CANCER SUPPORT THREAD 65 - for anyone with cancer or waiting for cancer tests (pets welcome!)

[WhatWouldLeslieKnopeDo]

Good morning everyone,

Welcome to the new thread, and the club that nobody wants to join. Our previous thread is here.

Anyone with any type of cancer is welcome. And we will hold your hand if you're waiting to find out whether or not you have cancer at all.

If you've got a loved one with cancer then you can get support here.

Please feel free to reintroduce yourself so we don't all have to remember from the previous thread!

@LadyMaryC hello. I've literally just done the two wk wait and it was longest fortnight of my life.

Keep yourself busy and try not to waste energy worrying

Morning all else! Just checking in from holidays. I'm not managing to keep up very well but thank you all for headwear tips, I really appreciate it

Am currently fighting a very strong 'flight' instinct and stopping myself from deleting everyone I know & shutting down my FB account (I need it for work if nothing else).

It's very easy to ignore everything when on a resort on a Greek Island. DH rather worried as this isn't my type of holiday at all and normally I'd be dragging us all round the island and exploring every inch by now.

I am absolutely aware I sound like a very petulant child with a glaring first world problem

Tahiti go easy on yourself, just remember this won't last forever. Could you name your scar so it's not as scary for your DD?
The nurses told me to name my stoma and they christened him Boris

Keepcalm you don't sound like a petulant child at all, we all come on here to sound off and complain about how shit this all is

Morning everyone, I hope you are all feeling well today. Despite the weather!

Today is my scan. At 9am. I am terrified.

I am currently trying to drink the 2 pints of water required. But it’s making me feel sick and hurting at the same time. The pain and bloating is just horrible.

Oh Mrs - fingers crossed for you - not much more waiting now at least

tahiti - glad op went well and hope scar heals nicely and soon!

keepcalm not a petulant child at all. This is all really shit like purple said.

I’m doing a bit better - not so tired and achy anymore although very anxious. If I feel any pain and discomfort in my right breast I feel like it must be the tumour growing and spreading and the chemo not working . Anyway going to try and put bad thoughts out of head and enjoy a lovely spring evening with my beautiful DDS and gorgeous DH. Hope you all have a wonderful Friday lacies

Good luck mrsemcgregor I always feel sick after all the water.

Simmi my cancery lymph node sometimes hurts and swells up, but I like to think it is the cancer cells dying. I hope you are enjoying your evening :)

Happy Friday everyone

Thinking of you MrsMcG

Sorry lacies, but I have some sad news. I was thinking I hadn't heard from fluffywhitekittens for quite a while, so I checked her Facebook page and it's now a memorial page. I don't know when she died. She hadn't posted on the thread since last year, but she had been on Facebook earlier this year. I wasn't sure whether to mention it as I don't want to upset people, but some of you will probably remember her. She had two children. So here's to fluffy and her loved ones

keepcalm

I had the "flight" response when I was initially diagnosed. I deleted my Linked in account (not on facebook anyway) and got rid of all the work stuff I've accumulated over years and years. I never really loved my work (in fact I generally hated it in the latter years) and it was like an instant decision for me that should the treatment work, I am not going back to it. Because I did contract work I was essentially out of a job anyway (wasn't in a contract at the point I was diagnosed). I don't regret it but obviously that was because I wasn't happy with what I was doing anyway.

I've had friends staying for a couple of days. They took over my kitchen and cooked for me and my husband which was lovely but still quite tiring.

I have chemo again next week and I am on a completely different drug combo so will be like starting again in a way....

Thinking of everyone and all the individual stuff everyone is going through today.

xx

Sorry Leslie I think my post crossed with your last one. I am very sorry to hear the news.

Mrstraveller I hope you enjoyed your friends' visit, despite the tiredness :) good luck with the next type of chemo.

Oh that's so sad about Fluffywhitekittens I often wonder how people are doing once they stop posting and I always hope they don't post anymore because they are fine. Stupid bastard cancer **

Thinking of you Mrsg. I hate having to drink water, it always makes me feel so sick

Simmi like Leslie if I get any pain where the tumour is I think of it as dying not getting bigger. It's quite common to have pain where the tumour is while you're having chemo. I'm glad you're starting to feel a bit better

So sad to hear about fluffy. for her and her family.
Thinking about plannedshock too.

MrseMc keeping everything cross for you.

Bastarding cancer. Poor fluffy and her family.

tahiti will your DD touch your scar? 4yo DS touches mine whenever he wants (it's above my bra line) to make it not a big scary thing.

It's hard though when they're used to you being invincible.

Good evening everyone I wasn't on here when fluffy was but that's just so shite and I'm thinking about her and her family and it's making me thankful I'm snarling at mine!
@Simmi1 my oncologist told me that tingling feelings in my breast were probably good and the tumour possibly responding. It also hurt last time, after round 2 when she examined it, again she said that would probably a good pain!
Day 3 after chemo and I'm shattered but that's probably to do with DS up every night with a horrid cough, then combined with the steroids I can't get back to sleep for ages. Anyway enough of the whining.
Totally changing the subject DH is wondering about going away for a few days for half term, chemo nurses have said fine, just take prescription and chemo card with me. At the moment I'm knackered but that should be my good week before round 4 and different drugs. Part of me wants to just go for it, the other part of me is so tired but I want to make the most of things. Sorry for the ramble, I suppose I'm asking have any of you been away in the UK for a few days about 3 hours drive?

MrsG, hope your scan went as well as possible.

