Hi SSF, so glad you feeling a bit better. Perkinjeff, you were sensible to call out the doctor, sometimes I think we blame everything on the chemo, forgetting that you can stll get ill with something else!
Nonni and Little Bear, hope you are both feeling better
kay x
Happy Friday Pumpkins
I had my port out yesterday 
The wound is a bit sore today but sooo happy to be rid of the port, it feels like a real milestone.
I hope you all have a good weekend and that those who ar between chemo and rads are making the most of the ātime offā.
Jayne x
hi pumpkins,
have spent last 4 days in and out of hospital, had pain in left arm since last ct scan turns out iāve got a dvt. so now iāve got ro give myself an anticohag injection every day 4 the next 3 months. have done 2 so far and donāt like it not god with needles, but canāt get daughter to do it as she passes out at the sight of needles and blood.
have got appointment to see surgeon on tues, so hopefully will find out whats happening now.
hope everyone is feeling well or as well as you can be
big hugs xxx
suzee
Dear Suzee64ā¦ so sorry that you have developed a dvt. I was diagnosed with two of them about 2 weeks agoā¦ PICC line problem and collapsed veins caused mine. Iām coping OK with doing the injections and finding that they donāt really hurt (for me anyway). No blood involved but bruising. Iām not needle phobic which is an enormous help.
Try deep breaths and just going for itā¦ I really find no pain with the needle going in as they are so small. Donāt stab it in though 
. i also find putting the āstuffā in to do it slowly as it can sting if done too quickly.
Best of luck
Take careā¦ my thoughts are with you
Love Sue xxx
Sorry to hear that you are not too good suzee64. I feel for you having to give yourself an injection for the next 3 months. Poor you. I hope you manage it ok. Thats excellent Jayne that you have had your port out well done! Perkijeff sorry to hear about your radiotherapy but glad you have a holiday booked to look forward to. I have had some good news today. When i had my original CT scan last August it showed some enlarged lymph nodes in my abdomen. They werent really concerned at the time but said i would have a repeat scan. I tried to put it to the back of my mind so as not to worry unnecessarily about it. I had the repeat scan 2 weeks ago and found out today it was all clear so phew a big sigh of relief. The last couple of weeks i havent really been able to think of much else and was so worried it may show up something so am really relieved now. Think i will treat myself to a glass of wine toight. I feel like a big weight has been lifted. Anyway sorry to hear some of you are not feeling too good. Keep your chins up xxx
Hi Suzee and Suz, I had the same with my PICC line on the first chemo cycle. 10 days after it I got a sore arm and was diagnosed with multiple DVTs in it. Like you was in hospital until they could remove the PICC. I now have a Hickman line, which I have had no problems with. I too have to give myself Tinzaparin injections for 6 months. My husband used to give them but he went into hospital so I had to get used to doing it. The worst thing is the bruising, my stomach looks like a map of the world! I agree that it hurts less if you inject it slowly.
Jayne, great to have your port removed. I asked ONC when I could have Hickman out, she said 4 weeks after last chemo in case I was admitted to hospital and they needed to take blood or give me medication. Hoped it would be sooner.
Annette, what a relief for you! This blooming illness means that we think the worst of every symptom, donāt we.
Have a good weekend all
kay x
hi
I have just rung Eurotunnel about their multi trip annual travel insurance. You do not have to travel eurotunnel to get the insurance. They base health stuff on a āfitness to travelā and do not want to know any health stuff at all. Basically if you claim they write to your doctor and ask if you were fit to travel at the time. For annual insurance, i am quoted 60 pounds (under 69 years of age)
Oother ladies have taken this insurance out but as yet no one has commented on claiming!
when i next see GP, i shall ask about fitness for travel and make sure it is in my notes that I am.
( the cover does exclude if you are waiting for hospital treatment at time of travel or waiting for a diagnosis from scans etc. )
take care everyone. If your next Treatment is soon good luck.
Sorry to Suzee and Suz, what a pain on top of all of the other seās.
Thanks for the info on insurance Rosebud, I need insurance too but I read somewhere that Eurotunnel wouldnāt offer it if you were recently having treatment?? I will call them though as I know my GP will give me a fit to travel note.
I started back on Tamoxifen yesterday so looking forward to more night sweats. I was on it for about 6 weeks between dx and chemo and to be honest it was ok apart from the hot flushes but I think I would probably get them anyway at my age. They are worse with wine so I keep it to one or two glasses and only at the weekend, not ready to go completely teetotal yet!
Does anyone know if we can take supplements when we have finished chemo? I feel in need of a boost of vitamins and minerals after all that poison.
Jayne x
Hi Pumpkins!!!
Jayne - i know wot u mean about getting out lines/ports out. I cant bloody wait to have my Hickman out.
Kaytee - i have a Hickman & was told by Onc nurse that they like to have it removed before rads so she reckons about 3 after last chemo (so only 2 weeks to go). It can be removed by a nurse & is supposed to be relatively simple. I hope so cos i had a complete nitemare in theatre when it was put inā¦!
