Cancer Support Thread #79 Newbies Welcome

[MrsPnut]

Welcome friends old and new, to the most supportive thread on Mumsnet. Everyone is welcome whatever stage you're at (fears, diagnosis, treatment). Introduce yourself and say Hi

Good luck to everyone having treatment this week. Hugs to all - especially if you're feeling rubbish (physically, mentally, or waiting for results - ugh

Well that's my treatment finished. Feeling positive and very happy. Possible due to my anaesthetic drugs still merrily circulating around.

My cancer was caused by a virus so there's not a great deal I could have done to change that. Apart from celibacy!
Going forward I'm going to go on a fasting diet long term but I'm not going to beat myself up about having cancer. Having cancer is shit enough without me heaping extra guilt on myself. It was just really f**king bad luck.
I'm going to take my chance of cure and run with it.

I'm gonna stick around if that's ok? I find this thread really helpful and a safe bolt hole in the black days.
Wishing everyone of you amazing woman strength to endure and a big dose of bloody good luck
xx

@BadEyeBri congratulations! Want to 5:2 with us?

@AlbertCampion 4 fish fingers is my lazy go to staple. Thursday is my next day. We have the habit of having eggs for dinner on Thursdays so I can just have a plain omelette with DH and dd and just say NO to the garlic bread .

PS I wrote 700 words today!

Wooohoooo! Well done on the 700 words - very impressed. Sounds like you are starting to refind your writing mojo! Bet it feels amazing to get back into the swing of things.

@Acinonyx2 yes, I'm water fasting Mondays and Wednesdays. I find it easier just not to eat. I'm planing to start next week.

Go you and 700 words. I don't even have the energy to walk round the garden 😆

@AlbertCampion looming deadlines and the need for money are powerfully motivating I reeaaally had to push myself though Are you back at work now? I'm phasing back into it. June will be full on

@BadEyeBri water fasting - that's hard core!

@BadEyeBri Congrats on finishing and do still hang around. You still have scans etc to have so let us support you.

@Acinonyx2 congrats on writing, I’m not sure I would be up for that at the moment. I’ve lolled round all day stuffing my face.
@AlbertCampion Kudos to you and Acinonyx for doing 5:2, you both have more willpower than me.

@MamaOl93 At least someone who knows what they are looking for has had a look now. Watchful waiting is difficult but he’d know if it was anything more sinister.

@MrsPnut I wouldn't remotely contemplate it during full on chemo though. It was ice cream, snacks and sweet creamy puddings all the way then.

Frustrating not to be able to get a radiotherapy start date due to this blasted glue allergy.

When I was muttering about side effects on the new drug my onc tried to 'sell it' to me by saying that anorexia seemed to be one of the side effects. I just don't know what I think about that

@FizzyOrange, I know what you mean about that first week and the lessened anxiety. I think a mix of getting the op over and being home in my own bed after only one night in hospital meant that I woke up on Friday and felt very up in my mood: had a bit of a crash on Sunday though but back on an even keel today.

I wasn't given any leaflets to take away on selfcare after the op but was told to take it easy and not to lift anything heavy. I have also joined a few groups on Facebook dealing with hysterectomy or cervical cancer and there is lots of info there as well as on the Hyster Sisters website. Mind you, reading too much can make you anxious too. Sending best wishes x

@Acinonyx2 every cloud has a silver lining. I find either my Herceptin or the anastrozole makes me feel slightly nauseated. This means since I had surgery I have lost the 20lbs I put on during chemo and am steadily dropping by a pound a week without suffering too much. I have also given up alcohol as I lost the taste for it which is helping too. I hope to come out of this fitter and slimmer than I have been for many years. It would be a real positive outcome of cancer!

Best wishes to all
Top

@ToastCosILoveIt oh my word, you only had one night in hospital? I had 4 and that felt too soon for me. I have a vertical incision of about 8 inches. After about 10 days I had some bleeding down below which really made me panic so I called my CNS and she assured me it was 'very normal'. I just thought I would warn you in case it happened to you, it really freaked me out! I've looked at the Hyster Sisters website too and found it very helpful.

@TopOfTheCliff this is my hope too - slimmer and fitter. More cheerful wouldn't hurt either

@FizzyOrange, i only had one night through choice. I did have laproscopic surgery not vertical or bikini cut but i have had two caesarians so know how hard that is. I would have stayed a second night but the nights were so unrestful - checking my blood pressure every hour etc and lots of noise (a small ward of only seven and not unreasonable noise but still, it wasn't resful). i knew I would miss the lovely bed and its electrical adjustment but also pleased to get home to my own bed and family. I must admit, I did feel every bump of the cab on the 45 min journey home even though i had a cushion to press to my tummy.

I have had some bleeding on days 1 and 2 which stopped on day 3 but has started again (day 5 today): nothing too much although today gushes of almost clear fluid which I have emailed my consultant about. it has stopped this afternoon and evening.x

@ToastCosILoveIt the CNS said to me that the bleeding would be very 'stop start' and that was normal. I had gushes of clear brown liquid too which she confirmed were also normal. This on-off bleeding can carry on for a few weeks and shows it is healing which does seem counterintuitive. I expected a hysterectomy would leave me totally dry so it was a horrible shock.

