MAY 2021 CHEMOTHERAPY STARTERS

[Purpledaze]

@Love running Happy Birthday! Wishing you lots of fun and laughter with your family, and that your daughter enjoys her birthday later this week, too. Sending extra energy to top up the steroid 'juice' x

[Michelle21]

Happy Birthday @Love running  I hope you have a good day with your girls. 

@Purpledaze sorry to hear you crashed for your first paclitaxel and that you have had poorly parents to look after. I hope you are on the ‘up’ for your birthday at the weekend. Well done for cooking up a banquet, I love cooking too but since starting chemo just can’t really be bothered. 

@Sammy73 🤞 for staying negative and glad your partner hasn’t been too ill.

We are all ticking off the cycles now, it feels good to be on the home stretch. Can’t wait for August when I can say ‘I finish chemo this month!’ 🤞

[TicTok]

Hi everyone sorry I have lost touch a bit this week been full on with ill  parents and looking after my grandson in the holidays but it’s sounds like a few of you ladies have also has issues

…Sammy 73 glad you have managed to stay negative what a week you have had .

love running I wish you a very Happy Birthday for tomorrow and a kick 🦵for the cancer from me .

I have my 4th on Thursday hopefully half way then I start my next 4 of Trastuzumab and Pertuzumab has anyone had this mix ? 

love to you all and wish you a good week xxx

[Sammy73]

@Love running 

Happy birthday for tomorrow hope your plan goes to plan for your travels xx

[Love running]

@Sammy73 

What good news for both of you!

Cross my fingers tight for the PCR test on Wednesday. and that the sun comes back soon.

[Love running]

To all of you beautiful strong ladies,

I just wanted to wish you a nice evening and I hope you are doing well. 

We are already in end of July, three months after we started this thread. This means that we are getting closer to the end and as @Purpledaze said, we can start looking over our shoulder and see the long way we have already done.

Stay strong, keep fighting.💕

[Love running]

@Purpledaze sorry to hear about the first paclitaxel crash. But good that you enjoyed you up days after your last EC. I did the same. I was blessed with two weeks holidays with my girls in the north of Sweden and made the most of it. I have found paclitaxel gentler than EC but I am more tired and more tired each week. The weekly treatment does not allow my body to recover enough. 

I am having hopefully (if my blood count is good, last week it was at the limit) my fourth paclitaxel (out of 12), meaning that I will have done 1/3 of the paclitaxel treatment and seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

It is also my birthday tomorrow and my gift is paclitaxel to kick the cancer in the face. I wish also that I can travel tomorrow to get my girls at their grand-parents, celebrate my birthday and my youngest one's birthday (she turns 9 on the 29th) and spend few days there before paclitaxel 5. The plan is to drive right after treatment when I am still high on steroids. Fingers crossed!

Which date is your birthday ?

Have a nice Sunday evening,

[Sammy73]

@Love running im still negative, will have a PCR test on Wednesday and that's last of isolating. He's had snotty nose and sore throat but felt better every day thankyou, it doesn't help its raining today at least with the dry weather we could eat outside social distancing but not to night. Xx

[Love running]

@Sammy73 

I hope you are still negative and that you husband is on the recovery and not infectious any more. 

[Purpledaze]

Hello lovely ladies

Sorry not to have posted for a while - it's been for both the right and wrong reasons: on the one hand really enjoying my "up" days at the end of my last EC 😄, and then crash and burn with my first paclitaxel, which has left me very tired and with painful, aching bones/muscles 😣.  But I am definitely focusing on the good times - it was lovely to see some very good friends and family, too. And my appetite came back just in time to indulge in a banquet of cooking, which I so enjoyed (love cooking). It also helps to be over the halfway mark - as my friend says "you can look over your shoulder, now".  It's my birthday next weekend, so I'm hoping to feel "up" again and enjoy some quiet celebrations with my family 🤞🤞

@Michelle21 I'm glad your mother's send-off went as you wished and you were able to write and read her eulogy.  You sound like a very strong person, going through cancer treatment and facing your mother's passing, too.  Sending you big hugs and extra strength for those days when it just feels harder!

