i got my 2nd fec 3 weeks ago and as i got it i also started a period which was really quite heavy and lasted for a week ( i normaly last for 4 days and am usually quite light) anyway as i got my 3rd fec which we know was 3 weeks after my 2nd and i started another heavy period. i thought that periods would stop when on chemo and to be honest that was the bit i was looking forward too - no more period pain or periods, i thought i was going to get a break from that how wrong could i have been. anyone have any idea what could be causing this, is it the chemo or the steriods or is it something else? apart from dealing with all the side effects from chemo this is just adding to it, i really wish my periods would stop as i seem to get them as i’m getting chemo and thats when i’m at my worst - just after chemo and i really can’t be bothered dealing with frigging periods. so sorry for waffling and grumbling it the PMT.
I have only had one FEC treatment so far but the same thing happened to me and the really irritating thing is as I only have one overy anyway I was told they would finish too. Maybe you need to ask the onc why this happens? sorry to hear you are having to deal with all that crap too as you say we are dealing with enough as it is and really seems unfair. Hope someone else can give you more concrete reasons and advice.
I had heavy periods for the first 3 FEC…spotting on the 4th then they stopped yippeeeeeee. Had last chemo 9 weeks ago and havent seen anything since. I asked the chemo nurse about it cos I thought I wouldnt have any and she said some people do have them right the way through. I hope you are lucky and they do stop cos its brilliant without having to bother with all that.
I had periods all through my FEC (3 Lots of treatment) but they stopped last August whilst i was having Taxotere. They restarted last month much to my disgust!!!
I too am due to have my thrid FEC on Tuesday and am still having periods just the same as before really, I too was hoping they would stop but never mind I am sure we will cope
my periods tried to keep going for a bit … think I had 2 normalish ones … then i had the mother of all periods - Epi3 ??? ish - anyway lasted well over a week!!! - then … nothing for a few months … getting used to it now and quite like it!
Hi Vodka, I can certainly relate to what you and the other ladies are saying about periods going a bit bananas during chemo. I too had a really full-on period that left me wobbling for days right in the middle of my 6 treatments (EC) and had a 2 week cycle thrown in. My breast care nurse said it was my ovaries trying to shut down and my (is it pituitary gland?) kicking out extra hormones to kick start them, which then made my periods go haywire. Mine did keep going all through the treatment tho, which was actually some consolation- being young and having not yet had kids I was hoping to keep hold of a scrap of fertility. 3 yrs later they’re still going strong, but alas no pregnancy yet. Mind you, as a great lover of lie-ins, I am coming to terms with it! Best wishes to you all and good luck with your treatments.
I’m the complete opposite… I’d do anything to have a period! I’ve now had 2 of 6 FEC and not had a period since started chemo. As Bagelo said, I’m only 32 and as yet don’t have any children. A period would put my mind at rest that the chance to have children hasn’t completely gone.
just something to consider Vodka, if your periods go, you will be experiencing menopause symptoms,instead of PMS, and believe me its no fun at all.
I had terrible hot flushes everyy day and especially at night when I’d wake up drenched in sweat, and thatt was in winter, I couldn’t imagine having them in the summer, it is awful. I had also had problems with dryness, which made sex painful, and so took away one of the things that could have made me feel better, and not ‘ill’ if you know what I mean. Give me PMS any day!!
For Neleh, I’m 36 and I was worrying about not having periods back, but they have come back with a vengeance about 4 months from last chemo, so don’t worry, given your younger age, it shouldn’t be a problem, unless you are er/pr positive and they give you something to stop them (I’m not). My onc told me it could take anything from a couple of months to a year, so I now consider myself lucky!!
Thanks for your support. I know there’s quite a good chance they’ll come back, but I guess I thought that if they carried on through the chemo then it’d be a good sign. I’m not hormone receptive but did have IVF to freeze some embryos before I started the chemo so I guess they were all over the place before anyway.
message for bagelo and neleh - no periods yet but hormones definitely changing and libido on the up! … will look forward to the mother of all periods shortly? hope not for me but good luck for you - love FB xxx