I had a PICC line fitted a week ago and have pain/sensitivity over my chest and collar bone. Its more a sensitivity/ache than pain. I'm on FEC too and on the Sept chemo thread. Could you let me know what your onc said about it today? Thanks
My consultant was a little concerned that I was getting discomfort from the PICC line along its length, but said it wasn't unheard of, and I was just unfortunate. He asked if I would prefer to have it removed, or continue and see if it calms down. I said the alternative of a cannula and lots of vein hunts for bloods wasn't viable, so I am sticking with the PICC.
He said I should take some Ibuprofen or Paracetamol, and apply a heat pad to the area to ease the ache. If it gets worse or unbearable, I am to contact oncology in case it is an infection.
It isn't bad today - like a dull ache just to let me know it is there. After my last FEC it became more painful and the discomfort woke me at night, so I would get up and take some paracetamol and put a heat sac on it, and then get back to sleep. It remained irritated for several days - especially if I bent over to pic something up from the floor, but slowly eased into a tolerable dull ache that doesn't get worse due to activity. I simply know it is there now rather than be totally unaware of where it runs.
I have allergies anyway (many cosmetics are not usable by me), and I have a rash from the clear PICC dressings and a red line where the blue PICC tube bit that is outside the body rests against my arm skin... it seems I might be reacting to the actual tube material too!
So I gues the answer is, make sure it isn't an infection where the PICC incision is, and take medication and use heat to ease the pain. Or, you could go back to having cannulas if that is better for you. But it isn't unheard of that people can feel the inserted tube, though most don't.
Hope this helps reassure you - but do mention it to your own consultant when you next go for a check, as they can make sure there isn't an infection and advise you according to your own health needs.
June22
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Mandy - hope your cold gets better soon, and that the dentist visit goes well. Not great to be having dental work whilst undergoing chemo, so make sure they know you might have tender gums etc. My boob excision area and Lymph scar flares up every chemo session, but I am told that is normal! I still have some hard scar tissue on my breast scar, but they said it is still early days in the healing... I had my Lumpectomy op in mid-July!
Swoot - good luck with the decision about your infection/chemo. At least they are thinking what is best for you.
I got called into Oncology for another blood test today, to decide if my FEC #3 could go ahead tomorrow as my neutrophil level was lower than 1. The re-test showed I had raised it to 1.57 since tuesdays test, so all is well, and I can still have the next session as planned.
The nurses were lovely, and did a little cheer as the good reading came out of the test machine. They are all willing us patients forward through chemo, I am sure. And they gave me a different kind of dressing over my PICC to ease the irritation I got from the clear plastic ones, so I might get some relief there too.
Bring on FEC #3... I am ready for you... though I might need a lie down afterwards for a few hours!
In case I don't surface for a while... have good weekends everyone. Hope the sun shines for you all.
June22
Swoot - good luck with the decision about your infection/chemo. At least they are thinking what is best for you.
I got called into Oncology for another blood test today, to decide if my FEC #3 could go ahead tomorrow as my neutrophil level was lower than 1. The re-test showed I had raised it to 1.57 since tuesdays test, so all is well, and I can still have the next session as planned.
The nurses were lovely, and did a little cheer as the good reading came out of the test machine. They are all willing us patients forward through chemo, I am sure. And they gave me a different kind of dressing over my PICC to ease the irritation I got from the clear plastic ones, so I might get some relief there too.
Bring on FEC #3... I am ready for you... though I might need a lie down afterwards for a few hours!
In case I don't surface for a while... have good weekends everyone. Hope the sun shines for you all.
June22
mandyj.... your t-shirt slogan "I feel a lot better than I probably look" really made me laugh! I want that t-shirt!
Feeling cross and hard-done-by today. Was due 3rd session but hospital rang me yesterday to say that neutrophils levels are too low so has to be delayed by a week. Grrrrrrr. And after my 2nd session I'd been feeling so much better than after my 1st. I really wasn't expecting them to say the neuts were low.