Day 8 after final FEC6 & not feeling too bad. Very tired & still got daily headaches but controlling them with para/ibrupofen. Mentioned them to Onc nurse at last review & she just waved them off as normal or tension headachesā¦ Im going to give them another week tto go then will be ringing helpline. i have read that the nerves from the brain/spinal column/spine can be irritated by chemo & can cause headachesā¦
Get tired easily (yawning loads) & still suffering shortness of breath. Low BP on thursday again causing dizziness but just made sure i drank loads of water & ate little & oftenā¦ and OMG i was soooooo constipated yesterday, i was actually in pain & felt sick!!! 
Bran flakes & mint tea have been the staple diet of today!!
Sorry to hear some Pumpkins not doing too good but we are nearly there girls, ready for our next part of the journeyā¦
Went to walk in centre with Princess this afternoon as she had bad cough, temp, rattling chest & couldnt talk/swallow cos throat so sore. She has a mild chest infection, swollen glands & sore throat so has antibioticsā¦ Doc said i should be fine to look after her as long as im careful hygiene wiseā¦ Bless her but the house is SOOOO quiet!!! 
Went to supermarket on thursday & spent about 15 mins infront of the chilled foods - duck pancakes, meringues, cheesecake, you soon will be mine!!! lolā¦ 
Stay strong ladiesā¦ lotsoflove Mel xxx
Hi all - Jayne m - sage tablets can help with the flushes - as for supplements , My onc has let me tale them all the way through as I can always feel the difference if I donāt take them pre-ops - vit d supplements are really important for everyone as we get older or so the reseach says - Mel I didnāt realise there were food s I shouldnāt have been eating like in pregnancy - i have had them all !!! sorry to hear about princess - Iām sure you will be ok - we have minded our grandaughter every week and you know what toddler noses are like!!! - mind you I do take a zinc supplement to help with infection control
am starting to pick up now on day 11 of tax - so still have 2 weeks of freedom before rads .-then it will all stop and i will be like everyone else( or so it feels ) I can make plans , I am not recovering from ops or in treatment - in fact I should be able to say I AM CANCER FREE but I donāt know whether i can say it with any conviction - does anyone else feel like that?
hugs Janice
Hi
Has anyone had an explanation for being out of breathe from chemo? What/where/when? Is it going to go?
Went for a walk yesterday and felt about 90. I know I am not as fit as could be but this 6th treatment has certainly had a sting in the tail. Not long to go nowā¦( how many times have we said that !)
Wishing everyone well and hoping for feeling fitter day by day.
Hi Pumpkins,
Yes perkingjeff I am the same as you, day 11 of tax and no date yet for rads but expecting it to be a couple of weeks,also mixed thoughts on being cancer free and not looking forward to starting new drug! It all seems a bit of an anti climax willing the end to be here and now it is ā¦lots of thoughts going around in ones head about the future.
On a more positive note the thought of no chemo is an excellent one it came around so quickly and those horrid side effects well we all know about those dont we
I am keen to get over the radiotheraphy now and on the drug and see what I feel like then, I am on half pay from work so I wonder when I will be feeling up to returning. Its such a long journey its hard to remember when exactly we ever felt normal 
Take Care everyone xxxx
Hi Rosebud, I have been really breathless since FEC4, apparently low white cells can make you feel like that as well. I wheeze like you wouldnāt believe. I need to improve my stamina before my holiday in May. I have last chemo (thank goodness) on Wednesday. My white count drops really low despite having 10 injections of Filgrastim. ONC has prescribed a different single injection this time, I have to go back the day after chemo to have it. Donāt know what itās called though.
more anti Nausea stuff this time as mine was worse last time. The effects are certainly ramping up as each session goes by so be glad when its over. I then have 3 weeks of rads and start on Arimidex for the 5 years.
hope all feel better soon
New avatar is me in my wig!
kay x
I think i am going on Arimidex - anyone know any thing about it ?? - I am certainly breathless but I am really unfit so i am sure it will improve with time and effort - i need to go swimming again but the rads mean that is not possible for quite a few weeks after as site will be very sore even after it has finished - there is also the problem of what to wear?! - special swimsuits and prosthetics i believe are really expensive so donā treally want to spend a fortune on something that the chlorine ruins!!! but am i brave enough to go lopsided and will anyone really notice as i tend to be in the swims that are full of the grey brigade like myself and i just swim up and down and then get out - got any thoughts pumpkins? - i will have to have a proper suit when we go on hloiday to sit by the pool - i want to go swimming but it is another first to face
Hi Perkinjeff, the other thing that concerns me is the lack of hair. I find it hard to walk in anywhere without hair, so think I will be one of those in a swimming hat!
kay x
Hello Pumpkins
I wrote this and thought I had posted it so Iām sorry itās a bit out of date.
