<p>congrats to all the cancer survivors /husbands doing well!!!</p>
<p>I had taxol during the second half of my chemo. It was extremely difficult. My husband called the doctor after one particularly difficult night of pain. I also had an issue where on the evening after having chemo I took a laxative. Without it…I would have been a mess. (I am trying to keep this classy:) )</p>
<p>However, barring any bad results on my next mammogram…so far so good. </p>
<p>Downtoearth: It will be over soon…and then plan a celebration. I remember when I was able to take off my wig in public for the first time. It was slightly windy. The wind in my hair was the most wonderful feeling I ever had! And soon it will be your turn to feel the wind.</p>
<p>I am very emotional right now reading about you brave ladies. It was two years ago today that I found out I had cancer. I don’t think I will ever ever forget the fear.
I had taxol and it really hit me hard. The bone pain was awful and round the clock Vicodin didn’t touch it. I spent most nights on the floor in the fetal position. I almost stopped it but then my oncologist stopped the Nuelasta injections and that helped. My sons told me it was the hardest thing about my treatment, watching me in pain.
Blessings to all in this holiday season. May you find peace and strength for the journey.</p>
<p>And may I add to keymom: May our friends, family and children NEVER have to hear this diagnosis because a cure or shot (to prevent cancer) has been discovered.</p>
<p>…and after last night’s news report that women who are post menopausal/overweight/obese and who have had breast cancer…that they are 30% more likely to have breast cancer again if they have THREE glasses of wine per week…damn! I have a wine cellar filled with good stuff. IT ISN’T F***** FAIR! Now I can only have an occasional xanax.</p>
<p>I think everything in moderation. I dont drink but I dont believe a glass of wine is going to give you breast cancer. I think if you exersize and watch your weight , and eat well it will balance out. IMO!!!</p>
<p>keymom: How are you doing?</p>
<p>Ok…I’m sorry ( but not) to interject but today I had my yearly mammogram (NORMAL!!!) and a test for my blood (BETTER!). I came home…collapsed…didn’t realize that I hadn’t slept in days. </p>
<p>I can happen for all of us!!!</p>
<p>Sunday was the two year anniversary of my diagnosis. All mammos have been good. I still don’t think I am “normal”. I still feel tired even though it has been a year since chemo. My oncologist says it may be because I don’t sleep well. He wanted to give me an antidepressant but I felt too weird on it.
Tomorrow we leave for Disney World to celebrate the end of everything. My four sons, my oldest’s fiancee, my hubbie, my sister and BIL, and there kids/spouse. 12 of us in all. Can’t wait…</p>
<p>Yeah for you guys great news!!!</p>
<p>Been reading all the posts. All of you girlies seem so strong. Found a lump in my breast about three weeks ago and waited to see if went away with hormone variances. No such luck. Mammogram scheduled for Christmas Eve. I can tell you what I don’t want for Christmas. 
Anyway…only hubby knows which is a problem since he lost his first wife to cancer. He is in the pits, which frankly makes me crazy, on the outside he says not to worry but he has not slept well since I told him and he investigated himself. Normally I would not worry, but my first cousin was diagnosed with breast cancer last year at 37. I am 42. Only time will tell.</p>
<p>collegeshopping - you are right they all seem so strong. You do too. I hope you have a digital mammogram and the radiologist will be on site to read it right away. I would think that not knowing is the worst.