After the 1st session I felt weird and spacey but still soldiered on... it was only after about 5 days, when I started to feel better that I realised how cr*p I'd actually been feeling! I told the oncologist this before the 2nd session and she changed the anti-sickness meds from steroids to Emend and wowee... fantastic. Hardly any side-effects with the 2nd lot.... felt well, was working... hell, I even went to zumba the day after! But I guess it catches up with you one way or another... hence the crappy neuts.
Other than that.... I still have most of my hair. It had been really long, so the day of my 1st chemo I got it all cut off and donated it to a wig charity. I figured it was better to give it away than lose it! Anyway, I have no bald patches yet but it's definitely thin in a few places... and omg really grey! A friend who wanted to see under the headscarf was really taken aback when she saw it... not by the bald, but by the grey! Talk about adding insult to injury...
Got a bit of a "woolly" mouth but nothing horrendous. What's been worst of all has been my PICC line. The canula thing was really horrible, my veins must be rubbish and even now, nearly a month and a half after my first chemo, my hand still hurts where the canula was. So they fitted a PICC line which worked fine for chemo no 2 but - out of nowhere - I developed an allergy to the adhesive on the plaster they used to cover the insertion site. Literally a half-hour after they'd put the plaster on, my arm felt like it was covered in battery acid! Deeply unpleasant. Since then they've tried about five different makes of sticky dressing and all of them make me itch and cause blisters, although none of them as bad as the first one (Tegaderm). I wouldn't mind but it looks so innocent! Just like clingfilm.... you wouldn't think there could be anything in it that would cause a reaction. It's taken me nearly a month to get the skin to stop itching.
Anyway, because I'm not able to tolerate anything sticky without my skin ending up looking like a badly burnt pizza, I've ended up constructing all kinds of elaborate ways of tying the dressing to my arm. The best one is:
a) small gauze pad over the insertion site;
b) lay the hard plastic bit they plug the IV into over the gauze pad;
c) cover the hard plastic bit with a small sanitary towel;
d) cut a really long bit of tubi-grip (at this point you need a second pair of hands, or a helper!) and, clutching the sanitary towel to your arm, pull the tubi-grip up while carefully removing your hand from the dressing;
e) double the tubi-grip over at top and bottom so that you end up with a double layer;
f) secure the tubi-grip with a long strip of micropore or sellotape pressed quite tightly around (but not too tightly that your arm goes blue). If you have the sticky stuff stuck over a double layer of tubi-grip the glue won't go through to your skin. The bands of micropore or sellotape should be at the top and bottom of the sanitary towel so that it's sandwiched and - hopefully - won't budge.
The above non-sticky allergy-free PICC line dressing recipe has been brought to you today courtesy of the letters U, P, Y, O, U, R, S, C, A, N, C, E and R
Good luck, ladies. xx
Feeling cross and hard-done-by today. Was due 3rd session but hospital rang me yesterday to say that neutrophils levels are too low so has to be delayed by a week. Grrrrrrr. And after my 2nd session I'd been feeling so much better than after my 1st. I really wasn't expecting them to say the neuts were low.
After the 1st session I felt weird and spacey but still soldiered on... it was only after about 5 days, when I started to feel better that I realised how cr*p I'd actually been feeling! I told the oncologist this before the 2nd session and she changed the anti-sickness meds from steroids to Emend and wowee... fantastic. Hardly any side-effects with the 2nd lot.... felt well, was working... hell, I even went to zumba the day after! But I guess it catches up with you one way or another... hence the crappy neuts.
Other than that.... I still have most of my hair. It had been really long, so the day of my 1st chemo I got it all cut off and donated it to a wig charity. I figured it was better to give it away than lose it! Anyway, I have no bald patches yet but it's definitely thin in a few places... and omg really grey! A friend who wanted to see under the headscarf was really taken aback when she saw it... not by the bald, but by the grey! Talk about adding insult to injury...
