My Chemo Drugs??
Today I had my first chemo consult,I was so confused halfway into it,he kept refering to things other patients had gone through or giving examples using cars and motors.He is a very highly recommended Oncologist,well respected in the medical field here.
My surgeon had told me that I would need 4 rounds of chemo 3 weeks apart,I was prepared for that.The Oncologist comes in after we waited in room for an hour and really just rambles for the first hour.
Then he tells me that because of my age(38) the size of my cancer(2.4cm) and my her2positve status that i would need 12 weekly treatments. He then wrote the letters TH an arrow and AC. He will call me in the morning with the day and time (he said the first of next week) for the first treatment. He did give me sheets with the names of the drugs how it is given and side effects.
I didnt expect the Herceptin to be one of the first treatments. I really dont understand much of this. He said that they would explain more at my first treatment that the nurses were better at explaining. I am very stressed,confused and although I will not admit it to my family Scared!
He told me that although they had gotten all of the visable cancer in my breast and removed all breast tissue in both breast that I still had cancer in my body and had a 40% chance of recurrance but I do not need radiation because my nodes were all clear. It just makes no sense to me.
Comments
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Your doctor will explain
Your doctor will explain more to you. The herceptin is because you are Her 2 pos. Herceptin is a good drug. It good we have that. I am also her2 pos and was given herceptin. I also had AC 4 rounds and 12 rounds of taxol, 35 rad treatments and 1 year of Herceptin. Herceptin was easy for me, I had no side affects. Good luck to you. Don't worry to much it's all doable.0 -
Chemo is scary. It probably
Chemo is scary. It probably will be until you start. The unknown is worse than the is. It sounds like he will do dense dosing. I think they found that will lessen the side effects. I did 16 rounds of chemo. 4 AC and 12 taxol. AC sucked, taxol was not bad. Every one is different though. After the first couple you will get your groove and figure out your good days and not so good days. They may give you steroids and they will give you anti nausea drugs.
Have the kids help keep the germs out of the house. My grand daughter knows to wash her hands when she gets home from school now. I spoke with her teachers about helping keep her away from sick kids. She didn't get sick once during chemo. Hand sanitizer should be kept every where. Chemo is easier to handle if you don't add illness to it!!
The time does pass pretty quickly!
All the best,
Cindy0 -
Thank you Kat!I hope thatKat11 said:Your doctor will explain
Your doctor will explain more to you. The herceptin is because you are Her 2 pos. Herceptin is a good drug. It good we have that. I am also her2 pos and was given herceptin. I also had AC 4 rounds and 12 rounds of taxol, 35 rad treatments and 1 year of Herceptin. Herceptin was easy for me, I had no side affects. Good luck to you. Don't worry to much it's all doable.
Thank you Kat!I hope that you are doing well. It gives me hope to see so many of you that has gone through the same thing.
God Bless
Mary0 -
I'm just going to share my
I'm just going to share my opinion. I think we need someone we can share our fears with, so I hope you have someone for that. I discovered that my oncologist talked very quickly and matter-of-factly while I was panicking after her first sentence. I found that her nurse was easy to talk to. I also wrote down everything I wanted to ask and, again, the nurse answered most of the questions. Maybe he didn't literally mean you have cancer in your body now, but that the cancer cells can be other places in the body undetected which can lead to a recurrence. The way it was explained to me was that the chemo would kill quickly growing cells which is what the cancer does, so undeteced cells would be zapped. On the other hand, you may want another opinion or to switch oncologists for one that might make you feel more comfortable.
I will pray for you and keep us posted on how this goes...
sending positive thoughts your way--Judy0 -
Thank you Cindy!I think youmamolady said:Chemo is scary. It probably
Chemo is scary. It probably will be until you start. The unknown is worse than the is. It sounds like he will do dense dosing. I think they found that will lessen the side effects. I did 16 rounds of chemo. 4 AC and 12 taxol. AC sucked, taxol was not bad. Every one is different though. After the first couple you will get your groove and figure out your good days and not so good days. They may give you steroids and they will give you anti nausea drugs.
Have the kids help keep the germs out of the house. My grand daughter knows to wash her hands when she gets home from school now. I spoke with her teachers about helping keep her away from sick kids. She didn't get sick once during chemo. Hand sanitizer should be kept every where. Chemo is easier to handle if you don't add illness to it!!