@Sammy73 oh my goodness, that Covid19 curve-ball is not what you need.  I hope your husband is ok and that you can steer clear of it all.  Having to self-isolate is no fun - my husband got a throat infection a while back and we had to avoid each other for a week - it was just so boring.  I know there are times I really like time on my own, 😂 but when it's forced on you, it's just not the same!

@Love running your carpark strip off made me laugh!  Like you, I've lost all shame - life is too short! 

Wishing everyone the best day possible and that the next step is better than the last one

🐾🐾😎

[Love running]

@Sammy73 

I really feel for you because it is an insane situation of isolating under the same roof.  Good luck 🍀 

[Love running]

@Michelle21 

Bad dream and bad sleep can turn your day around and leave you deflated and low. I have similar dreams and it almost leaves me with the question on how will I cope with the uncertainties in the future. 

Meanwhile I try to focus on the present and the positive (treatment is moving forward…). You got good news with your red blood cells. That’s positive. 
And I hope you enjoyed the Bbq yesterday. 

Speaking of hot , same same here… I just stripped in a parking lot to change my drenched T-Shirt for a dry one. No shame anymore. I have several changes in my bag, as I cannot go through the day without few change of clothes🥵🥵🥵🥵

[Michelle21]

Oh ok, I’ve never heard that. I assume it can be sorted but I hope yours stays ok. 
Enjoy Norfolk x

[Sammy73]

@Michelle21 as I cant go to chemo suite as isolating and then hopefully we are off to Norfolk so 2 and a half weeks without a picc line flush sometimes naturally the body forms a scab, heal over then end, so will have to wait and see. 

 Xx

[Sammy73]

@Love running 

It's the maddest thing!! Living together but seperate!! Hes feeling better today and I'm still negative thank god even though I had a massive sneezing fit last night and headache this morning!!!

It is what it is, 🤷 shit lol. Xx

[Love running]

@Sammy73 

How are you holding on? 

I hope you can keep covid-19 away from you and that your partner will go through it smoothly and quickly. This really s🤬

send you lot of hugs

[Michelle21]

Hi @Sammy73 thank goodness you are negative but how annoying to have treatment postponed.  What do you mean by picc line blocked? Had you both mixed with the person that was positive?
I really hope you stay negative and treatment resumes soon. 

There seem to be more and more people getting COVID who are double vax’d, and with people turning off the app and not testing or just using LF tests then it is no surprise it is spreading like wildfire. All right for the general public not so good for us. 

I had my usual clinic and bloods appt this morning. I wasn’t in the best frame of mind having had a horrible dream about the cancer spreading. I probably have my mum in my mind, but the dream has left me feeling very low today. My OH says it’s just a dream and he is right, I’m sure I will pick up again tomorrow. My Onc is going to organise another USS for me in the next couple of weeks so hopefully that will show lots of shrinkage. 🤞🤞🤞. The good news is my red bloods are holding their own after the transfusion so hopefully that will continue. @Love running  I also asked about surgery and she said she can’t foresee any delays and that it’s certainly not looking like the last surge when they were planning whose surgery to delay.  🤞My surgery will be 3 weeks after my last chemo so about mid-end of September. She also suggested I might want to isolate for 10 days before to make sure I am in no risk of catching covid. 

It is so hot here again today, the poor dog doesn’t know what to do with herself and neither do I. We are going to have a bbq later so that will be a nice change. X

[Sammy73]

Hello Ladies, 

Well I have a covid-19 curve ball!!

My partner has tested positive!!!!!!

I'm negative we did a PCR test yesterday as someone at work tested positive on sunday, they felt unwell and luckily took a test. We had both done a home test Sunday and Monday and all negative. He had a sore throat and runny nose, no temperature, he says it just feels like a heavy cold, we are both double vaccinated!!! 

