Just diagnosed at 39 - any advice greatly welcome!

Thank you. 
thank god for these support forums - women have just really stepped up for me through all this. Mum’s at the school I hardly spoke to etc and friends. X

Hey, just thought I’d check in on everyone on this thread….started chemo on Wednesday and can’t sleep so going through old messages. 

hope everyone is doing well. Xx

Hi. Sorry you can't sleep. Once steroids wear off you will sleep better. Been there, know how it feels. I m doing great. Finished radio in Jan. Back at work. I m on zoladex and aromasin doing relatively well. Just 4 phesgo injections left. Getting there. It still does feel surreal however life is getting better. Sending lots of good vibes for the rest of chemo time! You got this! Xx

Thank you. So glad you’re doing well. Yeah, chemo just seems an impossible slog ahead at the moment.

i will be on tamoxifen afterwards but would prefer aromasin from reading it’s more successful so am hoping to revisit this conversation with my oncologist.

xx

Chemo was the longest part of treatment, soon be over. I did start on tamoxifen and after 3 months they introduced zoladex which to my surprise didn't give me a lot of bad side effects and for the last four weeks I m on aromasin. According to soft studthat combo has good results maybe you can convince your oncologist to try it if there is no contraindication for you.fingers crossed!  x

Hi there

sorry also that you can't sleep - my sleep is only just beginning to get better and I finished chemo in November but I was an insomniac before chemo! Have you asked your nurse for something to help? I was given sleeping pills but I have a bit of a problem with taking them so I took melatonin instead which kind of helped and is natural as is magnesium. 

I have also just finished all my active treatment and found the radio no problem at all but I am still sore from surgery that took place in January, lots of scar tissue etc and numb from the node removals. 

I was also meant to take Tamoxifen but my oncologist gave me the choice of trying the combo of Zoladex injections and daily AI tablets - i'm taking Exemestane. So far though like Goose39 I am having no side effects nearly 3 weeks in despite all the awful stories you hear about the symptoms.  I agree with Goose39 - maybe this could be an option for you also so maybe worth bringing it up with your oncologist but then again there may be a reason why he/she has suggested Tamoxifen. Think it all depends what's happening with your periods etc. 

I'm starting back at work in a few weeks as a very gentle phased return so i'm beginning to be reintroduced to life again as it were but this experience has definitely changed me forever. 

Keep going, the chemo stage can seem never ending but the day of the last one will come! xx

Thank you. Feeling very low and tired today but still can’t sleep. I haven’t asked for anything but I will ask at next meeting. I feel like I don’t want to take a single drug more than needed as I am on so many. 

yeah, my oncologist is giving me Zoladex to shut my ovaries off but, for some reason, didn’t consider grade 3 in 4 nodes high enough risk to balance against osteoporosis and still wants me to have tamoxifen over the AI, but I am quite adamant I’ll take my chances with with exemestane so need to speak to her again. I’d take survival over quality of life at this age. 

thank you- it’s nice to hear people have got to the other side of treatment, albeit changed forever. How can we not be?

xx

Hi again 

I totally get not wanting to take another drug, that’s kind of how I felt. They have worked for some but I just had a problem taking them seemed weird considering how many others I was putting in my body! 
I hope you have a positive chat with your oncologist re the hormone therapy x