The time does pass pretty quickly!
All the best,
Cindy
Thank you Cindy!I think you are right,the hardest thing for me will be walking through the door the first time because I do not know what to expect.
I have already taught my 2 year old to wash his hands and use sanitizer.My other 3 are going to be staying with their Dad.
My oldest daughter (21) lives just down the road so she will help me as much as she can. She is expecting my first Grandchild! I am very excited about that.Something to look forward! 
I hope that you are doing well. It is so nice to have people to talk to that understand what I am going through.
God Bless
Mary0 -
Thank you Judy,the prayerspoplolly said:I'm just going to share my
I'm just going to share my opinion. I think we need someone we can share our fears with, so I hope you have someone for that. I discovered that my oncologist talked very quickly and matter-of-factly while I was panicking after her first sentence. I found that her nurse was easy to talk to. I also wrote down everything I wanted to ask and, again, the nurse answered most of the questions. Maybe he didn't literally mean you have cancer in your body now, but that the cancer cells can be other places in the body undetected which can lead to a recurrence. The way it was explained to me was that the chemo would kill quickly growing cells which is what the cancer does, so undeteced cells would be zapped. On the other hand, you may want another opinion or to switch oncologists for one that might make you feel more comfortable.
I will pray for you and keep us posted on how this goes...
sending positive thoughts your way--Judy
Thank you Judy,the prayers are very much appreciated!I hope that you are doing well,and I am keeping yu in my prayers as well.
God Bless
Mary0 -
I didn't have chemo Mary,fighting4five said:Thank you Judy,the prayers
Thank you Judy,the prayers are very much appreciated!I hope that you are doing well,and I am keeping yu in my prayers as well.
God Bless
Mary
I didn't have chemo Mary, but, I want you to know that I am in your corner, rooting for you! You can do this! The pink sisters will be here to help you however we can.
I will be praying for you Mary. You certainly have a great looking family!
♠♣ Love, Susie ♠♣0 -
Mary,susie09 said:I didn't have chemo Mary,
I didn't have chemo Mary, but, I want you to know that I am in your corner, rooting for you! You can do this! The pink sisters will be here to help you however we can.
I will be praying for you Mary. You certainly have a great looking family!
♠♣ Love, Susie ♠♣
Before your surgery, your surgeon and oncologist probably believed your breast cancer was of the most common kind. Meaning in the milk ducts like mine was. I was given 4 infusions three weeks apart. After your surgery they knew exactly which type of cancer you are dealing with so your treatment plans changed. Many of the women on this board blazed the same trail you are about to go through and I am sure you will find great advice from them. My tumor took me down a different route then yours but either way that first day of chemo can be so scary.
The others offered you some great advice, after you get that first one under your belt you will just blaze right through all this. After your first treatment you will know how your body responds and you will soon figure out your good days and bad days. On those good days you can be mommy to all those precious children of yours, but on your bad days... let them pamper you. You will be amazed at how important they will feel just running after a pillow for you or getting you a glass of water.
Mary take our hand and let us walk with you through those chemo doors and we promise to never leave your side. Post away any concerns and I guarantee you will find you have so much strength within you never realized you had. It is truly amazing when you realize this...
Hugs my dear,
Lorrie0 -
Thank you Lorrie...Yourbutterflylvr said:Mary,
Before your surgery, your surgeon and oncologist probably believed your breast cancer was of the most common kind. Meaning in the milk ducts like mine was. I was given 4 infusions three weeks apart. After your surgery they knew exactly which type of cancer you are dealing with so your treatment plans changed. Many of the women on this board blazed the same trail you are about to go through and I am sure you will find great advice from them. My tumor took me down a different route then yours but either way that first day of chemo can be so scary.
The others offered you some great advice, after you get that first one under your belt you will just blaze right through all this. After your first treatment you will know how your body responds and you will soon figure out your good days and bad days. On those good days you can be mommy to all those precious children of yours, but on your bad days... let them pamper you. You will be amazed at how important they will feel just running after a pillow for you or getting you a glass of water.
