I will add that high risk of reccurance doesn't necessarily mean the odds are in favour of it reccurring. It might; I don't know much about breast cancer, but I was told I'd a high risk of recurrance and googling told me it was around 20%. Now, I know you should take a doctor's word above google's, but in this case, I think he just meant comparatively high, that the lymph node involvement raised the risk, not that he actually thought it was likely to happen.

Yes  mate, I was born in the East End and grew up in Islington.  I had 8 lots of chemo over a 4 month period, but I have known lots of people who had weekly sessions and it really doesn't mean that your illness is more serious just because your chemo is weekly. After the chemo  I was meant to have surgery, but like I say, I had to make a very difficult decision and it involved a crisis concerning my husband (who is also dying).  Anyway Athena, I'm feeling very tired now.......bed is calling me lmao!  What part of London are you from?  Talk some more tomorrow ok, and remember, you CAN DO THIS GIRL!  Violet, xx

Ok I think triple neg is a bit higher than that... going to sleep now as tough day xx 

I live in south London 

thank you  Violet 

night sweet xxx

Hi,

Its a scary place when newly diagnosed and the fear of the unknown. I was diagnosed in Dec 2019. Mine was Grade 2 I had surgery to remove the 5cm lump and cancer was found in 2 underarm lymph nodes. I had treatment and am now on hormone medication for 5 years and feeling fine. Try not to overthink and Google too much. Everybody is different in their treatments. Trust  your team will do the best for you. There's lots of support on here. 
Best wishes Silver 

Ok Athena, you can do this.  EC chemo is Epirubicin and Cyclophosphamide, 2 drugs and where it gets the name from.  I got a lot of side effects, unlucky for me, but found it do-able and my energy didn't go.  For EC chemo, watch out for becoming constipated a few days later.  Really common I think and can be helped with tablets.  You should hopefully have a number for the Breast Care Nurses (BCNs for short) and a phone number for the cancer hotline, both to help you manage side effects.  They want to help as much as they can and can organise prescriptions for anything you need to help you.  You'll be given anti sickness medication given to you in tablet form to take or actually in with the chemo by iv.  The chemo goes in through a cannula in the back of your hand and you sit in a reclining seat to get it.  And a nurse will sit with you the whole time the 2 lots of chemo are going in seperately and keep you calm. And drink loads of water for 2 days after it.

You've to stay on your feet once on EC chemo which means getting enough exercise, even walking about indoors or pottering around and not sitting down or lying down all day.  You can have a sit down in between though.  This avoids blood clots so highly recommended.  From the list of possible side effects, it's anyone's guiess what ones you might get as we all react differently.  But keep an eye on your mouth lining as the days go by.  Chemo destroys fast growing cells so think hair, nails and mouth lining.  Think about what you'll wear on your head to make you feel better with hair loss and try to think about that just now if you can so you feel prepared.  Nail varnish strengthens your nails.  You can try using the cold cap treatment during chemo if an option to keep some of your hair, it's not very pleasant though but works for some people.  There are mouthwashes the chemo nurses can get for you to help with mouth ulcers and a sore mouth in general.  Avoid citrus fruits and tomatoes.  You hopefully get a booklet on what foods to avoid.  And watch out for oral thrush which shows as white raised patches on your tongue.  It feels burny and you don't want it spreading down your throat.  There's a nice tasting liquid you can get that you drop on your tongue 4 times a day for that, it clears up quickly.  You're going to have this spread out over 2 or 3 weeks before you get your next chemo infusion at hospital.  Be kind to yourself during this time and I'm sure you'll be ok.  You don't usually get side effects every day although you can but you won't be lying in bed being sick either.  And you need to feel well again before the next chemo is due or they would delay it.  The nurses will phone you to check.  And blood tests need taken 2 days before chemo at your GP Surgery or at your hospital.  You might need to arrange that yourself.  Take your anti sickness tablets they'll give you on time and don't wait until you feel sick and they should hopefully work fine.  If not, phone up and they'll give you different ones.  Try to get them to send the prescription to a local Chemist so its easier to pick up.

I think you'll manage this better than you think.  Just remember this is hopefully destroying the cancer inside you.  That's the plan.  You might get steroids too and you might not.  These give you energy but can affect sleep.

And ask anything else that you want to. Best of luck.

Thank you so so much 

I might need your help once I start the chemo 

heart broken about the triple negative x

Not a problem Athena, just ask when you need it.

Try not to worry in advance about the 12 weekly doses of Paclitaxel.  Each dose is called a round by the way.  If it's being given weekly, it means that you'll get much smaller doses of it which is probably equivalent to my 3 rounds of Docetaxel which I had every 3 weeks.  Paclitaxel and Docetaxel are in the same drug group, called the Taxanes. It just means you'll have to attend hospital every week for it sadly but the good news for you is smaller doses into you means your Oncologist can reduce the doses quicker if you're finding side effects a bit difficult.  And that's great!  Your Oncologist carefully monitors your tolerance levels from what help you're needing with side effects and what you tell the nurses when they phone you to do a health check the day before.  You might find weekly doses a good thing apart from travelling into hospital more often.  More rounds doesn't mean more chemotherapy drug amounts going into you.  My tumours were larger than yours and the chemotherapy worked on them and my lymph nodes.  It's not pleasant but try to imagine finishing and getting good news after your scans on what it's done to the cancer.  That's why we're doing this.  Its quite emotional, better than a Lottery win.  

Thank you for being so kind and helping me, 

trying hard to calm down a bit 

going to try and not take a sleeping tablet today. 
my tumours are 43mm in breast and 28 mms in lymph node. 
thank you so much for sharing your experience and knowledge I am so grateful of all of you who are helping me and hopefully soon I can be one who helps others. 
what port is best , I am really scared of needles which sounds a bit nuts as I have tattoo s , ( different needle doesn't pierce all seven layers of my skin) 

I am so happy for you that your cancer has melted away

trying to build up my exercise as I am unfit 

walked for 40 mins today did 30 mins on exercise bile

trying to win. But terrified of everything 

xx 

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