Been for my pre-chemo appointment today. Apparently I"m getting my first dose on THursday afternoon, not Wednesday, now. THye are giving me the highest dose (whatever that means). THe registrar said I must be “pleased” to hear this. YOu do wonder where they get their brains sometimes… 
I am finding out next week whether chemo is my way forward, its already helped reading yours and carol50posts. I t will be good to share experiences as it happens. As others have said it is the unknowing that is scary, whether we can work, how we might feel etc. i have a teenage daughter who seems to take it in her stride so I feel doing stuff at home is slightly easier for me than you with young ones,
much love and support and i wait to hear how your first session is, after next week i can ask you how you found it. were all the explanations by the oncologist easy to follow? i think i might forget what i’m told.
am 4 weeks into WLE and also getting into the jargon, still tender and lumpy but healing up well, still missing my swimming. is that a no-no during treatments?? xx
Hi Rabbitspaw
I have opted for that route after discussions with my surgeon. Lots of good reasons…the lump in the lymph may lead to spread so better to attack the cancer asap. The lump in the breast should shrink allowing a lumpectomy not a masectomy. I was also told that statistically the 2 appraoches are very similar. After 2 chemo treatments I am having a scan to see results and believe if there is any growth that the plan may change. The oncologist is hopeful of stabilisation at least and possibly shrinkage. My treatment started just over 2 weeks after the biopsy, so straight in. hope that helps. xx
hi all,just popping in from the April thread. I have now finished my 3xFEC 3xTAX and need to report that it’s totally doable. I actually felt better for getting on with some treatment.Anyway I’m only here to say good luck and to check out our thread when you can’t sleep cos of the steriod insomnia. April thread is particularly positive and at times down right funny which is all totally neccessary for your journey.good luck, stay strong you can do it.vanns x
Hi everyone
Inshock - hope all goes well today. Keep positive and look forward to those lovely hugs from your babies.
I have to go for an echo today then chemo tomorrow so feel that my journey is about to start. Not looking forward
to it but forward to life after . I can’t wait to tick my chemo sessions off the calendar and for the first time ever I
won’t mind seeing christmas things in the shops as that means I will be getting closer to the end of chemo as if
all goes to plan (fingers crossed) my last session will be on 19th December so will be ready for Santa.
Good luck to everyone starting the dreaded this week but we can stick together and get through this with
dignity and a lot of humour.
Lollol01XX
I’m planning on buzz-cutting my hair tonight, even before I have the first chemo. This has somewhat freaked out my OH and mum who seem to think I should wait for it to fall out first.
Hello September babes!
I too am starting chemo on 17th FEC indeedy! I am scared witless but feeling calmer as the big day approaches. The A4 list of could happens is so comforting don’t you find. Every time I go for an appointment I am handed yet another booklet on breast cancer to add to my ever expanding library that I have to lug home on the train.
I have tried being a bit of an ostrich to get a bit of normality back but it just ain’t working.
I had a MX and implant 3 weeks ago and am sleeping 10 hours a night and still need 2 hours in the afternoon. Anyone else reverted to nursery hours? What the hell will I be like on chemo? A bald sleeping beauty?
Let’s compare notes as the cycles commence.
Good luck to everyone doing chemo tomorrow.
Inshock, I hope it’s gone okay for you today.
Feeling nauseous before I’ve even had anything!! That’s nerves for you. I’m booked in for 9am tomorrow - PICC line in then hopefully finished at the latest by 2pm.
Good pre-chemo chat with nurse but thanks to all the ladies in the forums and this website most of my questions had been answered.
Although I’m not brave enough to cut my hair yet like Keyfeatures, I decided not to have the cold cap. Personally not convinced I’d cope with it, and as time has gone on I’ve got used to the idea of losing my hair. I’m going to our local charity wig fitting service with my hairdresser, who offered to come with me. I’ve never been one to change my hair without several months of deliberation!! My hairdresser has been doing my hair for the last 25 years!! Even writing this I can’t believe it’s soooo long. Getting old and madly wanting to get much older!! Hair is a very personal thing isn’t it?
So good luck to everyone this week and hopefully will be back soon!
