May 2024 chemo starters

Hi! I hope you’re doing well after your first chemo. How did it go? Did you cold cap? Sending love x

Hi lovely. I hope you’re doing well. It’s so normal to be nervous especially as you’re pregnant. Just try and take each day as it comes. It’s not easy with a toddler, my third just turned 3 and it’s been hard to manage him whilst my other two are a littler older, 12 and 9 so they understand that I’m not 100% at the moment. Children are incredibly resilient and my little one says ‘mama not feeling well’ ‘mama you rest’. I’m praying your pregnancy goes well and you can come out the other side stronger than ever. Let me know how your first chemo goes. I start on the 9th, 4xEC 4xPaclitaxel. Xxx

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Thank you!

I’ve woken up cold and sweaty, after 4 1/2 hours sleep, but I feel ok. I think I can do the school run fine this morning.

I’ve got the district nurse coming to do my filgrastim jab this morning, hoping I don’t get too achy with that. I’ve read to take it out of the fridge for half an hour or so, to bring it up to room temperature, and it lessens the sting.

Hard to know if the fasting worked for me, but not a sniff of nausea still, so need to decide what to do next time.

Going back to work on Tuesday after the bank hol for a week and a half before the next lot of appointments and chemo #2! I feel like it is going to go quickly :crossed_fingers:

I keep forgetting my hair is going to come out though!

I hope everyone has a good weekend, wherever you may be :heart:

Beth xx

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:heart:remember to keep your fluids up 2-3 litres a day :heart::two_hearts::two_hearts::sparkles::sparkles:Shi xx

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It’s not been as bas as I thought, which is good! I was sick the first night but probably just because I pushed it and ate too much. Eating little and often has kept the nausea at bay since. I’ve also been a bit tired, but nothing too dramatic. I was assessed yesterday for shortness of breath to rule out a clot from the port, but they think it’s just inflammation from it going in so hopefully that will settle soon too.
I didnt cold cap, i can’t stand being cold at the best of times, so im just waiting for the inevitable hair loss and plan on shaving it when it starts to go.

I hope everyone else is doing well!

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I hear ya! I was cold during the chemo without the cold cap!

Hi all i had my first EC yesterday, i am only just starting to feel normal but still a little nauseous. The evening and night were terrible for me but i wasnt actually sick, thankfully. Managed a walk and food today, little and often as suggested.
My toddler keeps “checking” on me and trying to feed me ginger biscuits :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:
So glad some of you getting through without the nausea i might try fasting next time.
I did the cold cap, definitely not as bad as i expected, the tightness was worse than the cold, I made them check it was working twice!

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Hi @tori123 well done for getting through the infusion and the first night, sorry you felt rough. Hopefully you are through the worst of the nausea. I have horrible memories of my first one from last time - I ended up going back in to be put on a saline drip it was so bad! but I have to admit I probably didn’t drink the recommended amount - sure will this time!

Good for you for braving the cold cap, glad it wasn’t too bad, sometimes preparing for the worst helps! I’m still not tempted :joy:

Fingers crossed you get a better night tonight, take care xx

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Did anyone take ice chips/frozen fruit or something similar during the infusion? I’m told that can help with loss of taste/metallic taste as a result of the chemo - wondering if it works, but probably need to ask in the wider forum, too early for us here I guess.

Also (sorry!) - I’m a bit anxious about the filgrastim injections - I live alone and really can’t bear the thought of doing them myself - but if the district nurse comes, do you literally have to wait in all day until they come? I have two dogs and they will need to go out at some point, so I’m worried about missing the nurse. And if I have a PICC line it will need flushing so it makes sense to have the nurses come to me… apologies for the rambling thoughts!!

Thank you, I’m hoping the bext one wont be so bad!
Have you got a friend who could do the injections? Or maybe ring your doctors they might be able to do them for you.

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I think I will have to ask! having someone else doing them will be much more bearable!