So treatments on hold and we are isolating in seperate rooms until next Thursday!!!Chemo team were fab, my picc line may get blocked but I cant do anything about it. ! I will book another drive through test for Thursday. 

What's scary is how many people have turned off the track and trace app, with different symptoms you just don't know if your safe. I'm bored already ive dettoled anything that moves, the dog hasn't got a clue what's going on!!

Oh joy!! Have a good week all. X 

[Love running]

@Michelle21 

So nice to hear that yesterday went as you had planned and you take for farewell with your mum. 

nice too that you felt safe regarding Covid-19. It seems that Wales is taking the right approach coming to Covid-19 restrictions, not lifting them too early.

you are right the pictures of the young people in nightclubs are scary. Although I feel for them and understand their eagerness to party and enjoy a normal life again. I speak often to my niece who is 24 and it has been really hard on the young generation, between no jobs, lockdown, curfews and the blame for being the driver of the pandemic now. 
Hopefully vaccination will get us out this crisis.

I understand your concerns about delays for survey. I waited 8 months in 2020 to get my ACL (cruciate ligament) surgery. But for my BC, no delays, it was on the priority list. 

Hugs, 

[Michelle21]

Thank you all so much for your lovely kind messages, you are so supportive. 
Today went very well it was the perfect send off as I’d hoped. I wrote and read mum’s eulogy, I didn’t know if I would be able to but it’s amazing how you can get the strength when you need it. 
Most people wore masks and the Wake was outdoors so no covid worries there. 
I was looking at the pictures of people queuing for the nightclubs too and thought about the impact on cases.  I am in Wales so we aren’t opening up until 7th August and also we are doing very well in vaccinations so I am hoping this will delay hospital admissions for me to have surgery in September. We are only seeing people outdoors too I think that is sensible right now, better safe than sorry. 
Michelle xx

[noodledoodle]

@Michelle21 Hope today was the most beautiful send of you hoped for. My thoughts were with you. Xx

[Love running]

@noodledoodle 

We have the same timeline- scheduled for finishing on 20 September. Then a break of 4-6 weeks before 25 radiation sessions. Will be my Xtmas gift I hope to be done. Not thinking about the 10 years of tamoxifen (one step at the time as you said)

Each good day is a day to enjoy 

[Love running]

@Sammy73 

You are so right, COVID-19 is everywhere and not going away any time soon until we reached 90 % vaccination (delta variant’s fault). This will be challenging with all the anti vaxxers snd vaccine hesitant.

As you know Sweden has taken an alternative option in the management of the crisis. Face masks are very seldom used (only recommended in public transport at rush hours). I have been masked all the time in stores and I have not used public transport at all for months. I am lucky enough to be able to bike to most places I need to go. 

My husband and are still running a strict no indoors policy, which to my surprise most of our friends have ditched. So we don’t have any guests at home and meet only outdoors. It has been hard on the kids as no sleepovers or indoors play dates for more than a year. We have been teased for being overly cautious but we are standing our grounds. I am petrified when I see the French news on the opening of the nightclubs and the cases increasing. We will see how the fall looks like. Hopefully the vaccination will prevent the worst.

Schools starts for us on 19 August (it finishes earlier in Scandinavia as we adapt to the short summer, kids were off 11 June). I hope we can keep covid at arm length. Schools were never closed here, but strict hygiene rules were put in place. Last year, there were only few Covid individual cases in school, no outbreak. The kids managed through without getting it although we got scared three times with them but it was only regular colds (tested them). 

To all of you ladies, keep safe. Especially now that Uk has decided to open up.

[Love running]

@Karden 

happy for you that you are feel good after your final chemo and you are returning to  a more normal life.

It must feel so good to have your hair coming back. I have somehow got used to be bold. With the heat here, I have still not try my wig, mostly going around with a hipster cap (and trying to rock the look🤪). My husband and kids think that I am cool. So it took the pressure off. I still have some eyebrows but I am brunette and started with bushy eyebrows (Frida Khalo without the unibrow though😀). So even loosing 50 or more of my brows, there is still something left. My eyelashes are thinning by the day and I barely dare touching them. 

