles, read, eat, drink, pee! I take my laptop so I love having my hands free for that too. If you go the port route be sure to ask for the numbing cream or cold spray!!!!

I say if your in for several rounds of chemo GET THE PORT, maybe the doc will let you pay out the $1000? If you are only getting a few treatments, maybe skip the port.

Just my 2 cents

Libby

Sweetie
AS someone else just
Sweetie
AS someone else just said, with cancer you are going to have to pay that deductable sooner rather than later...I'm surprised it hasn't been eaten up already with just the cost of the DX(oh yeah, it's a new year..I forgot..new deductable..bummer)but in any case one dose of chemo costs thousands of dollars so you'll have to pay it then anyway.. I have a port and I'm glad I do, but I've seen plenty of ladies getting IV treatments. Do you have thin veins? Is it hard for the nurse to find a vein?How many treatments do you have to have? If it's just 4 then it shouldn't matter if you dont do it. If it's a long term thing then you probably should do it.I just had six chemos, but now I get Zometa through itto strengthen my bones and they take blood through it. When I have reconstrution this spring they'll take it out and I'll have to do the Zometa through IV..

Mama G said:

I thought the same as you....
and was going to get my first few chemos in my vein and hold off on the port, but many people talked me out of that idea. Glad I did the port. So much easier, less pain and I did go through with all my chemos (2 more taxol to go) But, it is YOUR decision. If you're still confused, get the first one in your vein and then decide.
Good luck either way.
God bless.
Lorraine

i went through the whole
i went through the whole thing with no port and it wasnt easy. veins are shot on my left side and IWAS A DIFFICULT STICK. i also had an extra hospitalizations which used more veins. remember too that after your first dose of chemo your White blood cell count will drop. its better to get it while your immune system is intact. I did not really want the port as it symbolized more invasion to me an outward sign of cancer but my doc realy did nt offer it not part of his policy. lots of womwn have them and are ok with them.
Yay Mama G two more!!!!!

MyTurnNow said:

Jamie, yes, I think you
Jamie, yes, I think you should be able to do it your way. I had 4 chemo treatments of Taxotere and Cytoxan and did not have a port. I do have good veins and did not have any problems. I just finished chemo on 10/15 and have had several blood draws since then and have not had any problems. As long as your chemo cocktail is tolerable and doesn't require a port, I think you should be allowed to try it through your veins first. That's my opinion, for what it's worth. Good luck and keep us posted.

no port
i had 4 chemo treatments of taxotere and cytoxan and i had no port my veins were good i didnt need one and i still get blood draws every month . best of luck to you!

Jamie
Although my cocktail is different (Cytoxan/Taxotere), my doc did not recommend a port when I asked her about it. She said that with only 4 treatments it shouldn't be a problem. I don't know if the Adriamycin(sp?) is worse for your veins that what I'm getting, but I've had 2 treatments so far with no problems whatsoever with the IV. I'm not afrain of needles anyway and used to donate blood pretty regularly at the Red Cross.

The stick from the blood work they do each time creates much more of a bruise than the IV's have. I can barely see the little pinprick from the IV needle.

If your main concern is the deductible, however, I agree with what others have said. You will definitely meet your deductible anyway with the first treatment, and will probably hit your out-of-pocket maximum for this year anyway, so the money issue may be a moot point.

Good luck with whatever way you end up going - we are here for you!
Cindy

Only you can decide for yourself!
I never had a second thought - I wanted a port. When Dr. T told me I would be starting with A/C (had already done a lot of research and had seen pictures of the skin problems it can cause), I asked him how soon the port could be put in so we could get started. A week later it was put in and the next day started 4 doses of A/C, 2 weeks apart. 2 weeks after last A/C I had a mod. Rad. mastectomy with Taxol starting 3 weeks later. This Thursday (day after tomorrow) will be my 12th Taxol (and last) weekly dose. Then on to rads. which I find out the schedule on Thursday morn before chemo. I don't know when the port will be taken out as I have Inflamatory BC which is very aggressive so port will be stayng for the time being (it doesn't bother me at all). I will be startig Femara shortly and already have Osteopenia so I will probably need IV drugs to counteract it's bad effects.

Another 'thing' that influenced my decision to want a port was I have always had excellent veins (a few weeks ago, a Tech doing a draw told me that if he hadn't known better he would have thought I was a man based on my vein LOL - this was at a VA Clinic so they see a lot more men than women) and I knew that I would be loosing the use of half of them after surgery - so why take a chance of messing up the 1/2 that would be left? SO try to protect them by usng a port.


Do I think you should do what I did - NO! We are each unique and have to deal with our challenges in the ways that are right for us. Different ideas can give different insight though. Thoughts and prayer for you in making the decisions that are correct for you!

God Bless!

Susan

Just got my port
Jamie, this is truly a personal decision. Not sure if I understand why your dr won't let you try a treatment without the port. I met with my oncologist on Jan 6th and he told me that I would need chemo since I'm HER2 positive. I told him I wanted to start chemo asap and offered to do my 1st treatment without a port and get the port put in before the 2nd treatment. So I had my 1st chemo treatment the next day on Jan 7th. I had my port put in last Wednesday and my 2nd chemo treatment is this coming Thursday, so I can't really tell what the difference is going to be. I have small veins so my arm is pretty bruised up from the 1st chemo and the IV from when I had the surgery to put the port in. For me, I have to have a total of 6 chemo treatments plus Herceptin treatments for a year, so it was a no brainer for me to get the port. I would ask again about trying a chemo treatment without the port. Best of luck to you.

a/c
i did a/c with out anything.righr into the veins 4 times every 2 weeks, then taxol for another 4 times every 2 weeks. had no problem with my veins,and could only do it in one arm it all depends on how strong your veins are, dont be scared hun, i was too. but it wasnt as bad as i thought