I love the podcast and facebook group from this website
It’s very common for the ovaries to shut up shop during chemo if you’re not put on zoladex anyway so you will be in temporary menopause.
I started zoladex on 2nd Feb and only had 1 period after that.
I dress like it’s summer so my body doesn’t have to try to regulate the temp. Bought a lighter tog duvet, drink loads of water and upped my movement levels to help with joint pain and other menopausal side-effects. My diet has always been been great so not had to change that.
I was always dialled into the podcasts and menopause experts as at 38 I suspected I was in peri and I Iike researching, being aware and preparing and I now feel like I’m a walking encyclopaedia on menopause!
I hope you find some useful tips.
Fingers crossed, one day patients receiving cancer treatment will receive integrative care and be referred to a dietitian, physiotherapist, personal trainer, menopause expert, manual lymphatic drainage massage /lymphodaema specialist, therapist and whatever else we are yet to discover
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I’ve just checked in my twin boys and I in for our quick get away to Spain in 28 days to celebrate the end of GCSEs. Round 8/8 of chemo is on Thursday.
My haemoglobin is definitely trending down now. Last time my bloods showed haemoglobin of 77 which they knew didn’t make sense as I hadn’t complained about feeling exhausted and I even did a spin class at 6.15am on infusion day. So they re-did them and it was 99, still lower that my usual 107 ish but no panic over transfusions.
That said, this past fortnight I’ve definitely felt like my body is ready to be done with chemo now.
@tinatin Great attitude!
I will also have a few weeks between ending chemotherapy and having surgery but we will probably just head down to Devon again. Affordability more than anything at present.
Sometimes I wonder whether alcohol kills anything off that might try to do damage. Aside from your grandparents, another case in point is my father who has roundly abused himself his entire life and is about to turn 86. When him and my mother went on a trekking holiday to Nepal, the entire coach of people got a stomach bug and were violently ill. The only person who didn’t was my father who was reportedly drunk for the whole trip. So yeah, it is all a bit of a lottery. I really hope and pray our numbers don’t come up again after this.
@healing24 Thanks for those tips and websites. Really helpful. That’s amazing that your chemo is finished on Thursday and that you have a getaway to Spain booked. I am told I won’t be finished with radiotherapy until November so I don’t know that I will get to anywhere hot this year. My haemoglobin is also on the downward trend. If I don’t have any delays I will be finished on 4th July. Independence Day!
I’ve used both Staysure and All Clear (Cancer Travel Insurance | AllClear) before for travel insurance with medical conditions. Insurance for us usually costs a fortune because of my husband’s heart stuff and I asked for a quote for a week in Greece for the two of us and it’s nearly £600 for a week long trip… Almost more than the trip!
I would hope it would get cheaper the further we get away from active treatment, but who knows? Those are two of the questions that they ask when generating the quote - are you in active or maintenance treatment and how long ago was your last treatment, so I would assume that they would take that into account.
Thanks @naughty_boob . That is really helpful as I am planning on booking a holiday later in year.
Last chemo session completed today, so all active treatment now over…yipee!
Will be getting 6 monthly infusions of Zoledronic Acid for 3 years, starting in June.
Not sure how I feel at the moment, a bit scared to leave the active treatment bubble but looking forward to takiing the time over the summer to recover physical, mentally and emotionally.
Well done @shonas it’s a huge step finishing your chemo. I finished in December and felt rather numb. I still have 3 weekly Herceptin but the regular oncology appointments stopped. I had radiotherapy 5 days, no follow up here either.
Many say it’s like being on a rollercoaster that you can’t get off, then treatment finishes, you get off and don’t know what to do with yourself, you may feel wobbly. I booked some counselling but I didn’t gel with the counsellor so I’m starting some more in a few weeks.
I also booked the most local Moving Forward course, hoping to meet more people like me. Unfortunately for me it’s not until July. I delayed booking until I received my negative genetics results.
Moving Forward: Finishing treatment can be hard, and it can be difficult to move forward with your life. You can access our support online or face-to-face. Our online information hub and Moving Forward journal provide extra ideas and information. Courses run over 2 weeks, with 2 3.5hr sessions. Or trained facilitators and volunteers are there to help. Find a course near you.
Your workplace, if you have one, may be able to organise counselling and MacMillan offer some free sessions via Bupa
Well done, be proud of yourself. Chemo is not easy or kind on your body. Give yourself time to recuperate. The below link is a great read
@naughty_boob I suspect that I may have a few wobbles but first I will need to get through the side effects over the next few days.
I have booked in for the moving forward course but it is not until the end of August, which seems ages away, mind you I thought the same about the end of May when I started my chemo but here I am finished.
