Hi Gina .... firstly well done for getting through the treatment thus far and good news that it will all soon be over for you. I had terrible problems with my veins and the doctors fitted me with a portacath in my chest for infusions and bloodtests - and its wonderful!  Saying that, my treatment is ongoing and it is a permanent fixture for me. However, I just wondered if you could ask your oncologist/chemo nurse if there is anything similar that is used as a temporary measure - could they put something like a hickman line in the chest. Obviously, I have no idea how these things work and if it requires surgery to be fitted or if there is a line that can just be put it and flushed regularly. May be worth the question though. Good luck with everything x

Gina

I believe the portacath is the way to go! I was offered it at the outset but had my first chemo session earlier this month in the usual way as it was not possible to book me in for fitting it beforehand.  So although I thought I had "good veins", my experience of having a canula fitted was not exactly straightforward.  Definitely a case of third time lucky and two nurses having a go at it after holding my hand in hot water and applying a wheat bag to my arm to raise my veins. I was quite bruised afterwards!  I had also been given a lot of warnings about the effects of leakage and vein damage, and didn't much like the sound of that so I was on edge while the drugs were going in.  I am having the implanted port (portacath) put in before my next chemo this coming Wed.  I gather some places do the procedure under local and others under a general anaesthetic, and once it is in it averts the need to stick needles in you for bloods etc as well. Hope this helps.

Boatgirl ...... The portacath is a wonderful invention!  Hope you dont mind but wanted to give you a little tip I learned after I had mine fitted. Please make sure that they implant a portacath that is also compatable with CT scans as mine will not take infusions put in 'under pressure', so I still have to have a cannular when I have scans which is a painful experience every three months. I had mine implanted under local anaesthetic but asked for sedation as well - and it was a doddle, cant remember a thing! x

Max

Thank you for your reply I've seen your name so often on this site - your story has had a huge impression on me I am so in awe of your supportive approach despite your own illness.

I'm not sure if they will do anything at the hospital with regards to putting a line in - i think as you say that if i've 'only' got four sessions left I might just have to tough it out. But I will ask :-) I'm going to try sitting with a hot water bottle and see if that makes extending it any easier. It doesn't help that the other arm is still compromised because I've still got quite bad cording but the physio seems to be helping progress there although sideways movement is still very restricted and tight. It's all the 'extra' things that get to you, and there are more the further through the treatment we go.

As has been said on here it's often difficult to get the right support from friends/family as they (quite understandably) don't know the right things to say. I feel as though i'm complaining if I talk to them about any problems because they know me as a strong person so they expect me to sail through it. And I don't like to worry people.

I've got a daughter in her second year at Uni who has been lovely and texts/calls me all the time, and a son in his first year who has been... well as supportive as an 18 year old boy can be! it's actually quite amusing to watch him dealing with life after he's spent the last seven years in his bedroom. Bet he will be proud of me and my new cyber activity!

Apart from that it's just me and my dog Toby who is loving the fact that I'm at home all day with him although he's a very active springer who pulls on the lead so I'm not able to walk him locally I have to drive him somewhere and let him out of the boot like a bullet!

So it has been a great source of comfort to me since November to read through the moving conversations and friendships made on here.

And this is my 'good' week so I need to get out there and make the most of today's sunshine and go for a walk - with, obviously, my best friend the beanie hat!

I hope things are stable for you at the moment

Gina xx

Boatgirl

God that sounds like a plan!! I'm going to call the combined day unit at the hospital on Monday and see what they say. I've got my oncology appt on Friday for round 3 on Monday March 3 so I need to move on this if I can.

