I am having my first chemo on 9/12 and so thought I’d start a December 14 group. Anyone care to join? I only found out today and am getting a bit stressed thinking about it. I will have FEC every 3 weeks for 6 cycles then start Herceptin injections for 1 year and Tamoxifen for 5 years. I had lumpectomy and SNB in Sept but then needed mastectomy in Oct and had immediate recon with LD flap. Hope to be able to talk to others in the same boat.
Hi babs
Had my my 1st FECT on 22/11, and was very anxious, stressful, at the very thought of it, all these chemicals entering, my little body, everyone is different,but personally speaking i know I needed to wee for England, and it was pink , I just drank loads of fluids get rid of the crap, ate little and often, mine was ginger cake, make sure you keep up with anti nauseous pills, religiously, walking helped get everything moving, I just walked around the block, that was enough, and also slept alot, hair now starting to fall out, can’t stop crying, annoyed at myself, as my coping strategy seems to left me, got lots of scarves and 2 wigs, but still appears not to be enough!! I think the thought of it all, blows your mind, but actually it really isn’t that bad having it injected, it’s being prepared for the afterwards bit, got my 2nd Fect on Wed, a funeral on Tuesday, and my husband going away on Thursday, he’s my brick, not looking forward to next week at all!! Good luck, thinking of you as you enter the beginning of the end!! Xxx ps chewing gum is good, as my mouth dried out some thing like sandpaper, but not painful at all, just different, also had a mouth wash they gave me, which helped. X
Hi babsgriff so sorry younger having to go on this journey sadly others will be joining you later on. Starting on Dec 9th won’t be too bad for you as you will feel quite well when Christmas comes. After the first session you may feel off colour for a few days but nothing too awful. You will be given medication for any side effects that you may experience. Hair doesn’t usually start to come out until after the second session. I think I can speak for all ladies on this forum by saying we couldn’t have done it without each other you will,be able to share your experiences with other that truly understand. Good luck!?
Hi Elaine, can I join your group too? Had my op 6 weeks ago and first fec 10 days ago. I agree that having others who are going through it all at the same time is helpful.
Mrs mogg your hedgehog experience was very familiar! So glad the nurse warned me to expect it!
Sleep well everyone
Mena x
Hi
I got my letter this morning and am starting chemo on the 17th. Nice Christmas presie!!
Weird to see all the appointments until April set out in black and white - suddenly it is very real and very scary.
At least reading about other peoples experiences makes me feel a bit more prepared for what might happen. I know my kids are worried about how I/they will feel when I lose my hair. At the moment I don’t think I can really imagine what it will be like. At least having chemo through the winter I have a good excuse for wearing a big wooly hat. 
I’m worried about the indigestion that Mrsmogg mentioned - I have gallstones that have caused me to have acute pancreatitis in the past, and I definitely don’t want that again. Seems ridiculous now that I put off having my gall bladder removed because I don’t like hospitals, and now I am there practically daily.
I am also quite apprehensive about the picc line, both having it put in and living with it afterwards. How would I have my blood pressure taken for example if they cannot use my lymph node arm and cannot use the picc line arm?
So many questions but I am sure it will all work out.
Take care ladies,
Emxx
Hi
I was diagnosed on 28th November (Black Friday appropriately) and am due to start chemo on 19th December. I will be having EC every 3 weeks for 4 cycles and then 4 cycles of Docetaxel with Herceptin. I was quite worried about the fact that I’m being given chemo before surgery but other threads on this forum have reassured me that this is not such a scary option. Is anyone else in this position? I feel as if most people on the forum are much more knowledgeable about their diagnosis and treatment and I have a lot of questions to ask to catch up with them! As has been said before, really good to have the support of others going through the same thing.
Hi library lady , i am also from april thread! I was very concerned too at the beginning to be having chemo first, be assured its an effective way of treating it, good luck with everything??
Thanks for the reassuring words from those who have already been through this - it’s so lovely that you take the time to come on this board and share your experience. I’m feeling better about having the chemo first now - seems a good idea to get working on the cancer as soon as possible.
I’m steadily getting through all the necessary tests - MRI yesterday, CT scan today and bone scan to come on Thursday. I’m going to have markers put in on Tuesday - bit like a bookmark I guess which is appropriate for me :smileyhappy:
Good luck to everyone
Sheila x
Librarylady, when the radiologist put in my marker before chemo started she assured me that after chemo the tumour would be hard to find! And it was!! I had what they called a total response to the chemo so when it came to my surgery it was scar tissue left and removed by lumpectomy, it can be hard to still have the cancer there, but after a couple of chemo cycles it starts to shrink, it is all doable, i carried on working and had a normal life throughout chemo when i could, walked my dogs every day too!
Wish I’d had chemo first, my surgery wound hadn’t healed from September and 2 doses of chemo is slowing iit down. Looks like I’m having another op yo remove the implant and close up the hole. It was mentioned at one of my early consultations but I wasn’t with it enough to ask about pros and cons.
I am new to this forum aswell and was diagnosed 4th Nov with lobular and + lymph node involvement too. V. lucky it was picked up as nothing showed on a mamogram and it was only a very eagle eyed radiograher that picked up some unusual looking cells but I was told at the time it was unlikely to be cancer. I had a lumpectomy and total lymph removal on left side two days later, thankfully clear body scans and now embarking down the chemo route 4 x EC and 4 x Tax, then radiotherapy.