@BadEyeBri I'm sorry - I somehow missed your post about having finished treatment. Congratulations! You must be so relieved. Do you have to have any hormone tablets or anything or is that literally it?

albert ha, don't worry.
no, that's me- 5 cisplatin, 28 external radiotherapy and 3 brachytherapy. Onto 3 monthly monitoring and HRT at some point. I don't honestly know how I feel. Tired mostly. I'm going to have another 6 weeks off work because the radiotherapy just zapped my energy and wrestling with big dogs and spikey cats is beyond me at the moment

@BadEyeBri great news you're treatment is finished. I think you need a while to recover from all that. I may have missed this but I guess you're a vet?

I did the 5:2 diet and it worked for me. I wasn't overweight but was just carrying half a stone or so too much for my frame. I didn't lose anything the first couple of weeks then it did come off. Sadly, lockdowns led to it going back on.

vino there are quite a few published studies that show fasting helps with chemo side effects and is well tolerated. Doing linky things is well beyond me!
There is also some evidence to show that many cancer cells really struggle to get energy from anything other glucose so episodes of ketosis are detrimental to them.

Meh, I need to loose 6 stone. I can't blame lockdowns or cancer for that though. I'm just fat.

I have a friend with stage 4 brain tumour doing well on a keto-diet. I found I couldn't' do any kind of fancy dieting on chemo though.

similar - I'm not technically overweight - but definitely too much for my frame. Even half a stone would be a big improvement.

Hello everyone. I joined these threads a year ago (ish) but actually found I didn't want to virtually be around others. And then when I got to a point where I could, I didn't have the energy to seek you out.

Anyway, to refresh: I had triple neg Breast cancer. Driven by a known BRCA1 mutation. I was 38 and still breastfeeding an 18 month old (youngest of 3). My oldest was 6 when I was diagnosed.

I did EC and paclitaxel/carboplatin. Then surgery - planned to be a double mastectomy with diep recon. This was cancelled due to second peak, so I had a lumpectomy in a private hospital. I had obtained a pathologically complete response, which I am thrilled about obvs. I had 3 weeks of radio, which finished about a month ago.

So now I am slowly recovering. I am working my way through treating the remaining side effects. And the many outstanding chores that have built up over the year. And gradually increasing my arm strength and flexibility. It is slowly getting better, but I am tired in a way I have never known. I really have to pace myself. I've been off work for the whole time, and I am giving myself recovery time so I will go back in July (just in time for the summer holidays, which is probably a good thing).

I guess now I have to face the psychological coming to terms with it. I definitely went through my existential crisis during treatment. Now its figuring out the new reintegrated me I guess. It will be nice to have some people to think this part of the process through with.

FizzyOrange I have had no discharge at all since my op, though I was ready for it !
I decided to diet this week, but am being taken out for lunch on Wednesday so I will have to start after that! When I was in hospital on nil by mouth I didnt feel hungry at all, and also there was no opportunity to get food until breakfast/lunch etc. I am a natural grazer so need to change my habits.

@BadEyeBri Wow, that seems to have gone quickly! Well done you for finishing :)

@Acinonyx2 I'm so sorry, I've lost track - did you get your pathology results after surgery?

@FizzyOrange Hope your recovery has gone well, too!

I'm sorry I'm so out of the loop with everyone - have been enjoying "normal" life after finishing chemo and before surgery...which is happening TOMORROW. Ack!

The plan had changed a tiny bit, actually, and it looks as though the drain is one thing I'll be avoiding this time around. I actually ended up getting a second opinion from my surgeon's colleague, who surprised me by going completely against his advice and saying that in my position she wouldn't be risking an AX clearance and would stick to a sentinel biopsy with the lumpectomy (just 6mm of 4cm tumour remaining after chemo). She felt my surgeon had greatly underestimated the lymphedema risk (he put it at 25% but she said it was minimum 50%) and that given my response to the chemo a more conservative approach made better sense. I got a good vibe speaking with her and the next day asked if I could have my care transferred to her! So she'll be doing my surgery tomoz instead. She's also taking a tiny extra sample as there was a spot on the original MRI that she wants to be sure is completely clear (my original surgeon had never even mentioned this spot to me). If everything looks good, that will be it; but if all the nodes come back looking dodgy I'll have to return for an AX. If the "spot" also looks dodgy, then mastectomy may be advised, too. But her point was that both of these are only about a 30% chance - so why rush to have more major surgery in the first instance than might be necessary.

I feel a lot better having got that second opinion and being able to start fresh with someone who I really trust - so, even if more surgery is in the cards for me, at least I'll know it's absolutely needed.

Now it's just back to panicking about the wire localization, radioactive dye injection, and IV needle... can't wait to just be knocked out and have it over with!

@backformore best of luck with surgery tomorrow. The wire is weird but not so bad.

I had the reverse experience with surgeons. While my surgeon was away, another chap recommended lumpectomy and and just a sentinel biopsy. But when my actual surgeon got back, he wanted an AX clearance. Reading around on this - the verdict is out still on the benefits of having a clearance - even if you do have positive nodes. But he was clear that he thought it should be done so that went ahead.

I got my pathology back. I already knew there was residual tumour (from the MRI - I had no response to EC) but there were also 7 positive nodes. I'm already down for the drug for that though (following the MRI results) so no change there. Just anxious to move on with radiotherapy and get to the new drug but waiting for this glue allergy to settle down.

PS I had a drain - but only overnight.

Remind me - what was your BC type?

@backformore Good luck for tomorrow, it’ll be over before you know it.

@Starface Welcome back and I hope that we manage to be helpful.