Hi all first time posting. I was diagnosed at the beginning of May and was told originally that it was grade 1 DCIS and that I would need a lumpectomy with reconstruction and some radiotherapy and that should be it. I was worried, obviously, but coped quite well with the news. I went through two lots of surgery in 3 weeks, the first for the lumpectomy where they gave me a saline fill then back for the reconstruction which was 2 weeks ago. Sadly my journey has changed along the way, as it so often does. My histology now shows that I have been upgrade to grade 2 IDC with low grade DCIS but with clear lymph nodes. I am ER+ and my Oncotype score has come back as 41 so have been told that I will need 4-6 months of chemo before the radiotherapy. I have my first oncology appointment on August 12th and I am so so scared right now. I have coped so well up to now but I am spiralling badly at the moment. What can I do to make myself as chemo ready as I can be, bearing in mind I think I will have about 3 weeks before I start. Thank you all.
Hi i just wanted to say we are all here for you. My journey too has changed and been lots of twists and turns. I was diagnosed in March with IDC grade 1 and was initially told it would be lumpectomy, radiotherapy and hormone blockers. Unfortunately I have lymph node involvement so although iām still grade 1 iām now having to have chemotherapy, too. Which came as a total shock for me. I think iāve now come to terms with it and iām thinking of it as something that is hopefully going to destroy any cells that may be left behind and try to prevent it coming back.
There is a group on the forum for those of us having chemotherapy in August As with the other monthly groups everyone is there supporting each other and helping each other through
Thank you, I think it has just thrown me so much as I was prepared for radiotherapy but the chemo news has sent me into a spin. Good luck with yours. x
Thank you, It is difficult to process and for me it was the fear of the unknown again.
Are there any support centres near you where you can seek counselling, support or talk to someone about it all. Iām having counselling through work and have found that has helped me process everything and even though Iād rather not have to have it i am accepting now that it is being offered to help me in the long term x
I am lucky that there is a Maggieās centre at the hospital and a McMillan centre so will look at those. I only found out about the chemo yesterday afternoon so still in a bit of shock about it.
Hey @coco3
Welcome to the forum and well done for getting through all you have so far.
Iāve also had a twisty pathway in that I initially started with a stage 1, grade 3 TNBC tumour. A lumpectomy and lymph node biopsy showed 10.5mm of cancer with clear margins and no node involvement. The cancer was then confirmed to have quite dramatically recurred under the lumpectomy scar just four months later and five days after one dose of adjuvant chemo with three tumours totalling 36mm. My treatment was changed to a neo-adjuvant regime and halfway into this Iāve been lucky enough to have achieved a complete resolution of the cancer at the time of writing this. Just ploughing through the rest of the treatment now but with further surgery and immunotherapy planned for after my current chemo is finished, Iām looking at it being February next year before Iām ādoneā.
I was absolutely terrified before I first started chemo but almost entirely thanks to the massive amount of support you receive during it, itās not even been close to as bad as I thought it would be. As @bella80 said, definitely make use of the monthly chemo threads. Thereās quite a lively crew prepping for their August starts already! x
Thank you so much, and gosh what a journey you have been through. I will definitely join the august forum as I think I will be starting about the end of August.
@coco3 that is early days for you only finding out yesterday, I can understand why you are feeling like you are, itās a shock when you werenāt expecting it. I think with a lot of things on this journey we donāt want to be on you will be able to process it better with time and also when you know more about what you are having and when. Good luck with everything and we are all here for you x
@mssteel I just read your reply and wanted to say iām so happy to hear that youāve achieved a complete resolution. Good luck with the rest of your treatment. February will be here before you know it x
Thank you @bella80! All the best to you on your chemo journey. x
Hi @coco3 Iām so sorry they sprung chemo on you at the last minute 
Thatās awful. I think I just knew straight away id be having chemo so I had a lot more time to process it. If you have 3 weeks till you start you have plenty of time to get organised. And also get yourself some really lovely days out booked in before treatment starts x
I had 8 rounds of chemotherapy. It was dose dense so treatment was every 2 weeks. The first 4 were EC. The last 4 were Paclitaxel. It is a tough time thereās no doubt about it but it is manageable. You will still have lots of really good days 
My favourite days during chemo were my traditional walks in our local woods the day before. I went for a long walk before each round everytime. Movement will absolutely help you. Even a small amount makes a big difference. Get used to the idea of atleast a small walk everyday if you can.
