**Tamoxigang heading towards hearts and valentines - thread 47**

[BetsyBoop]

roses are red
violets are blue
sugar is sweet
but cakes are better

honeybeer - web address would be v useful. I will start rads in summer. Had a visit from a couple of work colleagues today, one of whom had bc a couple of years ago - her hair has never grown back

golly Weebarra I know that is a risk with one of the types of chemo (as my onc told me before we knew what I needed) - it was not FEC or Tax. It stayed at the back of mind though!

Well done Malt - bet you can hardly believe that you only have the last 5 days of 9 months worth of treatment left to go .

10 months kitkat ! :) can't quite believe it myself ! Apart from the tamoxifen of course

Weebarra poor lady though I'm sure it must be quite rare for that to happen

I didn't even realise she was still wearing a wig. Just one of those things I suppose.

Thanks for the advice re tamoxifen Kitkat. I've had one accupuncture session so far, the next is tomorrow. The lady treating me suggested it would take 8 sessions (one a week) to get the benefit, so I will stick with it and report back as the weeks progress. Am hopeful it will prove effective as hot flushes are doing my head in, made worse by always having something on my head (except when I'm at home).

Fortunately my hair does seem to be growing, and not all of it is white as I first thought. I'm now 5 weeks post chemo and I'm pleased there is some hair action going on at this relatively early stage.

Had fun painting with the kids at school, so much so that I'm going back tomorrow afternoon to do some more. It's great bossing other people's kids about as they always do as they're told (unlike my own children).

You won't know what to do with your time once you are finished Malt I do hope you don't forget us who are still going to be here for many months to come as I have really found your comments and advice very useful

Glad you managed to get Emend Wren I hope it has helped you.

Looks like my hair is starting to come out must get wig sorted this week!

My first weekly Taxol session is going well, 4 days in and no SE's - yay!

Wren - I know you mentioned that it was good to know that they had something else if you had a reaction to the Tax, well they have something else if you are also have a reaction to the Taxol. Hope your chemo session last week went well - Emend should certainly help.

I really feel for the poor lady who lost her hair through chemo. I found that mine started growing back when I started Tax. I was very paranoid that the treatment wasn't working, but my Oncologist said hair re-growth was quite common.

Handbag - My DS certainly takes no notice of me at the moment, I didn't realise that he would take notice of another adult - perhaps we should all do a child swap!

Hi
Hope everyone doing ok.

Had my 6 weekly (of 12) taxols today but apparently my blood pressure is high and I need to see my GP - having read up on it, apparently taxol usually gives you LOW blood pressure - anyone had this please?

Tiny - that is so reassuring about the hair growing back as mine is and of course I'm hugely paranoid that it means the chemo isn't working. I was going to ask onc when I see her this week.
Sorry wine, no idea re blood pressure.

Wine - I had high BP before any chemo and then it went down on FEC so had to stop meds but it shot back up on Tax and I then got different meds (which I'm still on but no idea what my BP is like now).
My hair did some growing on tax - but then it fell out (wierd!!).
How are you doing after 6 Paclitaxels? - and SEs yet? Think this is the point where I started to struggle a bit more.

Thanks kit SE haven't been too bad so far, yucky mouth and very tired but no hand /feet tingling -yet, most people say they kick in around the 6 or 7th. To be honest, I felt so awful on the FEC, everything now is great!

Hair seems to be growing back too - on my legs anyway, possibly on my head, I DIYed chopping my hair off so still have a fuzzy head so hard to see if any new is coming.

Morning all
Happy pancake day !

Mummy wheel that's very kind thank you don't worry too much about the wig they are very realistic these days, people didn't know I was wearing mine unless I told them

How's everyone doing ?
First of my boost rads sessions today and think I need to see the nurse too to see if I need some different cream for my poor boob !
Also going shopping and will buy another hair dye, did it a few weeks ago but the grey is starting to come through

Hope all goes well with your boost today maltz (mmmm boost...).
I have my 6th of 12 weekly pax tomorrow. Only SEs so far are a very dry mouth and hot flushes. And I'm tired but with a 6 month old thats kind of normal!
Have a lovely day everyone!

Morning everyone,
That web address for the skin cream;
www.moogooskincare.co.uk

It's recommended by Australian oncologists to use whilst having radiotherapy, I've bought some for DF to try,

Happy pancake day

weebarraseems like we're chemo twins, I had my 6/12 yesterday. Are you having/have you had your surgery yet? Mine will be about a month after I finish the tax apparently.