Thank you for all the hope you gave me along these last months snd I hope you keep in touch with us. You are such a positive soul. Good luck with your first Herceptin injection on Friday

[Love running]

@Sammy73 

Sorry about your last EC finale!
Mine went smooth and I felt (as you said) weirdly lucky about having not too much side effects and complications.

I am now on my 3rd paclitaxel and so far it went smooth too (sleepless and hot flushes mostly). I have reached out to my colleague to offer my help. It really breaks my heart as she is this 10 month old baby girl that she still breast feed. It was hard for her to get pregnant and went through Ivf and was hoping to get another baby in the future. Now there are so many open questions. We spoke a lot over the weekend and I have tried to give strengths. I also told her that she is not alone and I will be there for her (and there is a big sisterhood out there like you ladies).

I have read the statistics for Sweden and they are 9000 women diagnosed with BC each year (for a 10.2 million population). Unfortunately in 2020, 2600 less women have been diagnosed. Mainly for fear of COVID, many women did not to their planned mammograms. This means that there will be later diagnosis and worse prognosis for these women. This is so sad. Another terrible effect/impact of COVID, it will affect many more health issues (from HIV testing, TB treatment and cancer diagnosis) and increase mortality in the coming years. Again I feel so incredibly lucky to have been diagnosed and treated so fast in the COVID time (no delays at all).

I should be done with chemo by mid September (if all goes well) and I thought I will engage myself into the awareness campaign in October. I have already registered for few run races where I will carry the awareness message on my shirt and try to get my friend and colleagues running with me. I will use social media too spreading awareness messages.

I feel I need to do something. 

[Coastal]

@Michelle21 hoping today goes well for you and your family.  Your mum would be very proud of you, take care ❤️ xxx

[Love running]

@Michelle21 

All my thoughts are for you today.

Sending you lot of hugs and love.

[Sammy73]

@Michelle21 I do hope today is a celebration of your mum's life and you can pray she will be happy with the service, then sadly life goes on but you have done your very best for her.

Covid is everywhere!!!! The kids have it more and more I know people now taking their kids out of school for this last week as the dont want to ruin their planned holidays!!!  Mask up ladies everywhere!!! So many people won't now but all we can do is protect ourselves. 

Have a good week all xxx

[TicTok]

Michelle21 ..thinking of you today and sending lots of love and best wishes xx

[Karden]

@Michelle21 I will be thinking of you tomorrow Michelle and wishing you strength to get through the day.

It will be very sad and emotional but I'm sure you will give your Mum a fitting farewell.

Best wishes

Karen x

[gardengirl200]

Thank you for your message @Michelle21 and I do hope all goes as well as it can tomorrow. Xx

[Michelle21]

Hi @gardengirl200  I’m on a different treatment plan to you but my last one is on 26/08 so similar timing. I get achey from the injections but this morning had a different ache and realised it was from weeding yesterday! I also enjoy a bit of gardening but it all seems to be out of control at the moment. 

I have to say I am getting more concerned about COVID. The cases seem to be getting higher and higher and I worry the hospital admissions will delay my surgery not to mention how would it affect me if I got it? It must be a worry having two teens in the house, my girls are both in their 20’s and both double vax’d but there are more and more cases in people who have been double vax’d. I guess all we can do is take precautions and hope for the best. 

@noodledoodle one thing at a time sounds like a good plan. Good luck with the next carboplatin, I have number 3/4 on Thursday.

@Karden  it’s so good to hear you are feeling good just 2 weeks after your last chemo. It must be the relief of it being done especially with the large gap you had in between.  I’m pleased for you that your hair is starting to return and that life is looking a little more like normal for you. Stay in touch its so good to know a timescale of what to expect. 

