Hello to you all,
This is the first time for me and apolgies if i appear to be nervous. I was diagnosed in March 2008 and have recently had surgery. This was a mastectomy and recostruction on the left and reduction and lift on the right. All has gone well and very pleased with the results. Have now been given a date for chemo to begin (June 19th) and am very scared. The drugs and sickness are not an issue but the hair loss is a major concern. Any advice to get myself out of the doom and gloom moments? Sorry for the long message, will try harder next time to be brief. x
Evening G,
Never worry about the post, it’s actually short compared to most of mine.
I’m starting my chemo on 25th after having a partial mastectomy and node clearance.
To lift your mood read as many threads as you can to get advice etc. Check the undergoing chemo one for tips on hair loss and general stuff.
I am sorry you’ve had to come on here but be assured there is always someone about to help you during hard times.
Big hugs
Lisa
xoxo
Hi Guinness
Welcome to the forums, I am sorry to read that you are going through such a difficult time, I am sure your fellow forum members will be along shortly with valuable support and advice.
Breast Cancer Care have published a Resource Pack, it has been designed for anyone newly diagnosed with information to help you better understand your diagnosis, test results and various treatments, it is available via the following link or by contacting the helpline:
breastcancercare.org.uk//content.php?page_id=7514
We also have information publications and services specifically for younger women which you may find helpful, you can read more via this link:
breastcancercare.org.uk/content.php?page_id=5256
You may find our helpline useful to call to talk through how you are feeling at the moment, they can talk to you about our other support services too and also offer support, information and a ‘listening ear’. The number to call is 0808 800 6000 Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm, Saturday, 9am - 2pm. I hope you find this helpful.
Best wishes
Lucy
Hi Guiness
Love the name, are you Irish or just fond of the black stuff.
Well done for getting through the surgery, thats the first bit done now its on with stage 2.
There is no getting round the fact that the hair loss is masssive but you will cope with it and you will find the strength from somewhere. There will be good days and bad days, you will laugh and you will cry, you will sing and you will scream but you will do it, honestly you will.
I had 3 FEC and 3 TAX between July and Nov last year and my hair no longer looks like I ever lost it although it is way too short for my liking and seems to be taking forever to grow even though everyone says “Wow hasen’t your hair grown” everytime they see me.
Unfortunately you also need to be prepared for the possibility that you will loose you eyelashes and eyebrows as well. The eyebrows can be drawn on but the I found the eyelash loss very hard. The only good thing is they were last to go and first to come back so it wasn’t too long, it just seemed it at the time.
Good luck with it all, keep posting and let us know how its going. There is so much support on here, we’ve all been there and we all understand exactly where your at.
AJxxx
Hi Guiness
Many of us will be starting chemo around the same time and we are all mostly concerned about loosing our hair. If you read through some of the other discussions you will find that many of the ladies have found very realistic wigs ( we would have to be going through this in the summer wouldn’t we!! ). They haven’t really said yet but I’m sure that the hospital will organise for you to see someone about wigs. I think there is an area on this site that tells you which hospitals they visit and when.
I talk about loosing my hair all of the time. I don’t think anyone at home understands how important it is to me but it’s a big part of who I am, I’m sure once I find a wig I am happy with this I will feel much better ( haven’t started looking yet ). As it’s not something we do everyday it’s easy to think that we won’t find one that looks realistic. Many of the ladies on here have said that people who don’t know have said how nice their hair looked or asked them where they get it done.
Try not to worry we are here to support you if you need us.
Lots of love
Ann
xxx
Hiya and welcome - I was diagnosed in March too - Im about to do my 2nd chemo and i watched my hair on a daily basis and amazingly laughed - see the link on who has hair! It was a big deal to me like others and yet I have lost it and havent cried - yes I look strange but in the end I was casting everywhere and got a friend to shave it all off - thought I would wait to the bitter end but my head was hurting and it was getting me down - now its done theres nothing I can do and at least know the chemos work (cant even believe im saying all this as I was soooo afraid of it). I have a nice wig but find it a bit uncomfie and cant wait to get home and put a scarf on - I feel self concious in these too and hats as its obvious and thats what I wanted to hide - however, I went round our pubs in our town on saturday ngith with the wig on and after the inital 5mins I discovered no-one was looking at me and in fact someone said my new hair style was nice - i must admit I still had a small bit of hair underneath just in case.