Happy Pancake Day - anyone giving anything up for Lent? Choccy and crisps here (brave I know) but I'm aware that cos I can't really taste anything I'm eating loads of very sweet or salty food and as my blood pressure is high I need to try and have a bit more self control!

Hope everyone has a good day

Happy Pancake Day Malt, I have already eaten more than my fair share!

Wine and Wee - I am also on the same schedule as you guys. As I have already had two Tax, I only need 6 Taxol, so I will be finished in about 5 weeks time.....next stop surgery. Wine - If you are starting to get numbness in your hands/feet, ask the Chemo Nurses if they have cold mitts that you can use. Wee - Do let me know if you get a different response from your Oncologist about hair regrowth.

KitKat - I suspect that you might be right about the hair loss, just as you think it is back, you lose it! How are you getting on being back at work?

Honey - Thank you for the skincare information - I will be having rads after chemo and surgery. Hope your DF is getting on okay with his treatment, hopefully he will be at the end before he knows it.

Think surgery will be in May - bmx here I come!

Boost went ok today but took longer measuring as it was the1st one and I was late in anyway. Tip for rads make sure you have a wee 1st, I lay there not being able to move thinking I'm busting

We def are twins (or is it triplets with tiny!) wee also having bmx, probably in may too - still trying to decided whether to have reconstruction or no, I'm never great with huge decisions.

Thanks for the tip re hands tiny.

Hope everyone doing ok, anyone heard from Really or Goodness recently?

Tiny - I'm loving it, thanks. This is the first week that I have woken up and felt raring to go in the morning. I'm still going to the gym every other day before work and computing to client site on the other days!!

I even think my tingling feet may (big may though) be improving - having spoken to a friend who is a diabetic nurse she thinks it is the diabetes rather than the chemo that is causing me this problem. On the plus side she thinks I woud not be able to be working or exercising (and generally looking very well) if it was not improving .
Unfortunately my GP surgery will only test me after 3 months (most people with a blood sugar level this high test after evey meal ) so I don't really know if I'm doing the right things or not.

I'm liking that there are 3 of you on Paclitaxel - I had started to think I was an oddity!! Although I only had to do 9 weeks - and that was enough for me!!

Amusing incident on crowded tube train tonight. I'm standing in aisle and one seat further down is about to become free - I am nearest standing to this seat:
Youngish man: "Do you mind if I have the seat because I've got back ache?"
Me (about twice his age and somewhat bemused by this): "Well I've got cancer!"
Youngish man: " Er what?"
Me: "Don't worry, I'm getting out at the next stop"
Youngish man then rushes for seat. All surrounding women, of various ages, laugh and pass comments about everybody probably having a bad back!

I've never before been asked by a man to give up my seat for him - but I made sure that on the next train I was on that the tired looking and very pregnant woman (with her TFL pregnancy badge) standing in the crowded carriage got the next available seat before some entitled man grabbed it!

Rant over!

Good for you lily !

Kitkat glad things are settling down, grr to the gp for not testing more often though

Night night everyone sleep tight

Very quiet here today. Hope all is well for the Tamoxigang.

Please can someone explain if there is a pecking order for hormonal therapy? I am particularly thinking abut post menopausal woman. Please correct me if I am wrong but I understand that for er+ pre and post menopausal women tamoxifen is given. Is it always the first line drug given? and why (do post menopausal woman (the following is taken form breast cancer care website) do "some women who have been through the menopause are changed to a different hormone therapy (called an aromatase inhibitor) after two to three years of tamoxifen, or after taking it for five years".

What are the deciding factors?. Also is this always the first choice drug for all post menopausal women or are they sometimes put straight onto the aromatase inhibitors: Anastrozole (Arimidex), Exemestane (Aromasin) and Letrozole (Femara) and if so why? Thanks very much.

Worried I have no idea about choices of hormone treatment - I have today taken my first tamoxifen tablet (have been dreading starting this phase due to the long list of side effects). I'm 43 and pre-menopausal (well, I was before chemo) and I've only had tamoxifen discussed with me, never any alternatives. I assume they'll see how I get on with this drug and then review after a period of time.

I have a friend who has been taking Tamoxifen for just over a year and she is getting some irregular bleeding, so her Dr is talking about moving her to a different drug.

Sorry if that's no help whatsoever!

Beautiful sunny warm day here - hopefully everyone has been out enjoying it!

No idea either worried sorry, like handbags only tamoxifen has been mentioned for me , I picked up a prescription for mine today and will start taking it next week when my rads finish. Hope you get on ok with yours handbags

Friend dyed my hair today, bit brighter than expected but it's ok ! Then had onc appointment and rads

Yes it is quiet isn't it !