Breast Cancer Now Forum

Hey there Trellisick/ Kathy/... I too am on Venafaxine and my flushes have reduced from 30 in a 24 hour period, to 4 or five a day which are MUCH milder and no longer accompanied by the anxiety attacks I experienced. I can only recommend. As for accupuncture - it is available on the NHS. I have just started a course of 6 sessions at my hospital - The Royal Marsden, by a fantastic dr who has been practicing there for over 20 years. Do a bit of research - find out where you can get NHS accupuncture near you, and get your GP to refer you. PLAY YOUR C CARD!!! ... View more

supermarket trolley ... View more

Hi Raemarie I am so sorry to hear you lost your mum at such a young age - no wonder you're scared. My mother had BC 5 years ago and got herself a second opinion at Marsden on the advice of a colleague. She was very fortunate to have the cancer caught before it had reached her lymph nodes, and although she had a masectomy and reconstruction, she was spared chemo, RT and HT. Had she gone with her origional hospital, she would have had a lumpectomy and according to her surgeon at Marsden, would have been back for further surgery as the cancer was too widespread to be removed with a lumpectomy. From the outset I had no confidence in PRH. The waiting room scenario was like a cattle market and the indifference of the staff galled me. So I went back to my GP and made sure I was referred to the same surgeon who treated my mother at Marsden. He immediately sent me to have my nodes checked and it was instantly evident to them that 2 nodes were engorged and therefore my surgery would need to include the removal of the armpit nodes - something PRH missed out on totally. I had 4 positive nodes of the 16 removed. I would tell anyone that if they do not feel confident in the treatment/care they are recieving, do not hesitate to get a second opinion. I'm a bit fuzzy-headed today, so if I haven't answered you fully, I'm sorry! Feel free to inbox me. best wishes emma ... View more

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I was at PRH originally - not aware that we can't mention hospitals by name!... well mine was Princess Royal at Farnborough. I got my GP to refer me to Marsden in London. I'm jolly glad I got the second opinion - I would have ended up with 2 ops had I stayed with PRH ... View more

Morning Jane/Alto - I too was pre-menopausal and turned 46 in January. Beverley - how do you manage so many at work???!!! I've just read that stress can increase their frequency and duration. I am under considerable stresses surplus to the cancer hassles. Maybe it's time I considered antidepressants. Loupylou - duvet on, duvet off, duvet on, duvet off... ARGH!!! All night I'm either boiled or frozen. Well, unless I have another flush within the next 15 mins, I can report a total of 20 flushes over the last 24 hours... 13 from 9am till bedtime at 11pm, then 7 through the night. ... View more

Interesting what you say about the chillow pillow loupylou... I alternate wet flannels at night! When I wake up I swap the cooked one for the cold one in a bowl beside me. Any other tips more than welcome! ... View more

Well I'm off to bed, hopefully I'll get a couple of consecutive hours sleep before a flush wakes me! Since 9am this morning I've had 13 flushes - half of which were so severe I could barely see straight. I am dreading the weather getting any hotter. I'm wearing the thinnest of t-shirts and cotton pj bottoms around the house - any more clothing and I feel like I'm suffocating. ... View more

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@Jane Hirudoid? No - not heard of it. Wish I had your Onc!!! During the chemo months, I only got to see my Onc when I kicked up a real fuss about the Steroid Psychosis. I repeatedly asked mt BCN and others if something could be done to help my Phlebitis and all I was given was bloody paracetamol! I couldn't straighten my arm for 6 months and as a consequence of holding my arm awkwardly all that time, I have developed Frozen Shoulder - painful and incapacitating and which can last 1-2 years!!! If you don't have a particularly attentative medical team, it can be VERY difficult to sum up the energy to fight your corner. Being a 'squeaky wheel' is frequently not sufficient. I regret not appointing one of my friends as my henchwoman! And that would be my advice for the day... If you are fortunate to have a friend/relative who has the intelligence and interest to understand the procedures, medications, SE's and who is forthright, AND who has the time - let them fight some of the battles for you. All too often I was too confused and upset to argue my case and insist that solutions be found to my problems when I was casually dismissed. All too often I felt guilty making a 'fuss' knowing that there were patients with terminal cancer. A brilliant BCN can make all the difference. Mine is a nice enough woman, but too difficult to contact and not proactive on my behalf. ... View more