Mary take our hand and let us walk with you through those chemo doors and we promise to never leave your side. Post away any concerns and I guarantee you will find you have so much strength within you never realized you had. It is truly amazing when you realize this...
Hugs my dear,
Lorrie
Thank you Lorrie...Your loving words of encouragment meen so much.I know that you are right and I have been amazed at the strenght and determination that I never realized I could have.
God Bless you
Mary0 -
Thank you Susie...So nice tosusie09 said:I didn't have chemo Mary,
I didn't have chemo Mary, but, I want you to know that I am in your corner, rooting for you! You can do this! The pink sisters will be here to help you however we can.
I will be praying for you Mary. You certainly have a great looking family!
♠♣ Love, Susie ♠♣
Thank you Susie...So nice to have so much support and prayers. :-)0 -
my experiencefighting4five said:Thank you Susie...So nice to
Thank you Susie...So nice to have so much support and prayers. :-)
After my lumpectomy my surgeon told me I would just need radiation. When I went to the oncologist he looked at all the pathology reports etc ... and told me I needed chemo. So I ended up with taxol for 12 weeks ... and herceptin for a year because I was HER2+.
I also wondered why they had such different opinions ... but then just came to terms that my surgeon is a SURGEON ... and his job was to get the bad stuff out. The ONCOLOGIST is more of a scientist/chemist ... and his speciality is looking at each case individually and determining the best treatment for each person.
I trust my surgeon ... and oncologist because they are both experts ... just in different fields of medicine.
And ... if you end up needing radiation ... that's another SPECIALIST who knows his job ... and that's radiation.
Yes ... it's all very specialized ... and thank goodness for all of them. Back when my mother had cancer there was her "family doctor" ... and a surgeon. Times have changed ... thank goodness.
hugs.
teena0 -
Call Back with a List of Questions
It's tough to take everything in, especially when you are stressed and your doctor is disorganized. I like to get as much information as I can on my own, from the web or books (Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book is great, and there is a new edition less than a year old). ACTH is one of the combinations of chemo drugs they use -- A and C are Adriamycin and Cytoxan; T is Taxol and H is Herceptin (because you are HER positive). Look them up. Adriamycin is a nasty drug, but it does the job, and four treatments of A/C three weeks apart is pretty standard. Then, depending on your particular cancer, they follow up -- in my case with 12 weekly Taxol treatments (I am not HER positive), although sometimes they do Taxol every two or three weeks. Look these drugs up, along with their side effects, so you can be prepared. Write down your questions and make sure someone at your doctor's office answers them. You are entitled to have as much knowledge as you want about your treatment!0 -
You've got my support,fighting4five said:Thank you Lorrie...Your
Thank you Lorrie...Your loving words of encouragment meen so much.I know that you are right and I have been amazed at the strenght and determination that I never realized I could have.
God Bless you
Mary
You've got my support, encouragement and love! You are stronger than you realize and I pray you get thru chemo with no or little side effects.
Hugs, Megan0 -
Starting Chemo
I don't think there is anything scarier in this entire world than being told you have cancer. It is a whole new world with its own language: TNBC, rads, mets, chemo, oncotype, PET, etc. There is definitely a learning curve. My daughter was 17 and my son 19 when I was diagnosed. My daughter was a h.s. senior and my son was a college sophmore living away at school. My 1st thoughts upon being given the diagnosis (which I suspected) was that I needed to see my children graduate from h.s. and college and see them get married (some day). The everyday reality of the illness fell more heavily on my daughter since she was the one at home. I am SO fortunate she was here to help out. Daughters are special.
When I met with my oncologist for the 1st time he wrote down 4 A/C and 4 T. I kept the paper in my wallet. I had a right mastectomy. I then met with the oncology nurse to go over the treatment protocol and side effects. She threw me a curve when she begin talking about a different number of treatments. I showed her my little piece of paper and she had to go talk with the doctor about the discrepancy. Well, I ended up having 4 A/C infusions - 2 weeks apart. Then I had 12 weekly Taxotere infusions. No Herceptin as I am triple negative. No radiation either. I did very well with the A/C. The Taxotere was VERY hard on me. I have never been so sick in my entire life. It was quite an experience. My last infusion was 8/4/2010. I just had my reconstruction surgery on 6/13/2011. My daughter is jealous as my boobs now look better than hers. I smile and tell her, "the problem is that the rest of me is 53."
