Breast Cancer Now Forum

Hello all. Just dropping by to check how everyone is getting on. I feel very fortunate to have finished chemo just before Christmas. It took a few weeks to recover but I'm finally starting to feel like my pre-diagnosis self.  I started radiotherapy a few days ago and it's going well so far. My last one will be on the 28th. I've been taking Tamoxifen since the new year and aside from hot flushes I've not noticed any other side effects yet.  Hope you're all okay.  ... View more

Maire - I think we're on very similar cycles. I've just completed 3 x EC and had my first of 3 Docetaxel cycles on Friday. Finished my fifth and final (for this cycle) filgrastim injection last night. Like you, I can't wait for this to be over with. I'm due my final cycle in early December and it's all I can focus on right now.  I'm finding Docetaxel a completely different experience to EC. I've not had any nausea this time, just the usual bowel issues, but it has made my legs extremely achy and painful, and causing agonising peripheral neuropathy in my lower legs and feet, particularly when I'm in bed or resting. It feels like stabbing electric shocks in the soles of my feet and my ankles feel too weak to hold me up. I know this is a side effect of Docetaxel, but I'm wondering if the filgrastim injections have contributed to it too, and now I've not got any more of those until next cycle it might start to ease? ... View more

Hi Becci (and all you other amazing humans),  I'm now 3 down, 3 to go. Had my last EC a week ago, and will be having Doxcetamol (sorry, no idea if that's spelt right) from now on.  I've found this third cycle my hardest so far too. New side effects have emerged and it has taken a lot longer to pull myself through it. I've got a really sore throat and heartburn which is new this time. Compared to my two surgeries earlier this year (left mastectomy and axillary node clearance), chemo has been the hardest treatment I've ever experienced. Give me a wound to recover from any day!  I'm being plagued by constipation this week, I felt like my stomach is full of setting concrete. Tried Sennakot and 48 hours later I had the worst diarrhoea of my life, which has now put me off using Sennakot again, despite me feeling desperately constipated once more. Is there anything else I should try? I think my bladder is a bit enflamed too and I'm having period cramps despite not having a bleed since chemo began. Oh what a week!  I feel so bald, bloated and featureless right now. A shadow of myself. My skin is blotchy and I don't fit into my usual size 8 clothes.  Just read all this back... urgh what a miserable rant of a post! Hoping typing it out was cathartic in some way.  Sending you all love and strength. x    ... View more

Hello everyone. I'm now on day 13 since my first EC, and after a really tough, soul destroying week feeling extremely fatigued and unwell, by about day 7 I was back to feeling normal again, with plenty of energy and appetite. I've not noticed any hair loss yet, but that will no doubt come. My second EC is next Thursday and I can only hope it will be the same, with a rough initial week and then a return to some normality. We can see. Has anyone else noticed a similar pattern?  Take care, MB  ... View more

Hi Maire,  that's so wonderful to hear, I definitely needed to hear there's a way out of this, as I'm 5 days in after my first ever chemo (EC) and almost thinking of calling the oncology team and refusing further treatment, I'm hating it so much. Yes I'm probably being dramatic but it has hit me so hard, I've never known fatigue like it. Fortunately no other side effects other than a rash on my upper arm today, a peculiarly strong sense of smell, and a sudden hatred of the taste of caffeine (I'm missing my morning coffee and tea so much though). I'm also craving red meat after years of being veggie, so I guess my iron count is low and I'm actually going to have a burger tonight!  ... View more

Hi everyone,  I had my first ever chemo this morning (adjunct, EC) and I'm already feeling lousy, really weak and achy, with tingly hands. I keep wanting to cry because it all feels so relentless. I know it's early days, but I really hoped it wouldn't feel this bad. All I want to do is sleep and drink water.  Sorry for such a miserable post!  Thinking of you all - and remembering: THIS TOO SHALL PASS.  Take care,  MB  ... View more

Hi Becci, lovely to meet you. I imagine you might be feeling like I do - I never expected to be going through breast cancer, certainly not in my thirties anyway!  I hope you have recovered nicely from your surgery. I had my axillary clearance a month after my mastectomy, and my body really struggled with a second lot of general anaesthetic in such a short space of time. So much so that I couldn't face going through egg harvesting or IVF before beginning chemo. Just have to hope it's a decision I won't regret in the future, as I don't have children. Though I understand you aren't feeling in the party spirit right now, I think you more than deserve to indulge yourself on your 40th next Friday! ♥️  Have you started chemo yet?  Take care,  MB x      ... View more

Hello everyone,  I start chemo on 13th August. 6 months of EC and Docetaxel, followed by radiotherapy to the chest wall and neck, and then 10 years of hormone therapy meds. I'm 34, and have recently had a mastectomy and axillary lymph node clearance on my left side.  Thinking of you all this month as you enter treatment.  Take care, MB x  ... View more

Hi Wendy,  Just wanted to let you know I am thinking of you.  I start chemo on 13th August, EC and Docetaxel.  The fear of the unknown is really overwhelming. Do you have a breast care nurse who you can contact with any concerns? I've found that having regular phone chats with mine has kept me feeling more in control of what happens next, though I do feel nervous and can't stop thinking about how I'm going to feel afterwards.  Sending you a big hug for the 11th.  Take care, MB x ... View more

Thank you, I appreciate your reply ♥️  You're absolutely right, getting the necessary treatment is the most important thing. I've just surprised myself with how worried the thought of Lymphoedema has made me. When the surgeon told me the size of the tumours in my breast meant there was no other option but to have a mastectomy, I really didn't care. And I've been so proud of myself for how positive I have remained so far. But reading about the possibility of permanent damage to my arm has really affected me. I should probably also mention that I'm left-handed, and my surgery is all on my left side.   Thanks again for replying to me. x    ... View more

Hi there,  Thank you for your reply - I really appreciate you taking the time to respond and share your experience 🙂 I have spoken to my BCN on the phone and she too has reassured me it's normal and nothing to worry about, and that with time it should subside.  However, I have my surgery follow-up appointment next week, and I think I will ask for the seroma to be drained while I'm there. I understand that they can re-occur, but at this point I just want to do whatever I can so that I can move forward with the reality of being flat on one side. Reconstruction isn't for me, so the sooner I'm healed and flat, the better really.  Thanks again for your kind words and support. I hope you are as well as can be. Much love. x    ... View more

Hi there,  Thank you for sharing how things are for you at the moment.  I was diagnosed with breast cancer last week, and I'm having a mastectomy of my left breast later this month.  It's such a strange time isn't it, especially having to go through it all during lockdown. I know it's not easy, but believe me, you're not alone and I'm thinking of you and here if you need someone to talk to.  Have you had much contact with your breast cancer nurse? Mine is calling me for the first time tomorrow, hoping he or she will be able to answer any questions I may have.  Take care and much love x  ... View more