I had the nurse come over today and show me how to do it. It was actually really easy and I barely felt it. Slightly achy now though.

I got given a time and she was pretty close to it (though for some reason she was given my mum’s address, who luckily only lives around the corner)!

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Thank you @beth1 that’s really helpful. I have had an offer tonight from someone who said they would ‘happily come round and stab me’ :joy: but it might be helpful if the nurse came round once a week to flush the PICC - I’ll ask the question on Tuesday when I see the chemo nurses for my pre-treatment assessment.

That’s great you’ve found a willing stabber, well done!
The nurse yesterday signed me out of their care (I guess for the jabs), I forgot about getting my PICC in a couple of weeks! So that is a once a week flush, hopefully at approximately the same time. It is all the time off work for appts on my ‘good days’ that I am struggling with.
Well I’ve woken up feeling the best I have since #1. Hopefully my appetite will return now as I don’t want to lose any more weight.
Have a good weekend x

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Hi everyone I hope you are all getting on ok. I had my first EC yesterday, so relieved to have got it started as it’s one step (small step) closer to the end. The nurses were lovely and I didn’t think it was too bad considering how terrified I was. The worse part was the cold cap, it was so tight and heavy and like you @tori123 I wasn’t sure if it was cold enough, guess will have to wait to see how well it worked. I left the hospital feeling really light headed and a bit spaced out and couldn’t work out if it was the drugs or the cold cap.
I went to bed early as I was exhausted and woke a couple of times in the night but that’s fairly normal for me and so far this morning feel ok.
Hope everyone has a good weekend and we get a bit of sun for the bank holiday.

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Hi, just wondering how everyone is doing?
My nausea finally settled on day 4 and although I’ve already noticed some taste changes I’m pretty much back to normal eating now. The fatigue is hitting at random times but I’m out walking every day and hoping that helps. Theres a little bit of me wondering if some of it is in my head as I’m expecting to feel it therefore I am. Guess I’ll have to figure that one out.
Hope the sun is shining where you are and side effects are being kind to you x

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Hi,
I’m doing ok, haven’t had any nausea but I think the steroids have been working hard suppressing it. I don’t really feel like I want to eat or drink anything so have been having to make myself do that so I definitely don’t feel normal. Feel like my body is working really hard coping with it all. Finding it hard to concentrate on things so pottering in the garden a lot so very grateful for the better weather.
Glad to hear you’re doing ok.

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Hi @dragonk @beth1 @tori123 and @gizmo - thanks for checking in after your first round, seems like after a few days of rubbish you’re all picking up again which is good to hear.

I’ve had my pre-assessment today. Got the PICC line insertion tomorrow and EC on Thursday - finally, some certainty! Forgot to ask about the filgrastim injections, but as I’m back tomorrow I’ll get the chance then. I did mention how sick I was on the EC last time I had it (ten years ago!), so the nurse said she’d make sure I got the right meds to try and prevent that happening again. Fingers crossed.

I’m booking in for a buzzcut next week because my hair is long at the moment. I bought a cheap wig off Amazon which is actually quite nice!! and a better one for if I want to blend in at Sainsburys 🕵🏻‍♀️ Tonight’s task is to get a couple of chemo caps/scarves, and I’m also going to look for a waterproof sleeve for the PICC - I think you get given one but apparently it’s not the best.

Hope you’re all managing to eat. I’ve been food shopping this afternoon but I really don’t know what I will want after Thursday xx

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Just had the PICC line in - they were so lovely, and it was a simple painless process, took about 45 mins. I’m a bit pathetic, always get a bit worried (inwardly) with hospital stuff and take a while to calm down afterwards :roll_eyes: but I have to remember the PICC is most definitely my friend and should save a lot of discomfort. Had a chest x-ray to make sure it was placed properly and all good.

Back again tomorrow for the first EC. Deep breaths xx

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How are you feeling now? I hope it’s getting better. Due for my first EC on Monday. I also have a toddler and two others. Not easy with kids!

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