Sar_ah, I don’t have any jaw pain, but I believe that bone aches are common on docetaxel… does it feel like bone pain? The skin on my hands (and feet, to a lesser extent) is definitely peeling and is very dry too. I’ve had the first eczema flare up on my hands in years! Trying to alternate steroid cream with moisturiser. ?♀️ Best of luck with round 5 on Thursday. ?
Thanks, reddi, for sharing your experiences and knowledge redgarding reduced dosage. I feel a bit better about the situation now.
Shi recommended Udderly with Urea moisturizer (available on Amazon) and I found it helped a lot with peeling between my fingers. Definitely mention it to your oncologist though, as it might be a side effect of your chemo, separate from any personal history of eczema etc.
Sar_ah, good luck today with your onc and fingers crossed for tomorrow’s chemo ??And good luck ElliesMum and Aneeebel this week too.
I feel like I’ve turned the corner this morning and am starting to feel better now. Crikey, this T and second half is tough. I spent a lot of yesterday crying and saying I can’t take it anymore and I don’t want to carry on with chemo but today I feel a bit better so I’ll carry on. But like you Sar_ah, I’m dreading the next one.
I’ve lost my taste on T, although I think it may just be coming back now, and my tongue has gone white and furry. Anyone else have this as a side effect? I’ve got anti fungal and anti viral pills which I started yesterday. I may give the helpline a ring but am assuming it’s just a side effect.
Hubby has gone back to work today so time for me to get up, walk round to the Drs and book next blood test and then enjoy the day.
Have a good day lovely ladies, thinking of you all and sending big hugs ???
?Fiona xxx
@FiMillan White and furry tongue sounds like oral thrush – so your anti-fungal pills should help. Do call the hotline, though, to see if you might also need a mouthwash. (I didn’t get this – though at one point I thought I had, as I was on the lookout for it since many of the June 2018 folks did get it. It’s quite common.)
Hopefully the EC is kinder to you, Badboob. I never thought I would say this, but I preferred the FEC side effects over the T ones (once they had my antisickness meds tweaked). If you do feel sick, contact your team as they have a remarkable arsenal of antisickness medications they can give you.
Fiona, I found the mouthwash really helped me so hopefully it sorts out your mouth issues ASAP.
I saw my oncologist this morning and, as expected, she is reducing the dose of my two remaining docetaxel cycles. Thanks to the support from this forum, I feel surprisingly ok about it. So thank you ladies! I also managed to get a tentative agreement that we can go ahead with a trip to New York booked for March (arranged before diagnosis, but not cancelled with all of our other travel plans as I was hoping that we could still go). So I’m excited about the trip all over again! It is lovely to have something positive to look forward to! ?
Best of luck tomorrow, Sar_ah, and on Friday, Aneeebel. One more down! ??? xox
Apologies for the onslaught of posts! I’ve just had a call from the chemo unit as my blood test results are back. For the first time, my neutrophils are low, at 1.36. I’m astonished as, aside from being tired, I feel really well! I have another blood test tomorrow morning, to decide if chemo #5 can go ahead. I am desperate for it all to go as planned; I’m hanging on to my schedule for dear life! ?
Please, ladies, pass on any suggestions for things I can try to boost my blood count in the next 18 hours. I will try very hard to get a good sleep (challenging with a baby ?), will eat well and drink a lot of water. I already have manuka honey on my porridge every morning. Please throw any other suggestions my way!!! ??♀️ Xox
Thanks for your reply, reddi. Yes, I already have 7 days of GCSF injections after each chemo, so not much more can be done in terms of prevention. I will just have to cross my fingers and hope for the best! Xox
Good luck tomorrow with your ultrasound badboob.
No suggestions Elliesmum but thinking of you, fingers crossed for you!
I had bloods and saw my nurse today, wasn’t due to see the consultant until after chemo tomorrow and they’ve put it back a week because of my side effects the nurse said she thinks his going to reduce it or may change to weekly but find out tomorrow night. Bit disappointed but I know it’s for the best, I’ve done the only thing to do today and eaten loads of chocolate to cheer myself up
ElliesMum…when I was in hospital last week my neutrophils were 0.62 but increased to 1.something over night so, fingers crossed, yours may recover in time! X
Time for the neutrophils bloods ???From famous may17 thread ??always worked for them and us oct17 thread so get ???Ladies ?? and yes it tough but you are all tougher, you are ???it and doing it together ???you are all ???and beautiful and amazing ???Shi xx
Apologies for being so melodramatic about one low blood count. I promise I’m usually fairly level-headed and rational! It seems so silly now that I got so upset by it all yesterday - especially given that many of you are dealing with far more important issues. I’m crossing everything that I have a bump in the numbers (thanks for letting me know that it is possible, Aneeebel), but am trying to be accepting of the outcome if chemo ends up being delayed.
I’m so sorry to hear that you’re not well enough for chemo #5 to go ahead today, Sar_ah. I really hope that you start to feel better soon, ready for next week. As Fiona says, chocolate sounds like a fabulous idea!
Best of luck with your scan and blood test today, Badboob!