Good luck for today JEW. I hope it doesn’t take too long. My appointment is 2.30pm tomorrow so fingers crossed I’m out before bedtime! I took the plunge and cut my hair. A good friend took most of it off with scissors and then my husband went at it with the clippers on a grade 5. Looks okay. Facebook feedback very positive for the short look. I’m sure I could have spent out on getting a professional cut but I figured I’d save money as it’s going to fall out soon anyway. My hair was short as a child and in my 20s and early 30s, this was the first time I’d had long hair, taken about 3 years to grow, and I was really enjoying it. But now it’s off it doesn’t feel such a big deal. Really didn’t want to give the chemo a chance to start leaving long hairs on the pillowcase. I’ve got a drawer full of headscarves as I’ve had to cover my hair when visiting my inlaws in Iran and for work when filming in Egypt and Cairo. Will style them differently though - don’t want people thinking I’ve gone religious! I’ve also bought some Beechfield Morfs in varous colours (like buffs but only a couple of quid each from Amazon). I usually live in hats in Autumn / Winter anyway.
Hi-I’m another one starting Chemo Fec-T today. Had my node op yesterday so feeling a bit battered and bruised with a strange blue boob!.
I’m going for Cold Cap only as I want to carry on working and feel I can’t face all the questions-making contingency plans with wigs/scarves as the chemo nurse warned that Taxotere may just get rid of my hair regardless.
Good luck to you all
wow that’s a quick turnaround sukiem. Never heard of anyone having chemo two days after a sentinel node op. Are you NHS?
Hi keyfeatures-yes I’m NHS (Charing Cross). Everything has happened really quickly so my heads spinning!
I’m not surprised. Hope you are feeling okay after session 1. My treatment seems to have taken an age. Diagnosed mid May, lumpectomy and node op mid June, had tamoxifen for a month (now stopped for chemo) and only just starting chemo tomorrow. Good thing is I’ve managed to have two lovely holidays since DX and really got my head around things. I’ve got to have herceptin for 12 months after chemo as well as rads so going to be a long haul.
Anyone else going to be having herceptin?
Feeling ok at the moment-must be the lovely steroids! Thankfully I’m not too ‘high’ and feeling quite chilled. I’m on a FEC-T regime. Hope tomorrow goes well for you
Hi everbody
Had my first round of chemo yesterday and feel ok but a bit light headed a bit like you do after a heavy night out. It could be because I tried the cold cap and have to be honest I didn’t really feel a thing apart from it being a bit heavy. I wasn’t sure it was working until it came off and I was covered in ice crystals. So far have only felt a tiniest bit queasy and a bit tired but as a whole ok at the moment (hope I haven’t spoken too soon!!). I found drinking lots of water and sipped ginger beer ( non -alcholic of course!) helped me. Off to the hospital today to have a neulasta injection to help the white cells along their merry way and apparently this will make me feel achey for a couple of days so not out of the woods yet.
SZH & JEW hope all goes well for you today and just think its another thing off your to-do list.
Hope everyone is well and keep posting as it really helps to know other peolple are going through this with us.
LOL
Glad to hear you are feeling okay sukiem. I’m being treated in North London at the North Middlesex. My operation ended up being a right saga so hoping the chemo goes a bit more smoothly. Going to do a yoga class beforehand to help keep me as calm as possible.
Back from the hospital with the steriods, anti-sickenss and injections we have to do at home - think I’ll get husband to do them as I hate needles.
Hiya all
Well one session down only seven to go! It’s not been too bad all in all - better than I feared so I hope that will help those of you waiting to start your chemo this week or later in the month.
I managed the cold cap which wasn’t particularly fun but doable - as everyone says the first fifteen minutes are the worst. I got my hubbie to time it at the beginning so he could let me know once I’d done the first ten mins then I knew I was over the worst…
Since coming home haven’t felt too bad - some low grade nausea, a bad headache the first 24 hours (a common side effect of the anti-sickness drugs apparently and I’m prone to them anyway) and am definately much more tired than usual. But have managed trips out of the house on both days since the chemo session (albeit one was back to hospital to see the consultant)…
In some ways the hardest bit was the fact that my husband got to take my five year old in to school on her first day of the new school year and to show off our newborn in the school playground - something I had been looking forward to so was pretty gutted to miss out because of my cancer treatment 
Anyway hope all of you who were starting this week have had an ok time of it and good luck to those whose turn is next week.
Sx
ps anyone here who has been through their chemo regime was just wondering whether tiredness hit them harder in week one or week two of the cyle???
Yoga a great idea keyfeatures and hope it helped-I think you might have the same injection as me (neulasta?). My mum gave me mine today and its a pretty straight forward process-I was lucky (!) that I have a nice big roll of tummy fat to inject it into so it was fine.