I had a “bad” mammogram a couple of years ago - went for my diagnostic and the radiologist came right down and talked to me, she was so nice. Thankfully it was nothing. I hope the same for you.</p>
<p>The radiologist will be there. The facility is owned by some parents of one of my d’s friends so I called and talked her mom. They know what’s up, it is just all so weird. Never thought it would be me. I guess none of us do.</p>
<p>collegeshopping–I went through this last August. I found felt a lump early one morning and went into panic mode. It scared the crap out of me. I was in such a panic state that I asked my husband to call the doctor for me. He scheduled the appointment for me–the doctor squeezed me in that day. The following day, I went for the mammogram and a sonogram. Thank goodness for the sonogram immediately after the mammogram. The sonogram showed that the lump appeared to be fluid filled rather than a solid mass. It was big though–about an inch. Two days later, I had an appointment to have it aspirated. I watched on the screen (via the sonogram picture) as the radiologist aspirated the cyst. He also made sure to get deep inside the cyst wall in order to get additional cells. As a precaution, the aspirated sample was sent for further study. About 48 hours later, I got the best phone call of my life. Everything was normal–no abnormal cells at all. The diagnosis was a complex cyst (it looked like a snowman–it had 2 parts to it. One circle and then another circle). </p>
<p>I know it’s difficult to not think the worst. I was in such a panic state that the doctor gave me a prescription for a few xanax to get me through that week. Try to remember that many lumps are benign. Good luck to you.</p>
<p>PS–The needle aspiration didn’t hurt one bit. I was in and out of the room within 10 minutes.</p>
<p>First of all, and I am speaking only for me, I am not brave. I took the process one step at a time and, with the help of xanax I got through it. I found my lump the Friday evening of Memorial Day weekend. That being said, don’t get ahead of yourself. All you KNOW is that you have a lump and that you have an appointment for a mammogram. I’ve repeated my doctor’s advice before but: Do not go online to sites that profess to tell you all about your status. Everyone is different, every situation is different.</p>
<p>I am assuming that you have had mammograms/self exams (despite the new agenda that women under 50 don’t need mammograms). Whatever it is, it is new. Hang in there. And I wish you the best Christmas gift that you have ever had.</p>
<p>collegeshopping, fear of the unknown is what makes the situation so unbearable. It happened to me a few years ago - a dark spot on the CT scan, a small lump, a trip to the mammography facility, another trip for an ultrasound… Turned out to be a cyst. I probably deleted 5 years from my life expectancy agonizing about this. Praying that your lump will be benign.</p>
<p>collegeshopping, I experienced the same thing 6 years ago just months after I lost my mom to cancer. It was the longest December of my life so far but in the end everything worked out. I will be praying for you on Thursday!</p>
<p>Call me annoyed! Doing all the right things, had a mammo last week, first one. The woman at the facility was wonderful, warned me that more often than not people are called back for 2nd or 3rd viewings. I was psyched up to hear a call back telling me to come in for a 2nd set of views. She told me I should hear back Monday if I need to come back, but that if not, I would get a letter. I realised on Tuesday that I never heard, so stopped thinking about it, awaiting my letter.</p>
<p>Lo and behold, Wednesday night I get a voicemail at 5:30PM from the Dr’s office, not the imaging centre, the Dr’s office. And the nurse leaves a message that it is after office hours so I cannot call back, but they want me to call back tomorrow so she can “share some information.”</p>
<p>Hmmm, do I worry or not? I am not really a very worried kind of person, so I think I am okay, not stressing or panicking, heck I would not have been stressed if the image centre had called Monday, but this is not either of the potential things I was told, therefore I don’t know what it means and I wonder. Mainly I wonder why they would leave an after hours message with no call back, I mean, come on, just call me tomorrow, good news or bad.</p>
<p>I guess I don’t need a 2nd set of views, so it is probably all clear and they probably are just extra polite to call instead of waiting to send a letter, but what if I were a very worried type of person. I would be stressed tonight.</p>
<p>Just my rant for the day on mammograms. Thanks for listening!</p>
<p>Somemom. Probably nothing to worry about.</p>
<p>Surprised to see this thread as I have a yearly mammogram tomorrow and I am scared to death my cancer is back. We shall see…</p>
<p>somemom, luckily, there are many more false alarms than fires when it comes to mammograms. Hang in there. I have cysts that tend to move around, and I ALWAYS get called back for another look. I’ve wisen up to schedule my mammos very early in the morning, so if the docs want to take another look, they can do it right away. I expect a major shakedown in July when I go for my annual scan because I have lost some weight, and my “girls” shrunk, so the cysts are not going to be in the same spot. :)</p>
<p>Keeping my fingers crossed for both of you, sax and somemom.</p>