Got a bit of a "woolly" mouth but nothing horrendous. What's been worst of all has been my PICC line. The canula thing was really horrible, my veins must be rubbish and even now, nearly a month and a half after my first chemo, my hand still hurts where the canula was. So they fitted a PICC line which worked fine for chemo no 2 but - out of nowhere - I developed an allergy to the adhesive on the plaster they used to cover the insertion site. Literally a half-hour after they'd put the plaster on, my arm felt like it was covered in battery acid! Deeply unpleasant. Since then they've tried about five different makes of sticky dressing and all of them make me itch and cause blisters, although none of them as bad as the first one (Tegaderm). I wouldn't mind but it looks so innocent! Just like clingfilm.... you wouldn't think there could be anything in it that would cause a reaction. It's taken me nearly a month to get the skin to stop itching.
Anyway, because I'm not able to tolerate anything sticky without my skin ending up looking like a badly burnt pizza, I've ended up constructing all kinds of elaborate ways of tying the dressing to my arm. The best one is:
a) small gauze pad over the insertion site;
b) lay the hard plastic bit they plug the IV into over the gauze pad;
c) cover the hard plastic bit with a small sanitary towel;
d) cut a really long bit of tubi-grip (at this point you need a second pair of hands, or a helper!) and, clutching the sanitary towel to your arm, pull the tubi-grip up while carefully removing your hand from the dressing;
e) double the tubi-grip over at top and bottom so that you end up with a double layer;
f) secure the tubi-grip with a long strip of micropore or sellotape pressed quite tightly around (but not too tightly that your arm goes blue). If you have the sticky stuff stuck over a double layer of tubi-grip the glue won't go through to your skin. The bands of micropore or sellotape should be at the top and bottom of the sanitary towel so that it's sandwiched and - hopefully - won't budge.
The above non-sticky allergy-free PICC line dressing recipe has been brought to you today courtesy of the letters U, P, Y, O, U, R, S, C, A, N, C, E and R
Good luck, ladies. xx
Luvvie66 and mandyj - the fuzzy felt head comment made me laugh. That is exactly it - but it keeps my hats from slipping off! A bit like velcro I suppose 🙂 We could start a trend with fuzzy felt heads that you can stick felt shapes on!
Mandyj - do speak to the oncology nurses about your heart palpitations - it could be important to mention such a thing. Maybe the steroids are too high for you? They have halved my steroids as they were making me feel bad, and I have managed this second dose of chemo much better with reduced steroids. They were keeping me awake, making my mind ramble like crazy and causing me skin problems! Do let us know how you get on.
My mouth feels horrible and coated - though not sore. I use the mouthwash (diluted with water) every night and it seems to do the job.
BUT - is anyone else getting food cravings?
I had an urge for pickled beetroots, tomatoes, salty drinks - such as an oxo in boiled water - and for sucking boiled sweets! Not all together of course... All quite odd. maybe my body needs something in these foods!
And there is no way I could be pregnant so it can't be that kind of craving LOL.
Mandyj - do speak to the oncology nurses about your heart palpitations - it could be important to mention such a thing. Maybe the steroids are too high for you? They have halved my steroids as they were making me feel bad, and I have managed this second dose of chemo much better with reduced steroids. They were keeping me awake, making my mind ramble like crazy and causing me skin problems! Do let us know how you get on.
My mouth feels horrible and coated - though not sore. I use the mouthwash (diluted with water) every night and it seems to do the job.
BUT - is anyone else getting food cravings?
I had an urge for pickled beetroots, tomatoes, salty drinks - such as an oxo in boiled water - and for sucking boiled sweets! Not all together of course... All quite odd. maybe my body needs something in these foods!
And there is no way I could be pregnant so it can't be that kind of craving LOL.
Sorry for my typos, blame chemo fog and an iPhone.
Ellaboo - so nice to see another August person posting! I had my second FEC last Friday, and just this week my eyebrows have started to thin out :o( But they are still there... just thinner.
It is interesting to hear about your hair starting to regrow. I have a stubbly head with bald patches.
The stubble doesn't seem to grow or fall out! Maybe after this second dose it will lose some more.
It was shaved as although I clipped it short after cutting off my hair, it itched like crazy!
I too am getting used to the 'no hair' thing... So nice not to need to wash and dry my hair every other day! And my body skin feels very soft and silky too! I do get a cold head though, so wear knitted beanies around the house.