How did I get through it? I prepped for everything and I started using it all before symptoms showed up.
I got myself a sensitive toothbrush, a mild toothpaste with floride and some non alcohol medicated mouthwash that I started using a couple of days before chemo to get used to it a little bit.
I found myself lots of good quality nail oils and balms and started using them religiously throughout the day, especially before bed. Not forgetting the toes.
I had my hair cut into a very short pixie. Whether you use a cold cap or not Iām so sorry to say you will lose hair. For me and my family I wanted it to be less of a shock so for my surgeries I had my long hair cut to a bob. Pre chemo I went pixie. This really really helped me. Once hair started coming out it was much easier to deal with and I was able to leave my head alone, not brush it and wash it all the time which definitely helped preserve it longer. I did cold cap and so I always took with me a battery pack heated blanket that was really nice to put on my legs.
I had a picc line installed so that I didnt have the struggle finding veins. This was one of the best things I was offered and it saved me a lot of time in the chair and a lot of pain. I watched a lot of people struggling when their nurses couldnt find their veins and it was heart breaking. I also found myself an adaptive jumper to wear with a zip up the sleeve although with the weather now thatās probably unnecessary.
For general products that I use for washing, moisturising etc I use an app called Yuka. You can scan products and it tells you if the ingredients in them will irritate your skin or have any scary additives. You can use this for food also! Less is more and sensitive or vegan products seems to be the kindest on chemo skin.
Food wise there is a great thread here called Cancer Made Me Eat and people have shared lots of tips and meals that got them through. You want to be eating lots of really good food to help your body repair and help keep your immune system up. Some days you wont be able to eat much at all and thats ok but the days you do have an appetite its best to be as healthy as you can. Finding a good protein shake is a good idea, the best I could find was Huel Black Edition.
I was already 1 year into not drinking alcohol as a personal challenge but I kept this up during treatment. Alcohol wont do anything but delay your healing so if you can cut it out then thats best but cutting right down will also help.
The nausea is real during chemo so my advice on that is take all the medication they give you, especially the first week. Even if you dont feel that sick, take them. And follow this up with a good stool softener because constipation can be a big problem that you just dont need. On the flip side you can also have the opposite problem so its about managing which ever symptom you get.
For me being prepared for any of the symptoms before they showed up definitely helped I found power and strength in getting active and doing everything and anything I could to help myself. Just do what you can.
Binge watch your most favourite shows, get a stack of books you want to read, do some paint by numbers, sudoku, puzzle books. Distractions are very helpful 
I know this is a lot so my apologies if ive overwhelmed you. As you can see thats just how I tackled chemo head on like a challenge haha. You could be totally opposite to me and manage things completely different. You will find your way through. What ever works for you is right
Hi @coco3. I was in the same boat. I thought I was just getting radiotherapy and hormone blockers but my Oncotype score came back high and, combined with it being Grade 3 and around 20mm, I was recommended to have chemo. Think I had less than 3 weeks notice.
I also went straight to the onsite Maggieās centre! They were so good. The first thing they did was get me booked onto the Look Good Feel better course which was great. Also signposted the Breast Cancer group and other things I might benefit from.
I then went and booked a last minute holiday, just a few nights at Disney Paris with my husband and the kids. I know thatās not going to be possible for everyone but it really gave me something else to focus on and I had lovely memories of that trip when I was going through treatment.
I wish I had organised microblading before treatment as I had to wait until after treatment for that by which time Iād lost virtually all my brows. I had a bad reaction to the first one but it got easier as treatment went on. I have some nice memories of being driven to and from the appointments by friends, and the team on the onco ward were just lovely.
