Treatment (Chemo)

I did start this blog with the idea of documenting my cancer journey and since I launched it, it's been a bit mad on the health front with constant changes in my prognosis and where the cancer is in my body. Safe to say it's definitely not been straightforward.

Since my diagnosis I haven't really had chance to talk about my treatment. The idea after I was diagnosed was to just make a start on shrinking the tumours in my left breast and lymph nodes to make the option of a lumpectomy or a mastectomy easier to perform. I was offered a trial, because the initial outlook was positive, but I decided against it because I didn't want the extra hospital trips and tests take away from my time with the kids as Isobel was still only 4 months old and Max was about to start nursery. And if everything seemed positive and upbeat in the beginning, why wouldn't you just do what you know is proven to work?

So I was booked in to have my first session of FEC-T chemotherapy on the 6th September. Three sessions on Fluorouracil, Epirubicin and Cyclophosphamide, once a week every 3 weeks. Then it was on to Docetaxel (or Taxotere) for my remaining 3 sessions.

The first 3 sessions, I'm not gonna lie, were horrendous. My first chemo session suffered a rare complication with a leak of Epirubicin under the skin (also known as an extravasation) so I had to go to a different hospital to have a full saline flush out on my arm. I still have the scars and a slight bit of what I can assume is nerve damage. (I should probably mention if you haven't had chemo yet and you're reading this, don't worry that it's going to happen to you because it is that rare whenever someone spots it they call another nurse who hasn't seen one before just to have a look. 😂)

Anyway, back to the side effects that I experienced... Nausea, hairloss and major lethargy! Oh and let's not forget the heartburn from the steroids. 🙈 The nausea, for me, was probably the worst part. NOTHING can shift it and I felt like it for the whole week. It took me away from being able to take care of the kids. It definitely took a huge toll on my mental health and that's when I knew to ask for help. As for the hair loss, I bit the bullet and shaved my head 2 weeks after my first chemo.

The final 3 weren't as bad because sickness wasn't a factor. The main side effect of Docetaxel is joint and bone pain which can be eased a bit with more movement. It was nice to still be able to do things but I did still have my off days where I just didn't feel like I could move. I'd definitely choose that over the first 3 sessions any day of the week!

The whole thing seems like a long time ago now, even though I'm still feeling the effects with the immunosuppression but I made it through. If I wasn't ill with a cold between my sessions, it was diarrhea or a chest infection. The time of year was definitely not on my side. I could not have gotten through it without the support of my family. Having a support system is the most important thing.

Overall my cancer had a good response to the chemotherapy, with tumours shrinking by more than half. The only thing was it just didn't deactivate the cancer for anywhere near as long as my team would've liked, which put a spanner in the works for my mastectomy. With me having yet another chest infection and recovery from surgery, it could have delayed my chances to get started with another form of treatment. I just wasn't well enough for surgery to go ahead. So now I'm on to radiotherapy!

If you made it all the way here then thank you so much for reading. ♥️ I still have 2 radiotherapy sessions left over the next 2 weeks (crossing everything that they still go ahead) so I'll be sure to post about my experience on that when I'm done. 🙂