Breast Cancer Now Forum

Just spoke to the lovely BCN who said because I had FEC with primary 9 yrs ago taxol is the best one for me as they often combine them now. She was strongly assuring me it was the right choice for me and that they would save the cap for later down the line.  Worth asking the question. 🙂     Maybe I'll just wear a comedy hat? In fact I could get all the guests to come wearing comedy hats..! Might make for good photos.    ... View more

Oh thanks for that advice Waffles, I was too shocked to ask about alternatives. Yes just on hormones at the moment. I will contact him about it today.  Xx ... View more

Need some cheering up ladies, trying to find some positive thoughts but it's late and my aches and pains aren't helping. I went to see my onc on Friday. I've got bone mets and have had shortness of breath for 6 months which they have been putting down to asthma as lung ct scans show nothing specific.   i ended up with pneumonia last week after my trip to Egypt and he has always been suspicious of mets in my airways even though a broncoscopy 2 weeks ago again showed nothing conclusive.  I'm just not getting better with the breathing.   He told me he thinks it's time to start chemo - weekly taxol - starting in a fortnight. I'm devastated as I wasn't expecting it and the whole thought of it has just made me feel more poorly. It's that psychosomatic thing I'm sure but just feel pain and worse symptoms now and very down.   What really made me cry is that my wedding is on July 9th and I've been growing my hair for ages so unless very lucky with tolerating coldcap, which I gave up on in 10 mins last time, I'm gonna be a bald bride. I can't do wigs and was ok being bald last time but now the thought of the wedding photos just makes me sad :-((   Helen   ... View more

Hi Verity, I'm bone mets and awaiting lung mets diagnosis for shortness of breath but it may be some other lung disease, they just can't figure me out yet.   i am completely with you on the kids thing, mine are 11 and 14 and went through it all 8 years ago too.  I have been relatively open with them, who knows the best way to handle things ?   But I knew they would suss out my emotional state and be confused and scared and pick up on things they heard me talking about so I told them straight away the cancer had come back and that this time I'll be on medication for ever and sometimes poorly and that it's not something the doctors can cure at the moment but there is hope that some new drug will come out one day.     Communcation is the thing, as you never know what kids are thinking. Their fears are so different from ours and their understanding so different too. Whilst we adults can chat to friends and cry on their shoulder, children dont tend to do that with friends. They want to be as 'normal' as possible to their peers so many won't tell any friends about it for fear of being labelled 'the kid with the mum with cancer' and hence bottle it all up. So I talk about appointments, tell them what drugs I am having so they understand. I think mine can handle this and are very grounded and happy children.    We have a free councilling service in Berkshire which goes to the school and does one to one sessions with them throughout the period of illness and beyond, mine start next week and are keen to go so hoping it will give them the chance to explore stuff. Maybe you could consider this if something similar exists in your area?   I had a big fear over what they would think would happen after I die as we are not a religious family and so we have talked about ideas of what happens after death and it's been really enlightening.. They have their views and it has been good asking others what they think and sharing this with them.  We don't need to know all the answers but talking with them including being open about your own fears is how I have approached it and all is good.    I understand my approach is not for everyone and there probably is no 'right' way but I'd definitely talk to a councilling service who knows about how kids deal with this stuff as they can guide you.   Helen xxxxx   ... View more

Anyone about in the cyber cafe tonight? I'm just enjoying throwing myself on a huge pile of soft bean bags... It's lots of fun and remarkably pain free, like landing in a fluffy warm cloud. Smells lovely too.. I just keep getting up and chucking myself on them again. Wheeeeeeeeeeee 😄 ... View more

I'm up for it too.. How does it work? Does someone suggest a book and and end date for us to then to have read it by? I think we each get to take turns choosing perhaps so we get a mix of stuff? But you obviously don't have to take part/ read that one if it doesn't float your boat? helen X    ... View more

Stargazing is very lovely, all wrapped up in a warm, soft, fleecy blanket with the cool clear air brushing past my nose and cheeks. I've got some marshmallows and cream for the hot chocolate. 🙂 I hope someone knows something about astronomy and can teach me some thing about the twinkling lights up there. Feeling very calm  helen X ... View more