This second dose they reduced my steroids a lot, and the flushed face thing was much more manageable, and it didn't cause my rosacea to flare up, for which I was really glad. I still had the sleepless night of crazy mind rambles though... I wish I could channel that energy somehow!
I hope your WBC improves. I don't know what my count was... just know they went ahead with chemo 2 so I assume all was well. I am vegetarian too, but they haven't mentioned this being an issue.
Good luck with getting through the next few days of chemo fog.
June22
It is interesting to hear about your hair starting to regrow. I have a stubbly head with bald patches.
The stubble doesn't seem to grow or fall out! Maybe after this second dose it will lose some more.It was shaved as although I clipped it short after cutting off my hair, it itched like crazy!
I too am getting used to the 'no hair' thing... So nice not to need to wash and dry my hair every other day! And my body skin feels very soft and silky too! I do get a cold head though, so wear knitted beanies around the house.
This second dose they reduced my steroids a lot, and the flushed face thing was much more manageable, and it didn't cause my rosacea to flare up, for which I was really glad. I still had the sleepless night of crazy mind rambles though... I wish I could channel that energy somehow!
I hope your WBC improves. I don't know what my count was... just know they went ahead with chemo 2 so I assume all was well. I am vegetarian too, but they haven't mentioned this being an issue.
Good luck with getting through the next few days of chemo fog.
June22
Luvvie66 - I hope the treats were enjoyed fully, and the wedding is/was wonderful.
I too have to wear a hat in bed... adds the finishing touch to the flushed face and red nose from the steroids LOL!
I wish you well with your TC. I'm not looking forward to my TC doses as I know they can be tougher to deal with. I hope yours gives min side effects.
My Pre chemo health check seemed a bit short - bloods, weight, height, and a 'How did it go' quick chat with a consultant I hadn't seen before. I assume my blood tests were okay as chemo went ahead, but I certainly didn't get much feedback! No scans or xrays... do others get those? Maybe it was because I only had a lumpectomy so didn't need scans yet, and unless my bloods showed a problem or I said I had pain, they assume all is okay!
Chemo 2 went well and is ticked off on my card... just the next three weeks to manage. At my request they reduced my steroids as I have rosacea, and it flared up after the steroid tabs. My poor nose was so sore for 4 days last time, so I am keeping my fingers crossed it doesn't happen this time.
Today I am exhausted as I was kept awake with rambling thoughts all night, though my body needed rest. Finding it difficult to drink the suggested 3lt of water... about 1lt done, 2 more to go. I do think the water helps reduce the nasties for me though. So far - no sickness, but I can feel it lurking in the background. I eat small amounts often, and it seems to keep the tummy settled.
Hope you are all able to enjoy some autumn sunshine... even though we are supposed to cover up!
I too have to wear a hat in bed... adds the finishing touch to the flushed face and red nose from the steroids LOL!
I wish you well with your TC. I'm not looking forward to my TC doses as I know they can be tougher to deal with. I hope yours gives min side effects.
My Pre chemo health check seemed a bit short - bloods, weight, height, and a 'How did it go' quick chat with a consultant I hadn't seen before. I assume my blood tests were okay as chemo went ahead, but I certainly didn't get much feedback! No scans or xrays... do others get those? Maybe it was because I only had a lumpectomy so didn't need scans yet, and unless my bloods showed a problem or I said I had pain, they assume all is okay!
Chemo 2 went well and is ticked off on my card... just the next three weeks to manage. At my request they reduced my steroids as I have rosacea, and it flared up after the steroid tabs. My poor nose was so sore for 4 days last time, so I am keeping my fingers crossed it doesn't happen this time.
Today I am exhausted as I was kept awake with rambling thoughts all night, though my body needed rest. Finding it difficult to drink the suggested 3lt of water... about 1lt done, 2 more to go. I do think the water helps reduce the nasties for me though. So far - no sickness, but I can feel it lurking in the background. I eat small amounts often, and it seems to keep the tummy settled.
Hope you are all able to enjoy some autumn sunshine... even though we are supposed to cover up!
