Hi Morwenna - I had 6 cycles of FEC-T - 3 FEC and 3 T (taxotere, also known as Docetaxel), so it was a total of 4 months because they do chemo every 21 days. I didn’t know it was unusual to have vascular invasion when you have node involvement but that’s what I had, along with satellite tumours, extra nodal extension of one of the 5 affected nodes and some DCIS as well as the IDC. We all react differently to chemo so I don’t want to say much about it as you may be like Chatty Katty and not have any problems. All I will say is that, eventually, I got onto cyclizine tablets which stopped the sickness. But hopefully the ones they give initially will prevent the sickness and nausea. I was given information about FEC-T that’s written by Macmillan so I dare say you’ll be given the same or similar. It tells you what to do and what to expect. They’ll give you a book to write down any side effects and they’ll monitor your bloods, for me they did the day before chemo and 10 days after. When my bloods were getting too low they gave me Neulasta injections to take home and I injected myself - it’s very simple, just into the fat on my tummy and really surprisingly painless. I never thought I’d manage it but I did.
My hair began to come out in big clumps on day 15 after the first of the FEC. My scalp felt a bit sore for a couple of days prior to that, so I realised something was about to happen. I would advise getting a sleep cap as my head felt quite icy at night (mind you, I don’t have central heating and live in a rather chilly old house). Do drink plenty of water and I would suggest small amounts of food - I found eventually that eating took away some of the ill feeling so it encouraged me to keep eating, even getting up in the middle of the night to eat, but that meant I put on weight while on chemo. I wish I’d researched that first. People kept telling me not to worry as I needed the weight to get through but I’m struggling to shift it now, which gets me down a bit. There are foods that should be avoided and chemo affects your taste buds so it’s a case of finding what you can still taste. There are threads on the Forum about such things, and also join in with one where people are going through the same treatments at the same time so you can share tips and support each other. Another thing to mention is your nails can take a real hammering so I was advised to eat jelly as the gelatine helps them and also use a nail hardener/moisturiser. Oh, and moisturise your skin as it gets very dry. Try to book early onto a ‘Look Good, Feel Better’ day. They’re a real tonic and they’ll tell you how to look after your skin. You can also send off for a DVD with a book on how to look after skin, about hats, wigs and when your hair grows back.
As for rads, they said you have to leave it at least 3 weeks after chemo before starting them. I had rads to chest and axilla but it didn’t affect my arm movement. I had 15 sessions, 5 days per week (they didn’t do weekends or bank holidays but I think my hospital may in future as they sent out a questionnaire asking how people felt about weekends etc) but found that really easy going and it’s so quick, you’re in and out in just a few minutes each time. The longest bit is when they mark you up ready - they do little tatooed dots so they can line up the machine accurately each time. As Chatty Katty says, slap on plenty of aqueous cream - I was advised to use E45. I was also advised to wear loose fitting cotton tops during rads so as not to irritate my skin. I had no problems at all from rads.
Try to pamper yourself over Christmas and get yourself fit ready for chemo. During chemo try to get out for short walks each day - I found the only time I gave in and laid around all day I felt far worse than when I got up and out. On bad days I managed 2 or 3 10 minute walks, on good days I could do 3 miles or even did a 10 mile bike ride after the 5th chemo. Although, the Docetaxel and Neulasta injections can cause joint pain so I wouldn’t advise forcing yourself to exercise if your body is really saying no - I tried that once and it set me back a couple of days.
Anyway, one step at a time. Just concentrate on the chemo for now. I realise I’ve really rambled so I’ve highlighted some of the bits to particularly take note of. You’ll soon get into the swing of things and although it will seem a long time while you’re going through it, all of a sudden it’s done and you start to recover.
Best wishes.
Flori
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