Hi - can see its a while since you posted. I'm really interested as I am also told I'm low risk (borderline if I should have the chemo and herceptin or not) - and was told 12 is the minimum Paclitaxel - did you have 9? How was it? Do hope you're doing well now, thanks.
I had really bad diarrhoea as well as joint pains and the effects were cumulative so I became almost housebound except for walking the dogs for 10 minutes a day. On the good side, little naussea and my hair started growing!
Hi, was the main problem with paclitaxel for you exhaustion? I wonder if 9 is a minimum and that's why my oncologist seems happy if mine is reduced from 12 to 9. Did you also receive Herceptin?
I was only due for 9 x paclitaxel after 3 x EC treatments. These drained me so badly, they reduced my paclitaxel dosage and twice I got weeks off but I had to get to the end, I was told, or it might as well be wasted effort. That may of course have been a way to motivate me. But a reduced dosage may be an option?
I was due to have 9 x Taxol treatments alongside 3 weekly Herceptin but I had a lot of side effects so that I had to stop after number 8. I still had a complete response.
I am due to start weekly paclitaxel x 12 and 3 weekly Herceptin. My oncologist has suggested that since I am considered at a low risk, then the paclitaxel might be cancelled after week 9 if I am not tolerating the side effects. I am thinking that if this seems an acceptable plan then I might stop after week 9 paclitaxel anyway. It seems that the paclitaxel is necessary in order to obtain Herceptin, but might not otherwise be prescribed. Has anybody else stopped weekly paclitaxel early?