Thanks Janette - yes I think I never rated the power of tamoxifen, that little tablet seems so insignificant alongside the whole process of doing chemo and rads last time and of their horrid side effects.   In my head it was just like a little extra but you've made me rethink how important this drug is! Thanks for your positive words. :-)) xx ... View more

Thanks all for your answers. So much knowledge in these wonderful boards.   Julie d - I think it must be zometa I'll be going on too as a bone strengthener as onc mentioned IV every 4 weeks.   And excited to be planning my wedding now - something lovely to focus on and look forward to 🙂 x ... View more

Oh ok, I am on zoladex too to stop my periods and I recall him saying once that had kicked in I would have something else. So maybe I'll be put on another thing too soon!   thanks!  ... View more

I thought I would post a little update as had cause to celebrate last night. 🙂   After 4 weeks on steroids and a roller coaster ride since Jan wondering if I had this rare case of cancer spread to the airways, I saw my onc yesterday and he says lung team think it is asthma after all. Relieved. It's been a long 8 weeks waiting to find out, but now we can make some plans for the wedding as chemo not on the cards for the time being now. Feel like my life can start moving again.    Am on zoladex injections to stop periods and tamoxifen and due to start bone strengthening injections soon.   I am having trouble with pain in the lower ribs and have been taking codeine but onc gave me morphine in a bottle.  Does anyone take this to relieve bone pain? I tried a teaspoon and it made me a bit woozy but the pain was still there. Maybe I'll try more but he said it was 10 times stronger than codeine so was a bit scared to take too much! Any advice? best wishes  Helen    ... View more

I think augmentation is where they take some skin away from the bottom and sort of push it up so it is more pert, but they have to move the nipple too. They don't add to the size. But I could be wrong! Helen ... View more

I was exactly the same as Debbie. Helen ... View more

I just had a tram flap recon 2 weeks ago and went private. Same problem as you but my consultant rang up the insurance co (Medisure) and negotiated with them and came to an agreement. Maybe worth trying surgeons further afield?? THough I guess you won't want visitors to travel too far. Mine was in Oxford, 1 hour away from home and family. Re NHS, I was under that same impression as Mole, that the NHS will pay to get them to look the same. Maybe different NHS surgeons offer differing things - others may be willing to give you a bigger breast that you started out with on the Mastectomy side and then increase the other. My recon has ended up bigger than I and my surgeon had anticipated so I am now wondering whether to get the other increased to match or to decrease the size of my new one at the next op. I have not had it confrimed yet whether he will increase the existing one yet, though. Check up next week so will ask then. Helen ... View more

Hi dmkayp I had a pre-op assessments and a meeting with my surgeon on Monday, he says 6-8 weeks recovery time is "normal". I am pretty fit nowadays so hope that I will bounce back easily from the op, despite it being a biggie. Re being changed by what I've been through, yes definitely, but like Buckwheat all positive things, none negative. I think I treasure my children more and the time i spend with them, I used to be work work work but now I think, sod it, it can wait. I am keen to do all the things I want to do, I hvae so many plans I just want to get on and do them, not for fear of not getting them done in case I die, but more because I think if i wanna do something then go and do it! Why sit around comtemplating.. get off yer butt Helen and go for it! I have occasional emotional days but they are rare and usually when I am not focussed on what I need to get done or am on my own too long. I am much better at dealing with this sort of stuff now though. I was seeing a healer when I was going through chemo. Made me feel incredibly relaxed and he spoke about letting negative things go (thoughts and events in the past) and of being open about emotions, as I have been quite guarded in the past, not showing anyone when I was upset or frightened. Now if I have a down moment I just ring up someone and say can I come round, I'm feeling mis, and go pour out my emotions and talk it through there and then, and then feel better. Much better to have a rant than hold it all in.. and that's exactly what you were doing in the start of this thread, so that's good.. ! Helenx ... View more