Hi All
I was wondering if anyone else is having neo-adjuvant chemo. I start tomorrow, 8th Jan: 3xEC then 3xTaxotere. Then surgery after that and possibly rads, then hormone therapy x10 years.
There don’t seem to be many of us neo-adjuvant folk around. Psychologically it’s tough knowing all the women in my monthly chemo thread have had their tumours removed and I am sitting here all tumoured to the hilt like some kind of weirdo!
Hi. I did exactly what you are doing and I’m so pleased I did. Knowing that my cancer could be reviewed through treatment and my chemo cocktail altered if the response wasn’t as good as they expected gave me a great peace of mind. I had a 5 cm tumour which was grade 2 and strongly ER+ (8/8). 3 x ec90 and 3 x tax shrunk it to 2.4 cm and all that was left was mainly dcis and a bit of grade 1. If it can do that to a large solid mass, imagine what it will do to any micro organisms potentially floating around. Because of the response I then didn’t need RAD’s. The ec90 didn’t make a massive difference to the tumour to be fair although I could feel it breaking down but the tax is powerful stuff and blasted it :-).
I dealt with having the tumour during the treatment by having it in my head during chemo that I knew where my tumour was and I could see and feel a difference. This reassured me a lot.
Good Luck with your treatment.
Diana x
Hi Pie314
My mum had neo adjuvant chemo finishing just before Christmas. When she was told that she was having chemo before surgery she wasnt overally happy as she just wanted the lump out asap (which was understandable) but the doctor wanted to shrink the tumour first so she could have a lumpectomy instead of mastectomy. She had 8 lot of chemo - the first 4 dose didnt shrink the tumour much but the 4 dose of tax she had with herceptin has shrink it so much that you can see it anymore. I think this provided a lot of reassurance to my mum that the chemo was very effective.
I hope it all goes well for you tomorrow.
Take care.
Kat
Hi Pie,
Im the same as you! Starting chemo a week tomorrow, Im having herceptin carboplatin and taxotore.
I feel a bit strange too still having this horrid lump, but I am glad that Im going into chemo feeling healthy maybe if I been through a big op first I probably wouldn’t feel too great.
I hope tomorrow goes ok will be thinking of you.
Emma xx
Evening Pie
Will be thinking of you tomorrow as you start your Chemo. I too had similar but FecT Neo Adjuvant to shrink a large Tumour. Have since had Mx and rads, currently part way through reconstruction. Tissue expander in place to be replaced with permanent silicone and left side matched later this year. Fec softened the tumour and it shrank with the Taxol which is exactly what the Onc told me would happen.
I have picked up from other threads Pie that you are eating well and planning to keep yourself busy.
I agree that it did feel uncomfortable sitting there with the tumour but the Chemo really is powerful stuff and once you’ve started hopefully you’ll feel like you are doing something positive to knock this whole thing on the head.
Hope you manage to have a good nights sleep Pie. Take Care. Gilly x
Hi Pie,
I started my neo-adjuvant chemo at the end of Novemeber. I’ve got multiple tumours which are Stage 2 grade 3 er/her2+. I’ve also got lymph node involvement. The location of the tumour meant that I couldn’t have surgery straight away as there wouldn’t have been enough skin to close up (nice!) so, it was Chemo first. I also started Herceptin and Tamoxifen straight away also.
I have to say, after my first session it was clear it was reducing dramatically, and now it is very difficult to feel. I’ll still have a mastectomy, due to the number of lumps, but I’m reconciled to that.
i know what you mean about feeling like a lumpy wierdo, but I’ve got to trust the doctors know what they are doing.
I hope you are ok after your first treatment. Make sure you drink plenty of water and rest up.
Jules
Hi Pie,
i saw oncologist yesterday re MRI results after second fec, he said there has been a good response and tumour is shrinking but not as much as he expected so he wanted to optimise this by changing me on to Tax sooner. I was due to have 3rd fec yesterday but that was cancelled and will be having Tax tomorrow. so instead of 3fec+3 tax its now 2fec+4 Tax. starting on steroids today prior to tax tomorrow. So hopefully the little blighter gets destroyed asap.
sending hugs
Wyn x
Hi
I had chemo before surgery, after initially being booked in for an mx. So glad I did as it shrunk by 70% so only needed lumpectomy. It was followed by radiotherapy. I have also had 17 lots of Hereceptin, last one on Monday.
I was given the option to go ahead with the mx but so glad I didn’t. Hope it is going ok for you x