April 2024 chemo starters

@pollyanna1 Have the most wonderful time! That sounds like the perfect place to be! I hope you can taste the ice cream. You really deserve a nice breeze, some ice cream and some peace! X

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He mentioned the fact that Iā€™m private in reference to my internal mammary chain but not about the Abemaciclib being on offer. Other than wait times/central line approaches, itā€™s the first time Iā€™ve seen anything be different since theyā€™re NHS consultants too. Seemed crazy that one extra zap area shouldnā€™t be included for NHS if he believes itā€™s of benefit. He was very pro-patients bullying doctors into extra treatments though, even on the NHS! X

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Just a wee updateā€¦. Iā€™m getting my Hickman Line in on Monday :smiling_face: donā€™t have my chemo appointment yet but hopefully it wonā€™t be too long after! At least they managed to get me in within a week for the actual line which is nice and quick :raised_hands:t2:

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@belle1 fab news- have a good weekend xx

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@pollyanna1 have a fabulous weekend,.just what you need! You so deserve it. Laura xx

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Thanks for all the information @swk1981 you are a little bit ahead of me, Iā€™ve got 8 more treatments left. I donā€™t know much about the radiotherapy. I just know the plan was radiotherapy, Abemaciclib and hormone therapy so I will make sure to ask a few more questions too!

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Hi, those of you whoā€™ve booked overseas holidays or are planning to do, what travel insurance companies are you using? Avanti, who supposedly covers health stuff (husband had heart attack so we need specialised insurance) said they wouldnā€™t continue to cover me :confused:

@gromit12 ā€˜Insurance withā€™ are highly rated and Iā€™ve seen quite a few recommendations for them. I intend to use them next yearā˜ŗļø the woman who founded them actually done a Facebook live with Breast Cancer Now on travel insurance and had gave advice/mentioned other places to check if you want to have a watch of that too

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@isthisreal well done for getting out there, but sorry for all the ā€œreactionsā€, but as you say, good lesson for us all to learn in the future - not much consolation for you tonight though xx

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@gromit12, like @ belle said Insurance with is good. It depends where you are in treatment, whether lymph node involvement, need surgery etc.
I priced insurance a few months back for a a trip to Rome in November and it was a few hundred pounds. I priced it last week and itā€™s Ā£20 for a single trip travel. That is with AXA and theyā€™ve a 5 star defaqto award.

I know M&S is very good and they donā€™t exclude any conditions as some do. Also try Saga, post office, Admiral. It might be worth going on Go Compare and doing a search. If you need any help let me know. I worked for the NFU for 17 years. NFU is great but excludes some conditions and I know Cancer is one.
Pauline xxx

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I booked my hols before cancer and have an annual family policy with Barclays. Iā€™m assuming Iā€™m covered by that since Iā€™m not purchasing after diagnosis. Am I being thick thinking that? Iā€™ll check of course x

Avanti wouldnā€™t renew my annual policy as I was going to have chemo. Policy expired end of April - but managed to get my summer holiday refunded before it expired :+1: but they challenged it as they said I hadnā€™t informed them I had breast cancer :scream:ā€¦ But I didnā€™t, and thatā€™s why Iā€™m now claiming,.they were very difficult

@swk1981 check when your policy renewed. If it renewed before your diagnosis itā€™s normally valid until renewal. At renewal you have to inform them of any new health conditions. This is normally industry standard but double check with your insurer xxxx

Well of course it renewed 5 days after I was diagnosed with cancer! :woman_facepalming:t2: :joy:

Couldnā€™t make it up! Iā€™ll call them tomorrow.

Thanks Pauline. I hope youā€™re loving being on your hols! X

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@swk1981 noooo that is just so typical, I hope you manage to sort it out!

Just wondered what everyone had done about jaw and tooth pain, mine started yesterday the side of my jaw started hurting then last night my back teeth were sore. I hate the dentists but I know this can be a side effect and just wondered if anyone had any good ideas to help. Iā€™ve been using the poly balm too but today all my fingers feel bruised.

H x

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@hc1973 so sorry youā€™ve got the jaw pain, itā€™s something else isnā€™t it :confused:adding codeine helped- you can get either paracetamol and codeine or ibuprofen and codeine - I went for ibuprofen and took it regularly for 3 days. I also had food that wasnā€™t too hard to chew. The oncologist wasnā€™t surprised when I said how bad jaw pain was :confused:xx

@swk1981 absolutely typical about the travel insurance :woozy_face: I think the annual ones that just renew automatically catch you off guard. Hope you get it sorted x

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Oh well done!!! Iā€™ve got Sports Day for the entire Senior and eldest 2 years of Prep on Friday and, judging by the small interactions Iā€™ve had so far, Iā€™m worried some peopleā€™s heads may actually fall off their necks on Friday! :joy:

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Hi Helen,

Are you on first cycle Docetaxel? My jaw pain was at its worst in that cycle. Still have it in second but nowhere near as debilitating. Mine eased around Day 10 of Cycle 1. I couldnā€™t take anything except paracetamol due to the antibiotics hammering my stomach but Iā€™d probably have reached for something like ibuprofen. Also, Gelclair and mouthwash helped weirdly as theyā€™re both analgesics.

Maybe ask someone to gently massage your shoulders and neck too to release any tension through your jaw. I found a cold damp flannel helped ease the pain, even if it was to sit there and watch a programme and not feel consumed by the jaw.

Keep going on the Polybalm as many times a day as you can. My nails feel like each one has been hit with a hammer and itā€™s worse this cycle but theyā€™re holding firm still for now and I think itā€™s down to the Polybalm as they werenā€™t doing well until I started. X

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Iā€™m on Nab-pacitaxel as I had 2 anaphylactic shocks to the docetaxal. Iā€™m on my first of 9 as having them weekly. Unfortunately they said as Iā€™m diabetic I may suffer more from the neuropathy side effects. All very boring!

Thanks for all the advice @swk1981 i will put a bit more poly balm on I think too!

I hope your sports day goes Ok and you sort out your travel insurance. H x

I wonder whether the ice gloves would help at all? They may also give you some pain relief between cycles perhaps? I hadnā€™t thought to use them for that but may give them a go. Could double up to help with the random sweating I seem to get too.

I hope you have a nice chilled weekend and that youā€™re not in too much discomfort. Weekly must be so very hard and consuming. Xx

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