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!

I'm loving the updates today lacies. I'm having a yolo day.

Outing myself to a certain West Yorkshire town, my kids had Halloween snacks from Betty's then we did go treat or treating which they had never done and the atmosphere was amazing! Then I cracked open a bottle of prosecco when we got home!

I'll have to have a think about a body part to photo, I did wear my wig all day today and had some lovely comments and some very honest ones from kids at school!

@WhatWouldLeslieKnopeDo I really hope your are feeling better soon.

I can't remember who mentioned nail varnish and chemo, but supposedly if you wear really dark varnish ie Black it's supposed to help?! My nails wet wrecked after too many years wearing acyrlics but the chemo has hardened them for now! Silver linings and all that!

I am also slathering my lips in balm. I also have the constant dripping nose thing, no cold just dripping I assume from no nasal hair! And the eye watering, sun and cold weather is not a good combination. I assume its from lack of eye lashes.

Anyway it's all glamour on the cancer front!

Hope you lacies have a good evening.

Ooooooo I've got some lovely dark red nail varnishes, I shall crack them out and get my 14yo to decorate them.

Happy Halloween lacies old and new - especially the bbbbbbb (forgot how many b's) posse! Been happily ignoring cancer for the last wee while (diagnosed stage 3 colon cancer in Feb, surgery and four cycles of capox which finished in july) but had my CT scan for four month post chemo review today so next week it's results day and I have major scanxiety. The nurses who did the scan were dressed as cats though so that's something .

Sorry to hear you are in hospital Leslie hope you are being well looked after and escape soon. Also Pandora - though sounds like you have good colleagues keeping you in line! Halloween candy to everyone else!

Good luck for next week with the scanxiety (love that!)- keep us posted!

I've just noticed that my enlarged pores on my breasts (BOTH) are starting to look much more like Peau D'orange, which only really occurs in Inflammatory Breast Cancer.

My breathing is really weird and my chest feels compressed.

I don't know what to do.

Emily go back to the doctors about your breathing, it could be totally unrelated and they might be able to put your mind at rest

Hey emily I agree with going back to the doctors. Your breast symptoms may be an infection. Stop investigating IBC anymore until you know for sure as you’ll just work yourself up into a frenzy.

I wore my wig out trick or treating last night as my hair is really fine now. I felt conscious that it wasn’t my hair but as it’s pretty close no one else noticed (I think). I’m just conscious of it moving and not being mine!
How are you doing Leslie?

Have a wonderful Thursday lacies
My main side effect from (AC) chemo has been tiredness and a heavy headed feeling. Not looking forward to starting taxane as sounds like I’ll have other weird and wonderful issues to contend with 😩

Emily I think a trip back to the doctors to talk about your breathing specifically is a great idea. They can check you for normal run of the mill respiratory stuff easily enough and that can be done while you’re waiting for this referral.

Being up and feeling so panicky at 2.30 is no good. Missing out on sleep will just make everything worse. Do any one the counter sleeping pills work for you in the very short term?

I really hope you get a letter today and can get this moving. and hugs

How are you feeling today Pandora? Are you still in hospital?

Morning,

No photos here as it would probably be of my manky looking toe and I don't want to put anyone off their breakfast!
Have you tried carmex keepcalm I use that and have avoided any major cracking on my lips, they do get sore in the corners the same as namechange though for a few days each cycle. And are less bad the more I do.

I hope your toes are ok purple do you think the tingling could be peritheral neuropathy (sp?) hopefully as you continue with chemo, your body will acclimatise and side effects reduce for you.

Lesley sorry you are going through the mill, I too hadn't realised you had sepsis, you most definitely don't do things by halves. I had assumed with the oxygen you were in for your lungs. I hope you are feeling better and it is not long before you are back reclining on your new mattress with a Nutella ice cream.

pandora I hope you are not in hospital too long either.

My nails grew & looked great for a while during the start of chemo ranout but have in the last week or two all snapped or split and look pretty ragged now. The lack of nose hair is a pain too. Like you say, very glamorous! Make the most of the bonus weekend mid treatment. Your trick or treat/prosecco night sounded good yesterday. My kids were dressed for trick or treating, but the youngest didn't want to go when she saw some people dressed up, so my friends took my eldest (who was very good and shared her bounty with her little sister when she got home) I am going out with the fog for an extra long walk today with my bonus day (chemo 2mo) and meeting my friend this aft for a cuppa & cake as it is her birthday in a few days.

Waves & hello to everyone.