Good luck xx
MY goodness, thank you so so much, that is really helpful. I will read it all again as it is a lot of info to take in but I like to be prepared so thank you x
Thank you so much, I will head for the Maggie centre as soon as I can. I am hoping to get a few days booked to go away next week but we have two dogs so a bit more complicated but fingers crossed I can find something. Thank you for replying. x
Hi Coco , Iām on the July thread but saw your post as it reasonated with me . I was diagnosed in April and had 2 surgeries on each arm within 3 weeks of each other in May. On the right they took a 33mm cyst out plus 1 lymph node which was matted . On the left DCIS and sentinel node out but clear. At surgery I was also told radio and tablets after but then told chemo due to that darn lymph node ! I was told that on the 21st June about the chemo and started on the 9th July . I was and still am really scared of chemo . Iāve had 2 rounds with 4 to go ( making a switch to another one after my next one ) Losing hair has been the most traumatic for me. The week before this chemo was when I lost loads of, I would say at least 50 percent. Iāve got a wig and head bands ready plus like other posters looking after nails and teeth. What I would do is try and get out as much as you can and drink lots of water ā¦ x
Youāve got loads of brilliant advice here which will help you through what is unpleasant but can be managed. Iāve had 2 cycles of my 4 3 weekly EC chemo and I found that knowledge is power. I read and reread all the information on the various components of my chemo and the possible side effects, and in my mind had sorted out how to deal with what I might experience. I spent a lot of time in the bathroom after a couple of days of having the chemo and the fatigue was overwhelming, but I tried to go with it rather than fight it. In the grand scheme of things, the time we spend undergoing treatment is a very small percentage of the life we still have to lead. I for one intend to make sure I make the most of that and say thank you to the people who discovered chemo, administer it and look after me but move on and make all the discomfort suffered worthwhile.
Hello Coco3,
When I was first diagnosed in 2006, I had multifocal grade 2 IDC with lymph node involvement. It was strongly hormone-positive for both oestrogen and progesterone, and HER2-negative.
I had chemotherapy before surgery to reduce the size of the tumours so that I could have more conservative surgery. I had three cycles of FEC and six cycles of Taxotere.
FEC was tough for me, while Taxotere was more bearable. I think it is important to ask your oncologist what type of chemotherapy you will be having, how it will be administered and what the possible side effects are.
You could also ask whether they will monitor how well the treatment is working, although, as you have already had surgery, I am not sure whether this would be relevant in your case.
It may also be helpful to ask how serious the side effects could be, what treatment or support you would be offered to help manage them, and whether any of the side effects could be long-term.
I do not know how old you are, but you may also wish to ask whether the chemotherapy could affect your fertility or any other organs. If you are working, exercising or taking part in other activities, you could ask whether you are likely to be able to continue with them. It would also be worth checking whether there are any medicines or vaccines you should avoid or have before starting treatment.
I also kept a notebook full of questions for my oncologist, which helped me remember everything I wanted to ask. As I enjoy writing, I used it as an opportunity to exercise my literary powers on the oncologist. I remember turning up once with a hundred questions. I am, admittedly, a bit of a freak.
I am very needle-phobic and have terribly difficult veins, so I used EMLA cream before my appointments. It really worked for me. I also asked my GP for some diazepam to help calm me down before the chemotherapy sessions.
Joining support groups for women with cancer helped me enormously too.
I wish you all the best and please let us know how it goes XXX
Thank you so much for you reply,
Hi @coco3, there are so many good tips on here and I would definitely plough through them as they will really help you to feel prepared. There is another thread on the site from earlier in the summer called something like - chemo in September how would you spend the summer and I think there are lots of tips there too.
Donāt want to overwhelm so I wonāt add my prep for chemo this year as itās already been covered by others but it can be helpful to listen to Dr Liz OāRiordans - āSo now Iāve got Breast Cancerā podcast. Just pick the ones that feel relevant as she talks to specialists in each particular part of the journey. I used to pick it up from Spotify. I would also say apply for a free Little Lifts Box - nice to get some things through the post that are all helpful for chemo. If you donāt have one already definitely get a good thermometer !
All preparation really helps you to feel in control of the parts of this that you have some agency over. Lots of the cancer and particularly chemo journey can feel dictated too by others so grabbing hold of what you can control - your skin, your oral hygiene, your food and exercise can really make you feel part of being in this rather than just a passenger in your own life.
The other thing to say is that although it can feel hard at times you will get through this. Trust in yourself and your team and advocate for what you need . These forums though, particularly with other monthly starters at the same time as you can really be a life line and kept me sane in so many ways.
Good luck to you
Hi coco3, Iām so sorry youāve had this news on top of everything youāve already been through. Two surgeries in three weeks is a lot, and then to have the plan change like that, no wonder youāre spiralling. Please donāt be hard on yourself for that.
I went through chemo myself and I remember the weeks before starting being almost harder than the treatment, because your head fills in all the blanks. Once you actually meet your oncology team on the 12th and have a proper plan in front of you, it does tend to settle a little.
A few things that helped me: writing down every question before appointments because your mind goes blank in the room, sorting out comfy clothes and things you can easily layer for treatment days, and letting people help with the small stuff at home rather than trying to hold it all together yourself.
Youāve coped with so much already. Sending you a lot of love for the 12th