You will cope - if I have anyone can!
Blasted leg hair not moving though - with me im more worried about loosing my eyebrows
xx good luck
Hi there
Not sure if anyone is interested and I’m not sure if they work but I found an American site last week and they sell stick on eyebrows and eyelashes that attatch to your skin.
Will try to find the web address again if anyone wants it. They also had a massive range of wigs hats and scarfs. It was started by a lady who had cancer and couldn’t find anything she liked.
Let me know
Ann
To all of you that took the time to reply,
I was really excited when i saw so many people made time to re assure me and i can honestly say i no longer feel alone.
In answer to the question from AJXXX, i am married to an irishman and definately do NOT like the black stuff!!!
I have an appointment tomorrow (thurs) with the oncologist to got through the final points of the chemo. Will also be seeing somebody with some wigs. Will try to make this as fun as i can and who knows - may find something i am happy with.
I am really glad i made the effort to join you all, i feel like a release button has been pressed and i have people here that understand.
Love and thanks to you all
Mel (Guinness)
xx
Hi Guinness
Im at the end of all my treatment left mast 7 months chemo 1 month rads now on tamoxifen. The wigs provided are fantastic just take your time to chose one you feel comfortable with.and there are so many things you can do with a bandana and hat its amazing.
You may not feel sick at all on chemo (I worked all through mine) and you are given sickness tablets. Take each day as it comes and listen to your body !!
good luck and Im sending your hugs
Ailsxx
Hi Guinness,
I finished chemo last December (AC followed by Taxotere) my hair is now about an inch long all over. With regards to wigs, I would highly recommend a monofilament one, as these are so realistic - if you google Rene of Paris you can have a look at their website. I did have my long hair cut before chemo started, which somehow made the lose a little less traumatic (it actually wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be).
Good luck with your treatment, if you have any questions or want to have a rant, all the lovely ladies on here are always really helpful and you will get loads of good advice.
Tracy xxxx
Hey Guiness,
I’m a bit old hat at this now as I finished chemo end of Nov, do not worry about the chemo, I was rather bothered about the hair thing espcially as mine was long, but I had mine cut into a bob straight away and I used the cold caps. I didn’t lose all mine (lost quite a bit tho and ended up with a bit of monk head!) I did get a wig but I only wore it a few times as I preferred baseball caps as I found a wig a bit false but just think about the good side:
If its doing this to your hair - think what its doing to the cancer cells (I had chemo first and it shrunk my lump to nearly nothing)
You can just get up and go, no styling etc and save all that money on hairdressers
and best of all - You won’t ever have a bad hair day.
Keep your chin up and it will all be bearable.
Catflap
ps not sure whether you can view it but I did a bit of a p*** take thread on chemo last year, it was called something like Positive Mental Attitude anyway you might be able to search that and see if you want.
i was diagnosed back in january had mastectomy on left breast and lymph nodes were removed which came back clear. started chemo 7th march with 4 doses of epicrubicin and now on cmf currently 4 doses in and 4 to go last one on 1st aug bloods being ok that is. i had past shoulder length hair and decided to have it cut into a short bob prior to my op. when chemo started i decided to have it cut into a short crop. 2 weeks in i hadnt lost any which suprised my onc but by week 3 it was falling out in large clumps. the next day armed with a bag of bic razors and a bottle of shaving foam the lot came off. i thought so what it will grow back and it was just another hurdle i had crossed. i have never opted for a wig and chose to wear headscarves of which i now have a varied selection of colours. my hair is starting to grow back but its like soft baby hair at the mo. my eyebrows are returning and i am now shaving my legs every day!!! must admit would hate to go back to long hair all that straigtening and blowing in getting ready is a doddle!!
keep your chin up your not alone and remember its only temporary.
take care dibbersxxx
Hi ladies
I am 3 yrs down the line and still keep looking on the site to see if i can give any advice.Reading all your comments i think you have it all sorted.I did feel sick on chemo but eating little and often did help but i put on 3 stone.I now am back down to what i was and i think it was worth it.My hair grew back slowly at first but then went a bit wild,very curly.I had a lovely wig but hardly wore it,caps are great.Everyone keep positive and if you ever need advice or reassurance there is always someone on here to help.
lopez
Hi
Was just wondering why you put weight on with chemo, do you eat more or is it something that triggers it in the chemo itself. Would be interested if anyone knows or has any suggestions for keeping your weight down during treatment.