Cold capped the first session and it was more than bearable, but I have thick hair so perhaps the cold didn’t penetrate as much (!) - it will be interesting to see if it works. Felt terrible for the first couple of days, but since then taken it carefully, and eating well. Kept away from crowds this week to avoid bugs only for DH to go down with a stinker of a cold. My next session is xmas eve.
I am so glad I have found this charity which has already been a support. I phoned the help line during a particularly dark time when I was waiting for my scan results and I had a long conversation with a volunteer which really helped pull my out of that dark place.
Hi Helena and welcome to the BCC forums
I am pleased to read that you have already found support from BCC and am sure you will be well supported here on the forums too. In addition, here’s a link to the younger women’s area of the site where you will find further support ideas including our 'Younger women together ’ events which you may also find helpful:
breastcancercare.org.uk/younger-women
Take care
Lucy BCC
Well I went on Tuesday to have the markers put in and when I got to the hospital I was taken to see a doctor who told me that they had changed their minds and I wasn’t having it done after all. Apparently, the cancer is not in a single lump but in ‘strands’ so it might not be useful to put in markers and may be just an unnecessary procedure for me to go through.
Still waiting for results of all my scans which is a bit nerve wracking but hoping for the best. I have my first chemo on Friday and hoping to get through it as well as many others on this forum.
Good luck everyone
Sheila x
Hi Ladies,
Just popped in from December Angels 2013 to wish you all the best in your treatments,
I was in the same position as you all a year ago and know all the anxieties etc you are all feeling but you will get through it and time passes quicker than you might think.
Just keep supporting one another, be good to yourselves and take all help offered.
Sending (((HUGS))))
Wyn x
Hi All December ladies
We have started a private FB page for those of us starting chemo in January 2015. We wanted to also invite any de ember starters if you would like to join us as we will all be going thro chemo at a similar time.
If you PM Katherine (Jane) from post Xmas starters thread she will be able to add you as a friend on FB and join The January Crew. It is a closed forum so nobody apart from members see your posts
Sam xx
Carolyn
There is also a closed and private FB page specifically for late Dec /January chemo starters
You can pm Katherine or. Used with your facebook name and photo description and we can add you
It’s completley private, posts will appear on your newsfeed but can not be seen by anyone other than the ladies in the group
It’s a great bunch!! Please feel free to come and join us
S x
Hi all
Had my first cycle of EC yesterday and so far so good. Only took an hour - apparently I have a very good vein - and up to now I’m feeling fine. I did have a headache but I think that started before and I’m prone to migraines so not sure it was caused by the chemo. I took one of my migraine tablets and am fine now.
I am slightly concerned that I have to start taking antibiotics on Christmas Day as that’s when my resistance will be low but I don’t have a lot of family around anyway so should be fine.
So take heart those of you who haven’t started yet - it’s not as bad as you think and the nurses make it much more bearable.
Sheila x
Many thanks Sheila, lovewine and others - good to hear that there can be normality during chemo!
Welcome to the Group, Marli !
Just had my first EC today after a 2 hour delay due to staff shortages. It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I felt slightly nauseous but after eating some soup when I got home, this has passed. Still feel a bit spaced out and I’m quite tired, but that is due to not sleeping very well last night due to fear of the unknown !!
Received a ‘goody bag ’ with 2 days’ supply of anti-sickness drug Ondansetron and steroid Dexamethosone and Difflam mouthwash. I also have 5 days’ supply of Filgrastim injections which I need to self-inject into my stomach, but my other half has volunteered to do it instead!!
How did you go on today, San1952 ?
Hope it all goes well for everyone else who is having chemo this week .
Carolyn xx
Hi everyone !
San1952 - sorry to hear that you didn’t start your chemo as planned, it must be awful to get yourself all prepared to start, then to be delayed.
Just an update, yesterday was Day 1 after my first EC . I got up to have a banana so that I could take the steroids and anti-sickness medication , but I vomitted an hour later , so that was a waste of time !
I felt like I had a bad hangover all day and night, i.e. headache, nausea and hiccups (!! ) and I had a burning sensation in my bladder which I know is caused by the chemo, so I drank cranberry juice, which helped. My pee was luminous orange (!!), which I know is also caused by the chemo.
I did manage to keep the second dose of steroids and anti-sickness tablets down after eating my lunch and was not actually sick after that.
District nurse came in the afternoon to show my OH how to inject the white blood count booster drug into my stomach for the next 5 days. The needle is only tiny , so not too bad. Apparently usual side effect from the injection is bone pain which should start tonight or tomorrow, not looking forward to that !!
Last night I only managed to get 1 hour’s sleep, which I think is due to the steroids ( and not helped by my OH’s snoring !! ) but I had taken them all by 12.30 pm, so I was a bit surprised about that.
Today ( Day 2 ) , I had to jump out of bed at 7.30 am to run to the bathroom to be sick. I had felt nauseous all night whilst I was awake, but felt better after vomitting. I than had a banana and first dose of steroids and anti-sickness medication and was fine this time.
I took the second dose of steroids and anti-sickness medication at lunch time and was fine. I have now taken all my medication as I was only given 2 days’ supply, but I was also given some different anti-sickness medication which I can take as and when I need them.
OH gave me my second injection this afternoon, no bone pain yet !!
I still feel nauseous, but it’s not too bad, and obviously I’m really tired due to not much sleep, but I do feel better today. Not sure whether I will get any more side effects tomorrow without any steroids, but will keep you posted !!
CAROLYN XX