What a joy to check into the forum and find so many people finishing their chemo and sounding so upbeat, Iām getting quite carried away and almost forgetting that I have another round to endure before I can join you all in celebrating!
I hope those with bone aches and other nasty side effects will soon be back into their good phase- wonāt it be a relief to feel better without the dread of the next treatment. I love the quotations Little Bearā¦ FEC has been bad enough without the side effects those of you having TAX /TAC have to endureā¦but not for much longer.
Kayteeb, thanks for the hair extension tipā¦hair extensions would be a real change for me, so glamorous. We plan to combine the wedding with a holiday so Iāve been looking at adult stinger suits so that I can swim and snorkel -theyāre definitely not glam but I love water sports and after radiotherapy I know we need to protect ourselves in the sun.
Our annual travel insurance comes up for renewal in April- Iām not sure how that will work, they wonāt cover me for breast cancer, weāve already had that conversation when I went to Dubrovnik between surgery and chemo. There is another forum on our site,Affordable Travel Insurance, which flags up Pink, World First and Columbus Travel- they may be worth investigating I was too close to surgery for them to help me in October but could be worth investigating.
Ribby Iām so glad that your last session was less traumatic than earlier FECings. I think you deserve lots of attention after all you have been through!
Katybee53, I took my daughter swimming before I got my swim boob, I didā,nt notic anyone staring, my remaining boob is a D cup, I also took her after Iād lost my hair but had swim boob before I got my PICC line in, I think I noticed a few āsliding glancesā but I just ignored them and enjoyed playing with my wee girl. So more people noticed the baldy head than the one boob. I got my swim boob from Amoena, I think it was Ā£45 called Aquawave, its designed to withstand the chlorine so should last a long time, I figured it was worth it as I go swimmming alot and I felt off balence with the one. I got swimsuit form the same company and was about Ā£28. Iāve heard of people going swimming during rads, its seems different hospitals give different advice about this as well as general instructions on how to care for the skin, confusing.
thanks for that Rainaid - useful information - i was told not to go swimming during chemo because of infection or radio as i am having it on the whole chest wall and the lymph nodes in the neck - i am a bit worried as it can affect the lungs , ribs and the heart - you just go with what you are told though donāt you, afraid if you donāt it will come back - like taking arimidex for 5 years with it side effects too - what do other people think?
Hi
still out of breathe but will not panic until white blood count comes up.
i am amused to read about swimming. My onc said i could go at quiet times of day but hospital information specifically said to avoid. Likewise food, no one mentioned anything until last treatment was delayed and then got read the full act on what not to eat.
there is a foam prosthesis from nicola jane for 11.50, do not know how good it is. I talked to a friend who said she used an ordinary swimsuit and made a pocket out of the linng because she objected to paying for special swimsuit. if you are small, this might be an option, or if the swimsuit has appropiate shaping that a pocket can easily be made.
for those waiting last treatments, thinking of you. And to all, best wishes in getting over all side effects.
Suzee64 Iām sorry to hear you have the dreaded dvts.
I have my last treatment on Friday and convinced my oncologist that that would be the best time for my PICC to go. Nonnie, Iām so envious that yours is goneā¦pumpkins donāt seem to have such a good record with the PICC. Iām assured that if I had a problem I would know, would I though?
I will be having 5 years of Letrozole starting 2 weeks after FEC 6 and the 3 weeks of radiotherapy. Donāt you just love the way these consultants tell you all the side effects of the next stage, in my case, just as Iām feeling that Iāve almost coped with the current challenge. Itās reassuring that my hair will be growing (but could develop male pattern baldness) while Iām wheezing and having a cardiac episode. Thankfully a couple of friends have had no side effects with rads or hormone therapy so Iām reassuredā¦I think!
Annette100 enjoy your wineā¦Great to hear your good news.
Kayteebe, Perkinjeff and Roanaid; Iāll be wearing the swimming cap I really donāt think people notice or bother about the shape in the swimsuit but I donāt like to be seen without hair. Advice does seen to vary with swimming, as with so many things, I was told to avoid any warm wet environments where bugs could breedā¦especially swimming pools.
Ribby, hope Princess is recovering. Are your eyes any better? I just donāt see as well as I did or should. Iām avoiding driving at night because itās even worse.
Kayteebe- Iāve been having one injection, Neulasta, 24 hours after my chemo, despite having neutropenia after round one, my bloods have recovered really well. My chemo nurse said it is not always given because itās more expensive than the one-a-day option. I did have the bone pain that i was warned about after the first one, thankfully only for 12hrs ā¦and ibroprofen controlled the pain. Since that one Iāve been ok.
My wig is very like my hair was before all this, so leaving the wig behind is going to be quite difficult as Iāve been dying my hair for decades.
Kirsty and all the other pumpkins ā¦letās celebrate a hasty return to normality- normal for us all has been so weird for too long.