Thanks
Ann
Hi Guiness
You could try the cold cap if your Hosi has it. Mine didnt and it was a terrible shock when my hair started to fall out but you soon get used to it. I had quite a nice wig but prefered a bandana for day to day stuff like shopping etc. A plus is that it takes no time at all to get ready in the morning. I only put on half a stone but being 5" 1 it makes a
difference between a 10 and a small 14 and its taking some shifting. My Onc said that 70% of women put on weight with Bc treatment so its normal, the steroids have alot to do with it and sitting around more than normal. Kind friends and Relatives bringing cakes and casseroles all the time doesnt help. Anyway its a year down the line since my journey began, I got through it and so will you.
lots of love Andrea xx
ps Chemo wasnt as bad as I expected xx
Hi everyone,
Just back from the hospital to confirm dates for the chemo. They have decided to put a central line in as it took 3 nurses 4 attempts to get some blood. That has put the 1st treatment back by one week. After being bombarded with more info I was sent to see the wig lady and came away very surprised to say the very least. I tried 2 wigs - one long and one short and was gobsmacked at the results, husband was really supportive too. We have decided on the long one and am very excited to show it off. This is the total opposite feeling to what i expected. Everyone has been so helpful that i feel really connected to you all. The new laptop husband bought me for being brave is really getting used. Its like i need to log on everyday and check for communication. Cant wait to be in a position to advise and help someone as you have done for me.
Love
Guinness xx
Hey Mel,
You are already in a position to help people. If you go onto the newly diagnosed and surgery forums you can tell people how you felt and hopefully reassure them.
Glad the wig experience was so positive, I see the hairdresser the day I have my first chemo (25th), quite looking forward to it.
I have long hair and a crap fringe at the moment but until 2 years ago is was extremely short, might be why the hair loss isn’t too much of an issue for me.
I’d love a mad wig so may search on some sites for some but will look forward to deciding on short or long.
Keep your chin up babes you are doing fantastically. I am an addict on here, any moment I can I am logging in to see what’s been happening.
Take care, love and hugs
Lisa
xoxo
Hi i dont know if you have seen my other post but i am coming up for 5 years post diagnosis in August and at the beginning i dont think my oncologist thought i would (certainly not free of mets anyway)
I had a very agressive cancer which was in lots of places in my breast plus 7 nodes positive, after mastectomy chemo rads and Herceptin i am here to tell the tale and keep nagging my hubby…i never thought i would get cancer at 31 and certainly at the time cancer = death to me but i know many many women young and older who are living life to the full some 5 years out some 10 years out.
The mastectomy was crappy at the time but i had a reconstruction and now im quite proud of my barbie boob!!!
You can get through this, lots of shopping and spoiling yoursefl always helps
All my love
Nikki xxxxx
Hi Nikki
It’s great to hear some good news in the middle of all of this, your still so young. Well done!!
I know what you mean about the boob I keep calling mine bionic boob!! shame the other one isn’t as pert.
love
Ann
xxx
Hi Ann
Thankyou for that yes it is so hard when your in the middle of chemo and dealing with a mastectomy but its a journey we have to take in order to come out stronger women for it, i know that sounds cliched and i didnt really need cancer to make me a stronger or better person but it makes you live life in a way people who have not been faced with mortality cannot understand.
I spoke to my surgeon the other week and he was telling me he has so many young women having breast cancer surgery now and that is very concerning but he also reiterated how most go on to live fulliling lives, i have out lived one of the breast care nurses i used to see, she died of an Asthma attack a year ago at age 40 so we can never reallly tell when our time is up with or without this crappy disease!!..a freind i met at chemo who was being treated for breast cancer at the same time has sadly now developed leukemia and is doing well with treatments, i guess what i am trying to say is that yes this is a crap shot we have been dealt but it does not mean the end and other things are just as likely to get us hopefully not till we are much older though!
Remember MOST women beat this, or at least have it as a chronic illness (as per my oncologist) so dont despair, treat yourself kindly and see your scars as your badge of survivorship…i dont give a hoot what anyone thinks of my reconstructed boob, it is what it is and i am still here so thats whats important
Hugs xxx
Nikki