My Cancer Journey

After I finished the chemo and Herceptin infusions on December 28, 2023, the plan was to continue treatments of only Herceptin every three weeks until mid-September 2024. That was so much better than the chemotherapy. The side effects from only Herceptin are so much easier to handle.   I had the first Herceptin only infusion on January 19. Not only are the side effects easier, but the infusions themselves do not take as long. As with all IV treatments, the first session is always slower so that your body will be able to handle it better. The medical staff also wants you to stay for a while afterwards to monitor you.   After the first treatment the infusions only take thirty minutes. That is not only nice time wise, but you are also less sore where the needle is inserted because not as many drugs have been going through you. This was all good. At least for a few weeks. When I saw my oncologist in preparation for the third Herceptin only infusion on February 29, she confirmed th...

Friday, February 2, I had a pre surgery check to make sure I was healthy enough for the upcoming surgery. They take your vitals and blood. The port-a-cath is very convenient in that the person drawing your blood does not need to find a good vein. That day I found out that phlebotomists are not trained to access a vein through a port, so she needed to draw my blood through a vein in my arm. All the tests looked good, so I got the okay for the lumpectomy (partial mastectomy).   The following day I was able to start using adult toothpaste. My mouth was no longer sensitive! More news - I was excited to have hair growing on my head again, but that was not the only place it had started growing. There was still no hair on my legs or armpits. That was fantastic! However, a few hairs that had been growing in a couple of moles on my face were back. Even though I had the moles removed many years ago :( I would have preferred my eyelashes and brows were back instead :/   Thursday, Februar...

On Thursday, January 10, I had two tests, an echocardiogram to make sure my heart had not been affected adversely by the Herceptin, and an MRI to see how well the tumors had reacted to the chemotherapy.    My heart looked good. It did not seem it was affected at all. Great news! I was, however, concerned about the MRI. The contrast (color) they put into my system to get a better picture, made me nauseous last time. Not to the point where I vomited, but I did not want to take a chance that would happen.    First, I thought to put Vick’s Mentholatum in my nostrils as the nausea was brought on by a chemical “smell,” but the smell did not enter through the nose, but from inside my body. Therefore, I did not think it would be possible to block the smell. Instead, I brought one of my anti-nausea pills, the sublingual (melt-in-your-mouth) Zofran. I took that right before the MRI and it worked great. No nausea!   The other concern was that the tumors had not shrunk enou...

The night after the port was placed on September 13, it was difficult to get comfortable while lying down. The incisions were tender, and because of my vertigo I could not lie on my back. Despite this I felt okay the next day. At least until the premeds I took to prepare for the chemotherapy got into my system. Because of the side effects of the chemo, I needed to take steroids, Dexamethasone, the day before, day of, and day after the treatments. This helps prevent nausea and vomiting as well as reduce inflammation. There are side effects from this as well, but will write about the side effects I had from all the drugs in a later post. My oncologist prescribed a bottle of 4mg pills, and wanted me to take two pills, 8mg, in the mornings, and two in the afternoons. She made sure I knew the pills could cause sleeplessness, so I should not take them too late in the day. I am not used to take a lot of pills, so did not realize that 3pm was too late for the afternoon dose. The drug made me j...

With the original treatment plan I was supposed to receive infusions of Taxol and Herceptin once per week for 12 weeks after the lumpectomy. Because there were two tumors that measured larger than 2 centimeters, my oncologist suggested a more aggressive treatment plan when I saw her on September 11. My heart sunk. Although I suspected this was going to happen because of the results from the MRI, it was not what I wanted to hear. It was difficult to focus on what the doctor said after that. This is why it is so important to bring someone with you to your appointments. Maybe one of you will remember what was said.  I don’t know that Craig was able to pay more attention than I was, but my wonderful oncologist has a practice of writing down all the important information so I can look at it when I am ready. That is one of the many things I like about my doctor. Now, rather than removing the tumors first and then have chemotherapy, I would begin with the treatments in order to shri...

Herceptin, the drug that attacks the HER2 cells, can cause heart failure. Only 1-2% is permanent, but doctors want to take precautions just in case. I was diagnosed with Mitral Valve Prolapse in 1988 after my last child was born, so my oncologist wanted to be extra careful. (Mitral Valve Prolapse is when one of the heart valves does not close properly between each beat. This may cause the valve to leak blood back into the heart after it has pumped it out. It is usually not very serious, but it is important to not get an infection above your heart. An infection will contaminate your blood and can cause it to leak back through the problem valve into the heart. Contaminated blood in your heart can be dangerous. This is why it is important to make sure that your teeth, for instance, are healthy.) Therefore, on Wednesday, September 6 I had an echocardiogram (ECG) to make sure my heart would be able to handle the Herceptin infusions. The cardiologist delivered some great news. My heart was p...

Because the tumor showed to be less than 2 cm (.78 inches) and the lymph nodes did not look to be affected, my oncologist suggested weekly Taxol IV chemotherapy after the lumpectomy. It is a drug that attacks everything in your body. It kills the cancer cells, but also that which helps your body stay healthy. This is why many lose their hair while on this regimen.  Losing your hair does not sound like fun, but getting Taxol treatments will also lower your immune system because it kills your white blood cells as well. The white blood cells attack viruses that enter your body. They help you fight viruses and other illnesses. This is the scariest of the side effects because it can lower your immune system to the point where even something simple like a cold can be serious. This is why it is important to stay away from those who are sick while going through chemo. Taxol is administered once per week and builds up in your body during the twelve weeks it is given. This should kill whatev...

Monday, August 14, I had a consultation with a surgeon. The ultrasound and biopsy showed that I had invasive lobular carcinoma. This is why the tumor was not round, but flat with tentacle like offshoots. It also showed it was not large, 1.6 centimeters (16 millimeters, or .63 inches) at the longest part. The best news was that the lymph nodes looked normal, so no worries about it having spread beyond the original tumor. This was all positive. The surgeon said he would be able to perform a lumpectomy, cut out the tumor only, rather than a mastectomy, cut off the whole breast. He could do this before I went through chemotherapy because of the small size of the tumor.  The oncologist confirmed everything the surgeon said when I saw her on August 31. She added that the tumor was grade 2. They are graded 1-3, 1 being slow growing, and 3 fast growing. The biopsy also showed that the tumor tested positive for estrogen and progesterone, meaning that it feeds off those hormones. Being post ...