I finished my chemo in Feb and my poor bum is still in recovery - I developed piles and fissures and still bleed. At it's worse I likened taking a poo to 'having barbed wired dragged out of my arse'... I didn't find the lactulose much use, I just really upped my water and fruit intake. RHUBARB!!! stew it yourself or get the tinned - but it's an old constipation remedy. I found a bowl for breakfast with a bit of muslie really helped. Talking to chemo-buddies, for most of us the constipation started after surgery - the morphine we reckoned. On my ward it was mostly women post bowel and stomach cancer and none of them could go home until they'd 'gone'... Why on Earth staff don't take the attitude of prevention being preferable to cure, I do not know! Peppermint tea is supposed to be good too. Hmmmmm... think I might make a jug and put in the fridge to help with night sweats tonight... ... View more

What a bunch of brave, ballsy, bo**ocks bashing, bald birds we are!! ... View more

Venice You are more than welcome. When I started this 'journey', everyone around me kept telling me not to go looking up stuff online because I'd freak myself out. BO**OCKS Maybe if I'd read up I could've avoided some of the worst SE's. I would have insisted on a PICC line before treatment began (rather than after the 2nd lot of chemo, by which time I'd developed phlebitis - and now have 2 collapsed veins). I'd have been aware of what steroids can do to you mentally and not have been so terrified that I was going crazy. etc etc etc... Too many people pressure us about the importance of staying 'positive'. BO**OCKS There is no evidence that a 'positive' attitude has any bearing whatsoever on our body's ability to cope with being poisoned with chemo. It's just one of those meaningless things people say mostly because they can't cope with seeing you falling apart! Anyway - I always say 'I'm neither a pessimist nor an optimist, I'm a REALIST'. You will learn many lessons over the unfolding months. One that I learnt early on when talking to my chemo-buddies, was that everyone has the capability for incredible courage, you and I included. emma xxx ... View more

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And all they ever bang on about is hair loss! It's upsetting BUT IT DOESN'T HURT!!!!! I likened my list of side effects to the line-up at a heavy metal concert... "And tonight we will be showing the following acts... Phlebitis, Hyperglycemia, Hemorrhoids, Oral Thrush, Cystitis... and top of the bill... STEROID PSYCHOSIS!!!!!" The range of symptoms and the degrees of severity range greatly. Some people are more unlucky than others. My only advice is pretty obvious stuff... Take care of yourself - drink as much water as possible, rest as much as you can, eat plenty of roughage and fruit, get a little exercise every day, take great care with oral hygene (gargle, soft toothbrush and those wee interdental brushes). Be kind to yourself. DON'T compare your experience to that of others - you are unique. DON'T suffer in silence! I always felt obliged to put on a 'brave face' - it was a real mistake. Inside I was falling apart. Lean on your breast care nurse. Sadly you are not alone. Tick those days off the calendar... (I was constantly working out the percentage of time left!) Ultimately saying out loud - I CAN'T COPE - is frightening. There will be days when you can't cope and needed to sob and hide under the duvet, and that's OK. Be kind to yourself. Every day remind yourself of the good things in your life, however small. My best wishes to you xxx ... View more

Hi Alex How are you finding things on half a tab? ... View more

Just had a call-back from my onc's secretary to tell me that an appointment is booked for the 17th and meanwhile not to beat myself up about not taking the Tamoxifen, that the onc will help find a management programme that allows me to have a reasonable quality of life. ... View more

my thoughts are with you Louise. xxx ... View more