It is my mum’s funeral tomorrow, thanks to all of you for your supportive and kind words and advice. It still feels unreal, I want tomorrow to be the beautiful farewell my Mum deserves but also will be glad when tomorrow is over. Xxx

[Karden]

Hello ladies, I have been following your posts and I'm sorry I haven't posted anything for a while. Although I've been able to continue working from home throughout my treatment I am now going into the office now and then and I have also restarted running an older people's exercise group once a week (I work for Age UK).

I feel really good since my final chemo just over 2 weeks ago and I will have my first Herceptin injection on Friday so we'll see how that goes. The Herceptin itself should be ok as I have been having it every 3 weeks through the PICC line up to chemo ending and had no problems but I know that the injections can cause pain in the leg. There's a 2 hour observation time built into the first appointment.

My hair is now fluffy and just starting to grow again but my eyebrows and lashes are almost non existent. My finger nails are still fragile and prone to breaking off and that's due to the effects of Docetaxel.

Overall, it's all looking good and all you lovely ladies will soon be finished with chemo and moving on to the next stage. It sometimes seems a long way off but like me, you will get there. This hot and humid weather doesn't help much does it? I too have stocked up on ice lollies and Cornettos.

Sending best wishes to all of you. You're amazing! 😊👍🌟

[noodledoodle]

Hi @Michelle21   Yes I have already had surgery. I have a wide local excision, with sentinel node biopsy, so I do need radiotherapy too when I have finished my chemo. Don’t finish until at least beginning September ( if none are held up for any reason)
just taking one chunk at a time, so trying not to think about the radiotherapy yet!

[gardengirl200]

Hello everyone, Hi @Coastal I hope you are coping ok with your daughter away and not finding the house too quiet. I’ve coped with that aspect by immersing myself in the box set of Outlander. It’s a bit trashy but perhaps that is why I like it! I do find it very tough going through this without a partner. But perhaps it makes you reach out to friends more and maybe that is a good thing.  Re your comment on gardening, I am hugely into my garden, although in a laid back way. It’s a bit of a shambles, especially this year! . But also very happy to watch Monty Don on a Friday night. Glad you’ve enjoyed being back at work. Yes, I’m looking forward to that normality too. 
@Michelle21 I’ve got 2 more docitaxel to go after this. I had 3 cycles ( which I got every 3 weeks) of EC and now 3 cycles of docitaxel. ( Is anyone else on here on this structure?)  This is for ER  pos HER neg lobular cancer. I think we seem to all have slightly different types. My last docitaxel is scheduled for 25/8 and then I have radio and tamoxifen for 10 years. I felt very achey today on the docitaxel, having been great for the first 3 days. Think probably the steroids wearing off. I’ve just taken a couple of paracetamol, which I assume is ok to do. I also went on a cycle ride yesterday ( first time in 10 years!) and maybe I over did it! I got a bit carried away but it was so good to do something different. 
This breast cancer thing is such a tough journey but I keep thinking i will be so strong once I am through this and will really appreciate all the important things. Yes, it is so so common and I just feel I have to grit my teeth and get through it, and it should be all be behind me in a few months. 
I do worry about Covid though. Does anyone else?  Obviously I am double jabbed but still trying to be as careful as I can, not always easy given I have two teenagers in the house who need to lead their lives too. 
hope you are all coping in the heat. A  magnum does make most things feel better right enough! 

[Michelle21]

Hi @noodledoodle  I found the weeks with just paclitaxel easier, especially the 2nd one, probably because the carboplatin is wearing off then too. I did have a blood transfusion just after my 2nd carboplatin as I was anaemic but they did explain beforehand that was always a possibility. I don’t know if I’ll have to have another. My feet are starting to get tingly now too but not painful. Thursday will be my 3rd carboplatin so then will only have one more to go. 
Am I right in thinking you’ve already had surgery noodledoodle? If so what surgery did you have? I have a double mastectomy next, with lymph clearance on my left side, already had my right lymph’s removed. I’m not looking forward to surgery but it will be good to be done with chemo! 
Glad the first one has gone okay for you, I hope the rest run smoothly. Xx

[noodledoodle]