The 1st chemo treatment is scary because you really don't know what to expect. Once you figure it all out it is much less stressful. I found that it was an opportunity to catch up on my reading of trashy novels. You CAN do this and have a lot of moral support here on this Board. The Pink Bus is available when you need it.
IRENE0 -
You can do this...I am just a week ahead of you!jessiesmom1 said:Starting Chemo
I don't think there is anything scarier in this entire world than being told you have cancer. It is a whole new world with its own language: TNBC, rads, mets, chemo, oncotype, PET, etc. There is definitely a learning curve. My daughter was 17 and my son 19 when I was diagnosed. My daughter was a h.s. senior and my son was a college sophmore living away at school. My 1st thoughts upon being given the diagnosis (which I suspected) was that I needed to see my children graduate from h.s. and college and see them get married (some day). The everyday reality of the illness fell more heavily on my daughter since she was the one at home. I am SO fortunate she was here to help out. Daughters are special.
When I met with my oncologist for the 1st time he wrote down 4 A/C and 4 T. I kept the paper in my wallet. I had a right mastectomy. I then met with the oncology nurse to go over the treatment protocol and side effects. She threw me a curve when she begin talking about a different number of treatments. I showed her my little piece of paper and she had to go talk with the doctor about the discrepancy. Well, I ended up having 4 A/C infusions - 2 weeks apart. Then I had 12 weekly Taxotere infusions. No Herceptin as I am triple negative. No radiation either. I did very well with the A/C. The Taxotere was VERY hard on me. I have never been so sick in my entire life. It was quite an experience. My last infusion was 8/4/2010. I just had my reconstruction surgery on 6/13/2011. My daughter is jealous as my boobs now look better than hers. I smile and tell her, "the problem is that the rest of me is 53."
The 1st chemo treatment is scary because you really don't know what to expect. Once you figure it all out it is much less stressful. I found that it was an opportunity to catch up on my reading of trashy novels. You CAN do this and have a lot of moral support here on this Board. The Pink Bus is available when you need it.
IRENE
Hi there fighting4five! I am Her2+ positive just like you and that is why the ONC is giving you Herceptin. My first treatment was Monday, this week, and I got the Herceptin right away. I will be getting it for 1 year. It was all so wierd the first chemo trip, but it really wasn't soooo bad. The onc. nurses are very patient and they give the first dosage very slowly and watch for reactions. I also received Taxotere and Carboplatin in my chemo regime. Everyone is different though. I had a 2cm. lump removed plus some additional tissue , then additional tissue removed - negative, then a lymph biopsy - negative, and then 4 lymph nodes removed - negative. I will also get radiation after the chemo - in 18 weeks. I put my trust in my doctors and surgeons to do what is best for me so this nasty cancer doesn't come back. I hope you find info and inspiration on this board. The pink sisters have helped me immensely and I know they will help you also.
Good luck on your journey.
Hugs, pinkpalette0 -
Let us help
We've all been down similar roads. I am HER2+ also. I was told I was having 6 rounds of TCH, three weeks apart. Ended up only doing 4 because of elevated liver enzymes. Had a lumpectomy with 11 nodes removed. Then went back for 6 weekly Taxol treaments with Hercepting every three weeks. Only had 5 because of the liver again. Then 33 rad sessions.
You can do this. Just like others have said, you will find your good/bad days. Don't be a hero though. I had a hard time allowing others to take care of me, but you must. And take the anti-nausea drugs. They are you friends!!! I also kept hand santitizer everywhere and my family was great about using it. No one got sick.
We are here for you so vent all of your concerns and fears.
Bonnie0 -
Kat is right, yourKat11 said:Your doctor will explain
Your doctor will explain more to you. The herceptin is because you are Her 2 pos. Herceptin is a good drug. It good we have that. I am also her2 pos and was given herceptin. I also had AC 4 rounds and 12 rounds of taxol, 35 rad treatments and 1 year of Herceptin. Herceptin was easy for me, I had no side affects. Good luck to you. Don't worry to much it's all doable.