Another one here who thinks you need to get to your docs emily
The chest feeling and breathing could be anxiety, exacerbated by being unable to sleep too - but your docs may have some answers for you, can at least check you over again and as namechange says, provide sleeping tablets if needed. Stress really affects the body in an adverse way.

Hey guys, I was allowed home late last night as long as i rest today. Bloods were ok, no signs of infection but I had iv antibiotics and I've now got oral antibiotics just in case.

So slow down, take it easy and rest. It was so lovely but so hard seeing the a&e staff.

Hey tayto! Boo to the scanxiety. Hope scan is clear as a bell for you. I don't have one for another 5 months - dulce if you're there can you say when your scan is? Now I'm getting scanxiety about not having enough scans! Bloody cancer Are you in the UK or Canada tayto - I can't remember! I heard about another person who is in the UK and stage 3 who is having 6 monthly scans but mine are yearly... grrr why is it all different!

Anywho - hello to all the lacies out there!
Will have to dash and separate fighting little boys now

And good news you escaped home pandora! I hope you feel better soon

Hi ladies just catching up for the first time in ages whilst sitting in the day surgery unit waiting to go down for my mastectomy. Cannot believe it's treated as day surgery tbh! gin this is my second diagnosis this year; I had a lumpectomy on the right in May and then found a lump on the left 2 days after completing radiotherapy 😣 both primary cancers. I've been on tamoxifen for 2 months as the first cancer was hormone positive, this one is borderline apparently so more testing required. Sorry to hear those of you who are really battling with nasty side effects and symptoms currently. This is one club where I'd gladly revoke my membership 

Here are my random body parts! How reassuring 😂

KBG - Hope all goes well with the op. Interesting arrow diagrams! I would be interested to hear about your post op recovery when you feel up to posting as the plan is for me to have a mastectomy at the end of chemo so think I am looking at Jan/Feb next year (have been told it will be day surgery!)

Pandora - Glad you are out of hospital now

Leslie - Hope you are getting better.

Keep Calm - Hope your lip gets better soon

I am having a quiet week before chemo again next week. I empathise with all those with scan anxiety as I am having lung scan next week as something was spotted on my first CT scan which they said they would monitor.

I still have dire rear which at this rate I can see not being resolved before I am hit with the next lot of chemo.

I have now lost eyelashes, nose hair and eyebrows are on their way out - have the dripping nose too! My skin is very dry so I think I am like everyone - else - constantly putting hand cream on and lip salve.

Tayto I get my results next week too. The scanxiety is very real

Noodles I think my toenail may fall off. It's gone a weird yellow colour, not sure if it's too late to start painting them before my next chemo or if I've left it too late. Hope you enjoy your walk with the fog 😁

Good luck with your op knicker although I can't believe it's classed as a day case! I hope you have plenty of people to run around after you when you get home

MrsT jelly sweets are good for dire rear

Hi purple

yes someone-else on here did recommend haribo for the old dire rear so I have bought some. Not sure how many you have to eat to make a difference! I do really like them so could eat them all day.....

Good luck for your results purple.

addled I am in Canada but standards seem to be same as uk. This is my first CT scan since the diagnosis ones. Also having a lovely colonoscopy at the end of the month to check for any growths in what's left of colon. Not looking forward to that! Oncologist also muttered about genetic counseling as young diagnosis but not heard any more back and I think I came back negative for known genes. Yes wonder how Dulce is.

Knicker that mastectomy is day surgery. Good luck.

MrsT check your jelly sweets have gelatin in then eat as many as you like! Not convinced they made a massive difference with my chemo dire rear but at least pleasant to eat. I got prescribed lomotil which was more effective for me than immodium alone.

knicker hope the surgery goes well.

Saw this and thought of all you lovely lacies

Can I join? I was referred yesterday on the two week pathway for a scan to see what's going on in my liver. Bloods and x ray show there's a blockage/inflammation in there and the GP can feel a lump so thinks it's either cancer or auto-immune cirrhosis but it doesn't present like cirrhosis in the bloods so thinks more likely the other thing. Am slightly freaking out...

I'm so tired and I've been sick every day for over a month and am losing >500g per day in weight so there's definitely something funny going on.

Thanks for the good wishes everyone, home now and hubby is cooking supper 😊 luckily we managed to farm out kids and dog so I can have a quiet hour! I have to say so far I'm feeling better than after the lumpectomy however it is only day 1...

Mrs I am more than happy to answer any questions you may have x