Hi all

Well, we are all rattling through these chemos at a fast rate! Won’t be long before we are on the other side and a bit of normality, instead of this surreal cancer world we are living at the moment. 
@Michelle21 Had my first Carboplatin and Paclitaxel and haven’t been too bad at all. Lower back and pelvic twinges and achy legs, ever so slight nausea once. Much better than the EC so far. Just Paclitaxel next week, so I am presuming that will be easier too? How did you find it? 
My brows have finally gone too, although I didn’t have many to begin with. My lashes are not too bad. I have been using a lash serum for past 6 weeks. Don’t know whether it has made any difference as I may not have lost them anyway, or they may disappear soon. Who knows?🤷‍♀️
@Sammy73 @you are so right about being thankful we are on the radar and there will be Poor people living normal lives, not knowing they have breast cancer. I was just thinking about this the other day! So scarey. 
We all hit walls at various points, we just have to remember they do lift and good days are ahead. 
@TicTok nothing like a break to get you back on track, especially enjoying your Grandson. 
Be assured Boris will be cowering in a corner, dreading his next pasting, so bring it on!
Keep up the good work everybody. The finishing line is in sight!😁😁

[TicTok]

Sammy73 so sorry to here you hit a wall 😳stay focused we are all doing ok and look forward to that holiday 👍…. It was Norfolk where we went ….. have fun in the pool with the 🐕😁xx

[Michelle21]

Hi @Sammy73  sounds like your last EC went  out with a bang! I hope you still managed to enjoy your birthday. I can’t believe you had 7 injections now wonder you were in spasms but at least there shouldn’t be any problem with your blood count on 27th. I know the injections are doing me good but they always make me feel bad. 
Enjoy the rest of the weekend in the paddling pool with the dog! 

[Sammy73]

Welcome @gardengirl200

Hi everyone, well what an odd week it's been, as it was my last EC I was killing it!!! I thought, birthday vibes took over and then I hit a massive brick wall!!! Not felt this bad throughout sofar!! I also had extra injections to make sure my blood count was up but after 7!! I rang the chemo team my bones all over, rib cage back hips legs just kept going into spasms!! Truly hideous. Once I had spoken with the line manager and was told to stop doing the injections I actually realised how awful I felt and I had been a right miserable bitch for the last 5 days!! My poor man!!! Anyway moving on swiftly I start my first T which is deceased on the 27th then we go to Norfolk on the 2nd of August and I'm buzzing for that so hope it gets me through!!

@Love running a friends daughter was diagnosed about a week after I had my mastectomy and I really felt for her, shes had a double mastectomy now and lymph removed and they had to go back and operate again!!! I felt lucky weirdly that I hadn't had any complications. Also I look around and think how many people don't know!!!! There's so many people in this world and 1 in 2 people get cancer now they say, at least we are on the radar and being treated. 

Hope you all have a lovely weekend, we've blown the paddling pool up, for the dog!! Obvs!! Im getting in later I'm sure. 🤪

[Michelle21]

@Coastal  I hope the house isn’t too quiet for you this weekend without your daughter home. Hopefully you can make the most of having the house to yourself. Well done for going back to work even a few days a week must be a great break from being in ‘cancer world’ also it must make the time go a bit quicker. 
@noodledoodle how are you finding the carboplatin/paclitaxel? Hope all is well.

How is everyone doing with their lashes and brows? My brows, which have never been thick, have almost disappeared completely and I have a few lashes left but not a lot. I find putting liner on the upper inside lid gives the impression of lashes, if you don’t look to closely 😂 and am drawing on brows which I never normally do! 
I have 6 more weeks of chemo, it feels like I am on the home straight but I wish I knew if it was working or not. My halfway scan after 3 FEC showed not a lot of change so I’m hoping the carboplatins have knocked it out of the park. It is horrible not knowing. 