Thank you!! feel much better now :-) :-)

Gina xx

Gina, Just to add that if you have that many sessions to go, it would be really surprising if they don't offer this to you.  My sister had BC 4 years ago and the memory is still there - with each chemo session her veins were more and more of a problem, till on the final one they were dealing with collapsed veins.  There are other options but my understanding is that they require cleaning on a weekly basis whereas it is monthly for the portacath. Well worth pushing for.  Gill

I really dont think the docs would think it feasible to have a portacath implanted for 4 more sessions honey - I was thinking of a temporary line if there is such a thing. As far as I am aware, the portacath is kind of permanent (I may be wrong) and will need care and flushing regularly even after treatment ends.

Gina, try to drink plenty before you go for your next infusion and it is really helpful to put your arm in a sink of hotwater when you are at the hospital to bring the veins up. Then keep the warm cushion on your arm. If you can, I would also call the chemo nurses and tell them how painful your arm is at this present time just in case you have an infection. Good luck sweetheart  -  I hope you are ok x

Hi Gina,

I've just seen your thread and see that you've had some informative replies from Max and Gill.

When I had my chemo infusions, I had a PICC line inserted. I think it stands for Peripherally inserted central catheter!

It ran from the crook of my arm into my chest and I have to say, its insertion was painless and fairly quick (no sedation or anaesthesia required) but as Gill mentioned, it did need flushing once a week and the dressing that covered it also needed changing weekly.

The nurses at the Cancer hospital taught my partner how to do both and he managed well and the hospital supplied everything we needed.

I opted to have the PICC line inserted so that I could have some of my chemo at home in an infusor bottle, but I saw lots of patients in the 'chemo circle' having their infusions through them.

It was a bit of a pain having a bath as you had to keep it dry, but the hospital supplied some long gloves!

I had mine fitted with only 3 chemo sessions to go! Removing it was painless and took seconds!

Good luck with the rest of your treatments.

Hugs to you, Jo xx

p.s. I see you have a dog! We'd love one but we think our two kitties may leave home!

Hi there

Well I've just had an eventful couple of hours at the hospital, when I called the number I've got for some advice after all your helpful comments, I got told to come down to the medical assessment unit so they could have a look. Okay, i thought, good that they are on the ball enough to check it out. When I got there I was told that I'd be better off going to A&E as they hadn't got anyone there who could  help me. Hmm I thought, I'm sure this could have waited until Monday when the clinic was open - but they were quite insistent that someone saw me. So off I went, even though I felt like a bit of a fraud as it wasn't an emergency. The staff were struggling with a new computer system that had gone live a couple of hours before and wasn't working - bang go their weekend targets!

Three hours later I left the department having been eventually seen by a junior doctor who I'm sure learnt more about cancer treatment and side effects from talking to me than he'd ever studied!! after checking me over he did however say that he thinks the pain is muscular rather than my veins as there is no redness or bruising and they dont seem to be particularly prominent. I'm a bit sceptical but I'll go with it until I see my oncologist on Friday. It's not the actual injection site that is painful, and they didn't have too much trouble finding a vein to use so I'm hoping he may be right. A lesser known side effect maybe? Who knows...

Whilst I like the sound of the PICC line Jo I'm not sure I'd cope with flushing it out and changing the dressing, I'm here on my own and I'm a bit squeamish about things like that - when i came home with the drain in after my lymph node clearance I couldn't wait for the district nurse to take it out which thankfully was the next day. But I will discuss it and see what comes of the conversation - I don't discount anything that will make it easier on my body, this is tough enough to deal with without adding extra things to cope with.

So here I am back at home and I have two soulful brown eyes staring at me - I'm never sure if he's telling me he loves me or accusing me of something! Toby's great company and I know he likes having me around so much at the moment. We had a cat too once Jo, Polly was a beautiful but very aloof tabby who strongly objected when Toby arrived! a lady down the road used to feed her so she moved in there! Cats can be fickle sometimes.

I hope you all have a good Sunday, I have been invited to a roast dinner with friends - my taste buds seem to be as yet unaffected thanks to chomping on ice whilst the drugs are infused. So bring on the roast beef! I need the calories as I don't/can't eat much the first week.

Thanks again for all your help and support, bless you ladies

Gina xx