Had my first FEC and had a few bad side effects mainly nausea, sore eyes,fuzzy head etc but on the whole it was manageable. Had FEC 2 yesterday and OMG what a shock i felt like i was dying - every side effect under the sun ! so much worse than FEC 1 - has this happened to anyone else? Is the second one normally worse than the first or is it just me and they are all going to get even worse as they go along.
And to top it off have to take those horrible white blood cell injections now, the chemo nurse said she should have called me in 2 weeks ago as the were very low but they forgot to call - reassuring.
Melx
Mel, 2 was the worst for me, and then it levelled off. The worst time was when my red blood cells and blood pressure fell rapidly, but then they stayed at that level for the rest of the treatment.
I hope you find things level off or get better.
Cheryl
I’m starting to see that this site is causing me more harm than good. I seem to be living in fear of the unknown from messages posted in the forum and that’s giving me problems alone.
Time to stop reading everyone’s missfortunes I think,
i did fec and tax 4 of each not to bad at all i still lived life to the full as much as i could.
i did 6 fec and they were ok.
soem of us suffer more than others, but there is usually somethink to counter each se
elttiks, dont worry hun xx
I’ve made a point of not reading about treatments I’m not having and I avoided the one thread I’ve seen for the anti-oestrogen I start tonight until yesterday. Similarly, I kept away from most of the chemo sites until I was close to starting and knew which regimen I was going to have, because I was scared enough without reading about everything that can go wrong.
So don’t go away, just try to avoid the problem threads, especially if they don’t apply to your treatment.
Cheryl
Didn’t mean to put anyone off but i had a genuine concern as to whether the 2nd FEC is worse than the first as i am sure i had heard this was the case and then hopefully the others would’t be as bad.
Melx
I hope it levels out for you. If you don’t ask, how can we try to help. Generally speaking, the 2nd half seems to be more manageable than the first for most people.
I hope the SEs let up and you start to feel better.
Cheryl
Thank you Cheryl
Lv Mel - I have sent a message to elttiks to appologise as I really meant no offence to any one i just wanted some advice
Hi Mel
Don’t feel bad, these forums are here to tell the truth about how you feel and it really helps to know others went through it too, that it’s normal.
Everyone responds differently to chemotherapy - I had 4xAC and it was just awful. I had terrible gastro-intestinal problems right from the first hit and it didn’t get that much worse. I think the second is worse than the first because your body hasn’t had time to recover completely, so you’re starting at a lower point. I was knackered after 4 doses, but it really is amazing how quickly your body recovers - 6 weeks after dose 4, I felt really good again.
Hoping you feel better soon. Getting through chemotherapy is tough, but think of the good it’s doing.
Elttiks, some people sail through it, others suffer, but most just find it tiring and wearing and rather like having a hangover or flu on and off for a few weeks. I hope it’s not as bad as you’re expecting. xxxxx
I think I’m similar to Hatty & Poppy333. I’ve had FEC 4 so far & other than taking 2 days off each time to let it ‘do it’s thing’, I go back to work on normal FT hours.
Other than losing crowing glory, I’ve hardly noticed any problems - bit of metallic taste in mouth but spearmint chewing gum works wonders.
I appreciate some have worse experiences than others but honestly believe that my PMA (positive mental attitude) works for me.
Good luck to all.
Chris
hi mel,my fec 2 was the worst for me as my hair began to come out but it wasnt that !! i just felt dreadful…was dreading tax as readso many horror stories but i would ratherhave that any day,fec just made me feel so sick…but what everyone needs to remember when they read these things is that everyone is different and what is awful for some is easier for others…hope it eases for you x
Thanks everyone for their advice - feel alot better now xx
dont feel bad beardie, you didnt mean to upset anyone.the journey is very different for everyone. youll be able to air here and get others views and tips.
xx
I agree with Poppy, don’t feel bad, I was very ill with 1st tax, What I thought was SEs turned out to be infection and I ended up in hospital for 4 days, If they forgot to give you the injection for wbc you could be feeling worse because of that, keep an eye on your temp and don’t beat yourself up be kind to yourself.
Jean
everyone has to be open and honest on this forum, sometimes its the only place we can vent all that is happening and turn to others who hopefully understand because they haave been through similar. Sometimes the black hole can be massive and suck you in then all of a sudden a life line is thrown it may just be comment on here or a bit of an insight and hey presto it drags you back out to the civilised but crazy world. BC, chemo , rads etc etc takes aways so much but thankfully for this little corner of the WWW we keep our sanity, because you realise …hey someone else has felt this crap…this good…this happy…this sad…this desperate…this angry …this list is endless
take care everyone x
For me, FEC1 was absolutely horrible, but they sorted my meds and I had Emend for FEC2 and FEC3. If you were really really bad, make sure you TELL THEM, and plead for Emend next time, it really made the difference to me, I was like a totally different person - not sick at all, just needed to sleep lots for the first week. Tell them about your symptoms and see if they can prescribe Emend next time.
HI Mel, please please don’t feel bad - its fine to vent on these forums and those of us who read the threads just need to decide for ourselves what we read, what we can manage at the time etc. I am so sorry your second FEC was difficult - PLEASE tell your team at the chemo unit all about it or the doc if you have an apptment before the next chemo - cos they can adjust your meds/dose etc, you are not alone in this and I found each one a bit different, as the others have said depending a bit on what else is going on in your body.
very best of luck with it, Nicola
Hi Beardie, you are perfectly entitled to post in this forum. It’s a sad fact that Cancer is a nasty disease, and many of the treatments are horrible - and it’s beyond me that anyone would think that these things should not be mentioned on a cancer forum. What are we all meant to talk about - holidays and knitting?
I had a fairly aggressive version of FEC, and felt fairly rough for the duration, but I just tried to focus on the fact that it would help me. Just try to take it easy, drink enough, and take your anti-emetics regularly even if you feel you don’t require them.