Ive been pulling up weeds this morning in out very neglected garden, I’d like to say it looks lovely but it’s still quite a mess! I hope everyone else is enjoying the weekend. It’s so hot today had to stock up on Magnums! X

[Michelle21]

@TicTok  Glad you had a lovely time with your grandson. I hope the halfway scan shows the chemo is shrinking your Boris! 🤞 for you.

@gardengirl200  good news the Docetaxol is ok for you. How many more do you have? 
 @Love running  I was on for tamoxifen for 3 years before this cancer came. It used to give me a lot of flushes so I sympathise with you. It can be so embarrassing when you are trying to hold a serious conversation and have sweat dripping down your face. Hopefully they will ease off for you soon. 

[Love running]

Hello everybody and welcome @gardengirl200

@gardengirl200 I did not welcome you yet, my apologies. I am sure you will find this forum as helpful, caring and supportive as I do. This forum gives me the strengths when I feel low, the reinsurance that I understood and not alone. It also makes me laugh because there is also some humour in our experience sharing.

Today, I just found out that a colleague of mine was told she has BC. Although, we are not that close, it really made me sad. She is younger than me and just returned from her one year maternity (Swedish maternity leave are about one and half year to share between the mum and the dad). It feels unfair but noting is fair with this disease. 

Otherwise I have been lucky enough to go through my second paclitaxel rather smooth (only 10 to go). I have only been suffering from sleepless nights (hate the steroids snd the heat) and massive hot flushes (it is also very very warm over Sweden right now). When I say massive, it is an understatement: I basically sweat from every pore of my body. It is so embarrassing when you are in public and you are literally like a water fountain and your clothes start sticking to your body. You feel the sweat running down your back and other less pleasant part of your body 😂.  I wish I am the invisible woman at those moments. There is nothing I can do to prevent them. I almost wish for winter but I know it will be the same as I will need to take Tamoxifen for 10 years. 
BC keeps on giving…

Anyway, I hope you have all a pleasant weekend building the strength for the next rounds of treatment. Monday is round 3 for me and I like to think about it that 1/4 has be achieved then.

Hugs to all of your brave ladies❤️

[TicTok]

Morning ladies , back from our break with our lovely grandson , to see him so happy and having fun was a tonic for me 💙had a lovely time although I was very tired and feeling the cold at times .

Glad to here things are going smoothly for everyone at the moment gardengirl200 glad the docitaxel is going ok 👍

I have had an appointment come through at the hospital the day before my 4th chemo so I am hoping they will be checking nasty Boris out 👹and hopefully my treatment will be working 🤞.

enjoy the weekend ladies and take care xxx

[Coastal]

Good news docitaxel went ok @gardengirl200 hope you are coping with any side effects ❤️ I love your user name, I've really got into gardening since lockdown and now make my teenage daughter watch gardeners world! She's not amused! 😨  I know what you mean by it being quiet without the kids, my partner is taking my daughter camping next weekend and I know it'll feel strange without them.  My son's at uni and staying there until August, I do miss him.  Really good that your oncologist is nice, We don't have an allocated oncologist here, but might see any of the team, some are lovely, others don't give you much time.

I've just gone back to work for a couple of days which has been tiring but feels so good to be doing something normal.  I'm only going to be doing a couple of days every other week to try and have a phased return.  I've missed seeing my colleagues so that felt good catching up with them.  

Hope everyone's ok, lots of love to all x

[gardengirl200]

Thanks for your message @Coastal . I completely agree about trusting my consultant. I had only second face to face meeting with her yesterday and I came out feeling reassured that I was being looked after by a clever, considered and experienced woman. Put me in a really good mood for the rest of the day. Coincidentally, I shared a flat at Uni with 3 medics who were in her class at Uni and they all remember her and say she was good then. Good to hear. 

I loved Wimbledon too - really got me through the last fortnight and the days when you feel you can only take it a day at a time. Last week my 2 teenage kids were on holiday with my ex husband snd the house felt very quiet. Thank god for the tennis and even the England football matches. I’m in Scotland but was definitely supporting England. So sad about the harsh result. 

First docitaxel received today, and so far so good. Lovely staff as ever. 