Absolutely, don’t apologise. We are all in the same cr*ppy boat but we are getting there slowly but surely.
ElliesMum, I hope your bloods were better today and no 5 can go ahead.
I hope your day goes well too Badboob.
I had to give in and get an appt with the Dr. I seem to have similar issues to you Badboob in the nether regions. Oral thrush, vaginal thrush and haemerrhoids, oh the joys ? I sincerely hope that after chemo all these things will magically disappear. It’s hard enough dealing with chemo and cancer, isn’t it, without all these additional issues.
It sounds like we’re all emotional, I was sat in the gp surgery reading your messages and was crying ? Where’s that magic wand to wave all this away?
And if someone else (outside of this forum) says I’ll be alright because I’m strong I might just ?them (if I’ve got the strength).
And it’s so cold today. Good news for me though is that hubby is going to have another early finish so that we can get a short walk done. A little bit of pleasure in an otherwise sh*tty period.
Elliesmum, hope your bloods were better today! Have they told you the results yet? Fingers crossed! ???
Fiona… hope you start to feel better soon! ???
Sar_ah, my 4th chemo was delayed for a week as my bloods were shot at and I wasn’t well! I felt so much better in myself tho, when I did go a week later! I was relieved when my Oncologist delayed -i told her my body couldn’t have coped! Maybe you’ll feel better when you go! ???
Badboob…My emotions are all over the place too! ???
This is rather amusing (altho it wasn’t at the time!)… I went in Sainsbury’s the other night and knelt on the floor to get mince pies from the back of the bottom shelf because they were paler baked… I couldn’t actually get off the flipping floor!!! I had no strength in my legs whatsoever to push myself up!!! I had visions of having to ring someone up to come and help me!!! (A crane maybe!!!) I had to hold onto the shelf and pull with all my might!!! Jeeeez! Funny now but definately not funny in Sains I can assure you!!! ???
The chemo unit has just rung me… No.5 is on for tomorrow, my bloods were okay! ??(and now I’m having a mini panic attack! I don’t know why I do that tbh!!! ?)
Absolutely hilarious Aneeebel, thank you for cheering us up with that image ? and good luck for tomorrow, I’ll be thinking of you. Strange how we all get pleased when we’re told chemo is on despite what it puts us through after ?
Yay Badboob, excellent news that chemo is doing what it is supposed to and shrinking your tumour! Woohoo! ??
Good news on your bloods, Aneeebel. Well done, too, on managing to recover from your mince pie “situation”! Best of luck with chemo #5 tomorrow! Fingers crossed you don’t have any issues with a raised temperature or neutropenia this cycle!?
To my immense relief, I can go ahead with chemo tomorrow. I don’t actually know what my blood count is today after my extra test this morning, but I had a call from the unit advising me that they were happy to proceed. (I *may* have emphasised several times how keen I was to go ahead with it if at all possible when I was there this morning…?) So good news from me! Thanks for all of the good wishes - I’m certain that the support from this forum helped!!! ??
Fiona, like Badboob I’ve had a few back passage issues, although I’ve luckily avoided thrush thus far. The only thing that helped my piles was a combination of anusol cream (applied internally using the nozzle thing), suppositories, sudocrem (a brand of nappy rash cream) and sodium docusate tablets (laxatives). Be warned - from about day 10 after T, my constipation issues suddenly resolved and I developed the opposite problem with the “tax trots”, albeit fairly mildly ?. Fingers crossed you find a combination of remedies that works for you!
Aneeebel and ElliesMum, good luck for today, I hope chemo goes well ??
Badboob, that’s great news that it’s shrinking. I know mine is too but they haven’t done any scans, I can’t feel it at all now.
So I was feeling left out and decided I needed to join the club. Yep, Club Casa NHS. My temperature was fluctuating too much yesterday afternoon so I was told to come in. Not much of a party, I have to say. A rubbish night’s sleep while hooked up to antibiotics, bloods were very low, bp and temp being taken every 2 hours. I don’t know if they’ll let me out today, depends on my bloods later this morning ?? oh well, that’s cancer I suppose.
Again, good luck for today ladies and all of you stay safe ??
?Fiona xxx
While it is super crappy that you’re unwell enough to have earned a stay at Casa NHS, Fiona, as Aneeebel says it’s the best place to be. Good work calling it in when your temperature was raised. I also found I started to feel better quite quickly once hooked up to the IV antibiotics; hopefully they start to kick in for you soon. Hospitals aren’t the best places for getting a decent sleep, I’m afraid. ?♀️ I’m definitely packing an eye mask and noise-cancelling headphones if I have to stay overnight again!!! ?
Thanks for the good wishes for today. As it’s my first herceptin dose, I have to spend 6 hours at the chemo unit!?! Oh well. I’ve convinced my husband that he should keep me company (as he has the day off). ? Best of luck to you too today, Aneeebel.??
the nurse said she thinks his going to reduce it or may change to weekly but find out tomorrow night. Bit disappointed but I know it’s for the best, I’ve done the only thing to do today and eaten loads of chocolate to cheer myself up 