I am lucky to have access to BUPA through my work, so I will look at the counselling as my BSC nurse also suggested this.
We have the same end of chemo date! I’ve definitely got end of chemo adrenaline wings on and I’m hoping this final one doesn’t interfere with my pretty good tolerance to chemo so far.
I too will be starting zoledronic acid in June but first my 6 month dental check up next week. I’m doing 1 infusion every 6 weeks x 3 then 6 monthly.
But I still have 5 days of radiotherapy in July then 7-10 years of letrozole and 2/3 Abemecilib …it’ll be written down somewhere.
Well done for completing your treatment! Acknowledge all the feelings as they come and enjoy what you want.
I’m sure at some stage I’ll be dipping into this book
What the F*ck Just Happened? A Survivors Guide to Life After Breast Cancer. Amazon.co.uk
Great title to encapsulate the whirlwind train of active treatment then coming out the other side
@healing24 I actually used those exact words last night, so think that is a sign to buy the book !
Well done for finishing your chemo, its such a strange feeling isn’t it.
Hopefully the infusions wont cause too many side effects. X
@shonas Congrats on finishing your chemo! I’ve still got 28 days until my chemo end date which simultaneously I’m excited and terrified about so think we all understand what you’re feeling. There’s a certain… comfort? in being in active treatment because you don’t really have to worry about tumours growing or cancer cells popping up elsewhere but once you’re done, it’s a different feeling.
@kartoffel It is a strange feeling. Glad that it is over and you your life is not just going from one appointment to another but that protective bubble has been wrapped round you and as you say there is safety in that. Now suddenly you are set free like a little fledgling learning to fly.
Keep flapping those wings, we have got this and are now more stronger than before, even if we dont know it yet.
Well done @shonas and @healing24 on finishing chemo, a huge milestone. Get that champagne open .
One more chemo left for me and then maybe radio or more surgery depending on what genetics team advise but I will definitely be opening my champagne after that last chemo!
I will be so happy to get to the end of this part of treatment as it has by far been the hardest part so far.
I’m on my way back up now from 2nd Docetaxal but have had another rough week - mainly due to steroids I think. I’ve had five full days of them this time to counter side effects and I’ve found myself feeling so down and emotional had a really hard week but it’s a bank holiday weekend and I’m starting to bounce back thankfully! Bit of sunshine would be nice too .
Wishing you all a peaceful, relaxing long weekend Xx
This week I had my first A&E visit because of persistent fever. It feels like I’ve got a flu but where I would recover from it in no time in the past, it now takes ages. Every day since Wednesday has been the same - I wake up slightly feverish and drenched in sweat from last night, drink fluids and manage my cough and sore throat throughout the day, then my temperature goes up on the evening, I take paracetamol, struggle to fall asleep because of fever and persistent cough and then it’s a new day and it all repeats. I’ve been taking antibiotics per my doctors prescription and hopefully it goes away soon but this week hasn’t been great. On the bright side, I’ve watched a new great series “Lessons in Chemistry” which kept me going.
It was my first ever experience at the A&E (I’d been ridiculously healthy up until bc) and it was quite interesting. I forgot to tell them my “new normal” things, such as “my heart now goes up to 120 if I move for 10 seconds” and gave them a bit of a shock. The doctor got concerned about my haemoglobin (90) and I had to laugh because 90 is a great improvement since my last chemo!
I hope everyone has planned something nice over the bank holiday weekend! In the meantime, I accept all the tips of how to get rid of a cough and a sore throat…
@tinatin Sorry to hear you’ve been to A&E not a pleasant place to visit normally but full of germs for someone on chemo. I hope they treated you well and away from others.
I swear by ginger, honey and lemon for sore throats and coughs. It’s also good for your immune system.
I found a free recipe for an immune boosting frozen shots for a hot tea while ago and use this instead of making it everyday.
Hope you’re feeling a bit better @tinatin I found that Manuka honey is good for a sore throat either a spoonful on it’s own or I also have mine in a cup of lemon and ginger tea.
Thanks for that travel insurance interview link @naughty_boob, that’s really helpful.
Congrats to @shonas and @healing24 on finishing chemo. What a milestone.
@kitty77 I hate those steroids. Even with my absolute minimal dose, I still get completely out of it for a few hours and then go through the irritation, anger, emotion cycle before returning to normal again. The steroids have, without a doubt, been the worst part of chemo for me. I hate them. So sorry you had to have five days of them.
@tinatin Hang in there, lovely one. EC is tough but you are tougher.
Almost more than the trip!
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had a really hard week but it’s a bank holiday weekend and I’m starting to bounce back thankfully! Bit of sunshine 
would be nice too 
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