Hope everyone having a good week. 

[Coastal]

Hi all

It's been a while since I posted, I've been up and down again (emotionally and physically drained again) but feeling a bit better now it's the second week again.     

@Michelle21 I'm so sorry to hear your news about your mum, my thoughts are with you this week and on the 19th.  Do take care of yourself at this time, sending you all my love and gentle thoughts for you xxx

Hello @gardengirl200 lovely to have you here - I do find it very positive to have others to talk to also going through it all and everyone is so lovely here.  I am also half way through my 8 treatments (4 EC, 4 paciltaxel).  I have ductal invasive bc but also ER positive, HER negative with 4 nodes involved.  The oncologist was very clear that for me it was important to have chemo so I didn't have a choice.  I do feel comforted having chemo knowing that I'm doing all I can to try and avoid reoccurrence even if it's only a small % of protection, it's worth it, I tell myself that anyway!  I do also trust in the oncologists to know the right path for us, at least there is so much research done on breast cancer that they have treatment pathways mapped out for them so hope that we are given the most effective one for us.  I do hope that your first docetaxel goes well!     

@Love running really glad to hear that your first paciltaxel gone ok!  I'm doing this every two weeks for 4 sessions rather than weekly, hoping it's not too bad.  Glad your friend feels it's been easier for her!  that's encouraging.    I would totally welcome having reverse constipation!  

Hope you had a lovely birthday last week @Sammy73 - and the steriods weren't too bad on your special day!  I hate them too.  I have a really bad three days when I don't do anything apart from watch telly 😂 and try to keep my brain distracted from negative thoughts.  It's such a relief when I come out of it again.  

@Karden I hope your radiotherapy set up appointment went well/goes well!  How wonderful that your hair is growing again! - you must be delighted to have got to this point again.  I feel very embarrassed to say that I still find my bald patches very depressing to look at, so even at home wear a cap or scarf.  I have also had a stye in my eye so not looking my best!        

I have been enjoying watching the sport - Wimbledon and the cycling (even tried the footy which I'm not so keen on generally).  I'll be having my first paciltaxel next Monday and will then have the Olympics to entertain me!  Hurray!    

Hallo to all the other lovely people on the group.  I hope that chemo and life is treating you well.  

Lots of love to all xxx

[Michelle21]

Thanks everyone for all of your kind words of support and @Sammy73  for your advice, sorry that you lost your husband that must have been terribly hard. 
@gardengirl200  welcome to the thread, I’m sure you will find everyone here very supportive and inspiring. 
@TicTok glad you have switched up arms. I bruise from bloods too so finding the picc a godsend. 
@noodledoodle I can’t believe I’ve had two carboplatins already either. After my next chemo on Thursday I will be halfway through this part of chemo. Good luck with yours. 
@Karden how are you finding life post chemo? How is the hair, brows, taste buds etc? 

I am at the festival of speed at Goodwood today. We booked it last year and it is one of those trial events with everyone tested or double vax’d. It’s outdoors so feels pretty safe and quite normal. Generally people aren’t wearing masks but I’ve kept mine on. My eldest daughter loves F1 so she is loving it. It’s nice to go out as a family what with covid, Cancer and my youngest in Uni it’s been ages since we all went out together.  I must confess I got a bit cold and tired so having a break in the car! 
I hope everyone has a SE free week and any treatment planned runs smoothly. 
michelle xx

[gardengirl200]

Thank you everyone for your replies. Yes, you never realise until you have breast cancer that there are so many different types! Who would have thought we would get a grip on all the lingo!  I'm glad to hear that generally you are all coping well. And thank you @noodledoodle re that info on your sister. Reassuring. Hopefully the chemo is making some difference. But gosh, you and your sister are going through this at the same time. I can't imagine whether that makes it better or worse. 

Good luck everyone with the treatments this week. 

[noodledoodle]

 Not sure what happened with the end of the post😂😂 Glad to see everybody coping well and galloping to the finish line 🏁 keep up the good work and take care xx