Kat is right, your oncologist is the best one to explain all of this to you. Be sure and write down all of your questions, so you don't forget them, like I always did. You can do this!
Best of luck,
Debby0 -
You CAN do this....
Hi fighting4five,
I just wanted to share with you that I am 43 now, was 42 at diagnosis. I had 2 tumors (2 and 3cm), lumpectomy, sentinal node neg, weekly Herceptin, 6 rounds TCH every 3 wks, 33 daily radiation, then continued with Herceptin every 3 wks for 1 yr. My last herceptin was 4/2011. So this is all so fresh for me and I can totally relate to how you are feeling. I was offered the added Adriomycin but declined. I've heard bad things about that drug and the effectiveness was something like 10% better by adding that to TC-not enough to convince me to add it.
I'm not a doctor, but I THINK your doctor scribble means....T=Taxotere, H=Herceptin, A=Adriomycin (sp?), and C=Carboplatin. The 12 weekly treatments would be only Herceptin, that's a weekly infusion during chemo (12 weeks) then Herceptin changes to every 3 weeks up to the one year point-then you're done. Usually chemo is 3 weeks apart which would be your T, A, C. Of course on the every 3rd week you would also get H. I hope I'm making sense to you.
Point being, if you haven gotten a port, I HIGHLY recommend one. You will be getting lots of pokes and ports are so easy to deal with. You can get one put in and have your infusion within days. I also recommend getting elma cream (prescription). This numbs the port area so you don't feel the stick. Also, your doc may also want you to get a MUGA scan every 3 months. Don't worry about this either, it's to check your heart (from the Herceptin) but it's a painless process.
All in all, my experience was not too, too bad with chemo. A few rough days after chemo then gradually gets better. No side effects from Herceptin, and a little sunburn from radiation.
This whole experience IS very scary, you are not alone. But once you go through your first chemo, each trip should get easier mentally. You CAN do this! You will find strength you never thought you had. You WILL get through this. I wish you all the best!0 -
I just want to Thank eachmckevnic said:You CAN do this....
Hi fighting4five,
I just wanted to share with you that I am 43 now, was 42 at diagnosis. I had 2 tumors (2 and 3cm), lumpectomy, sentinal node neg, weekly Herceptin, 6 rounds TCH every 3 wks, 33 daily radiation, then continued with Herceptin every 3 wks for 1 yr. My last herceptin was 4/2011. So this is all so fresh for me and I can totally relate to how you are feeling. I was offered the added Adriomycin but declined. I've heard bad things about that drug and the effectiveness was something like 10% better by adding that to TC-not enough to convince me to add it.
I'm not a doctor, but I THINK your doctor scribble means....T=Taxotere, H=Herceptin, A=Adriomycin (sp?), and C=Carboplatin. The 12 weekly treatments would be only Herceptin, that's a weekly infusion during chemo (12 weeks) then Herceptin changes to every 3 weeks up to the one year point-then you're done. Usually chemo is 3 weeks apart which would be your T, A, C. Of course on the every 3rd week you would also get H. I hope I'm making sense to you.
Point being, if you haven gotten a port, I HIGHLY recommend one. You will be getting lots of pokes and ports are so easy to deal with. You can get one put in and have your infusion within days. I also recommend getting elma cream (prescription). This numbs the port area so you don't feel the stick. Also, your doc may also want you to get a MUGA scan every 3 months. Don't worry about this either, it's to check your heart (from the Herceptin) but it's a painless process.
All in all, my experience was not too, too bad with chemo. A few rough days after chemo then gradually gets better. No side effects from Herceptin, and a little sunburn from radiation.
This whole experience IS very scary, you are not alone. But once you go through your first chemo, each trip should get easier mentally. You CAN do this! You will find strength you never thought you had. You WILL get through this. I wish you all the best!
I just want to Thank each one of you from the bottom of my heart! Your support has been overwhelming and means so much to me. You are all my heros!
Much Love
Mary0 -
It makes me happy to knowfighting4five said:I just want to Thank each
I just want to Thank each one of you from the bottom of my heart! Your support has been overwhelming and means so much to me. You are all my heros!
Much Love
Mary
It makes me happy to know how our support has made you feel Mary. Keep posting to update us.
Hugs, hope and prayers,
Debby0
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