Dreading the weekend, I’ve been busy at work and out with my son coat shopping last night so it wasn’t too difficult to not let on how worried I am.
But Saturday and Sunday seem so long to get through. No post or call from a hospital today re an appointment. I’m so bad at waiting at the best of times and this is just so hard.
I have scoreboard duties for my daughters team tomorrow and with any luck the weather will cooperate and I can play in the garden on Sunday. Never thought I’d be wishing my weekend away

@LadyMaryC fingers crossed to your results. This really is the hardest time. As everyone says try and keep really busy. I know it's harder said than done

ranout yes, I've been away quite a few times now, just in the UK. Furthest was about 250 miles from home. I just take my "emergency" folder (chemo book, list of medication, repeat prescription, most recent oncologist letter etc.) and plenty of any medication I might need. Also remember to take your thermometer :)

LadyMaryC it's good that you've got some distractions over the weekend. Fingers crossed for the weather.

I managed five minutes on my exercise bike today, which is quite an achievement for me!

I hope everyone is having a nice evening

Cheers to you & yours fluffy

@Mrstraveller I have 16 staff reliant on my as I run my own business. Fortunately my managers will be brilliant and this will force me to take a step back but I'll never be free from it unless I sell up.

I had envisioned a family business to give the DC security etc but if the worst comes to the worst when we get these scan results then it'll be sold and every last ounce of energy will be put into my family & getting better.

I am by no means famous but am well know locally (and aware I sound like a total wanker saying that) so the flight reaction I think is to try to protect myself & the DC from 'spectators' as opposed to those with genuine good intentions.

I managed to launch myself out of my black mood today and got up and about. This holiday has been very lovely but has given my normally extremely busy mind too long to brood

keep I get that. I'm nervous of people IRL knowing. I have told only a few close friends and my parents and siblings. I've asked everyone to keep it to themselves, but it's getting harder now, especially after the surgery.
Purple and Minnie it's ds (if I said DD, it was a typo!) And he won't touch it, I've tried. He's autistic so his understanding of stuff like this is limited. Hopefully he'll come round soon! Maybe when the stitches come out, it'll look less scary!

Mrse hope your scan went okay.

Hope everyone else is well. for fluffy and planned. I didn't speak to either, but before I posted on this thread, I read planned's posts and I think about her often since.

I saw this, and thought of so many of us

for fluffy... fucking cancer...

Sorry I haven’t been in much - am keeping up with everybody’s news... lots of tough times for people at the moment...

I had my last chemo today (yay!) ... just waiting for the effects to kick in 😐 Glad to be at the end of it, but it means my mind has been on surgery and other stuff more, and I’m a bit. up and down like a yo-yo with it all!

Off to try and sleep now - hate feeling tired on steroids that don’t want to let you sleep!

Love to all 🍫💤

PS ranout I’ve been all over the country on my ‘good weeks’ - just took the emergency number for oncology with me, and any drugs... leslie’s suggestion of taking a thermometer just in case is a damn good one tho!! 😁

@FuzzyWhiteLegs yeah last chemo, I can understand how you feel about the next stage but brilliant, one stage down. I'm also in the trying to sleep on steroids (that and a 5 year old with a racking cough!)
I think about planned a lot too, makes you grateful for the Ds with the racking cough,
Going to see if a quick game of candy crush can send me off to sleep!

Hi,
Just checking in after my chemo on Thurs (2nd to last)
I had a long day at hospital as the courier delivering the 3rd chemo drug got delayed. It turned up at 3:20pm for a 30 min infusion which expired at 4pm (it usually arrives a couple of hours earlier) so that was good he wasn't any later or I would have been back on the chemo ward again yesterday! The nurses couldn't have been lovelier, so just read, got tired & nearly dozed off!

Sorry to hear about fluffy I recognise the name from reading older threads before I posted. also thinking of planned

I don't know if this is useful, but listening to Steve Wright on the way home from hospital, he had 2 women on, a GP and a breast surgeon who has also had breast cancer. They have written a book called the complete guide to breast cancer. How to feel empowered and take control It is only recently out (Sept) and has brilliant reviews. I am going to buy a copy to help navigate the op, radio and beyond. They sounded brilliant on the radio and the book sounds to be a real help to anyone who has got or had breast cancer.

Well done on the excersise bike lesley I have a cross trainer that I used to use religiously to do 5k each morning. Then the belt snapped, it has sat idle for 8 months and then my brother fixed it at the end of the summer, but I still haven't made it back on there. I will do as I think it will benefit my fitness, but I just dont have any motivation during chemo!

purple I bet your son still does great cuddles when needed. How is your numb bum now?!

simmi my boob is sore if knocked now (it wasn't sore before I started chemo) but if my daughters catch it, it hurts. I did tell the consultant & he wasn't worried. Probably worth mentioning at your next appt so they can put your mind at rest.

fuzzy well done on the last chemo. It feels really odd to be ending the chemo stage doesn't it? I have just been flagged up that I need to have an US to measure the lumps & surgeon appt to go through what happens next and when. The chemo nurse also emailed my breast cancer nurse contact to get in touch for any questions. I haven't had anything to do with her since she attended my 2 consultant appts where I found out I had cancer and then the 2nd one where I found the CT was clear.

I have been wide awake since 3:20am (thanks steroids!) so going to try to get 40 winks in before the rest of the house wakes up. My kids have a play date day at a friends today, so I can go back to bed later if needed thankfully.

Have a good Saturday lacies

@noodles44 just a quick one, hope your feeling ok.
I have that book I think it's brilliant. If you feel like it connect with her Liz on Instagram she's very responsive and is also launching advise about exercise and cancer.
Hope you got some more sleep