Another nervous newbie here!

Hi Lottie 

Welcome to the club although im sorry you found yourself here. I had the same regime as you are going to have. With regards to hair loss i think i had a little bit more come out when combing after washing but nothing that anyone else would notice. You may have already seen on here but if you are haveing a picc line for your chemo get yourself a limbo sleeve for showering etc i managed to get my pump in mine when i was having the chemo. Good luck for the 5th. Sending hugs. Xx

Hi Bungle1,

Thank you so much for your reply, it was the oncologist being so definite about losing hair that concerned me as everyone else had only mentioned hair thinning a bit. It’s very reassuring to hear about your experience and also top tip to get a limbo sleeve - I hadn’t thought of that one! 

L Xx

Hello and welcome, Lottie

I didn't lose much hair at all, and I think most of us here have a little thinning but nothing like some other cancer treatments and not really anything noticeable to others.

Well done for pushing against your GPs diagnosis when you were told it was a fissure. I hope all goes well with your planning scan and that you can enjoy Christmas.

All the best. x

This is the one i got

limboproducts.co.uk/.../

Hello Lottie 

A big welcome, and I am sorry you had to find yourself here.  And although yours is another concerning case of a GP not recognising the red flag, well done you in pushing, and I hope anyone reading on here who has suspicions they may have anal cancer push as well.  Too many people on the forum have been told they have haemorrhoids and in some cases treatment has been delayed for many months, even longer.

Some people have noticed thinning and their hair getting a bit brittle, but I haven't ever read of total hair loss.

We have lots of advice and coping tip, but you sound as if you read through the forum, as I did so you may have picked up many already!

Have a lovely Christmas and we are all here to support you in January.

Big hug

Irene

Hello Lottie,

Welcome to the forum although I’m sorry that you’ve had to find yourself here. I’m sure that you have lots to get your head around. 

I had mitomycin IV at the start of treatment and Capacetabine  orally for 28 days together with the radiotherapy and only had some thinning of the hair. I hope it’s the same for you.

Wishing you all the best for your planning scan tomorrow. 

We are all here for you if you have any questions at all.

Sending hugs x

Hi Lottie , welcome to our little corner of the MacMillan Online Community although I’m really sorry to hear of your recent diagnosis. 

On the flip side of that it’s great that you have a start date for your treatment & well done for advocating for yourself & pushing for that referral! So many members here have had their diagnosis’s delayed by their GP’s treating them for haemorrhoids or fissures etc., for literally months before finally being referred which obviously leads to later staging. 

I had a different chemo regime to you but see that Bungle1 has replied & given you an insight. My hair went a little thinner (not that anyone else would have noticed) & was pretty dry by the end of my treatment but after a couple of cuts & plenty of conditioner it was soon back in decent condition. 

I’m pleased you’re finding the forum helpful. If you have any questions at all just ask & we’ll do our best to help. We’re here to support you however we can. 

Nicola 

Hi Mrs Vanilla,

Thank you for your message, that’s great to know and hopefully it will only be hair thinning

My planning scan went well and I’ve got my first ever tattoos! Radiology dept seems very efficient and gave me a huge tube of Flamigel, which from what I have read is very good. I also have to drink 750ml of water before every radiotherapy treatment so I will need to invest in a bigger water bottle!

It will be a strange Xmas but it means I can keep busy and the 5th will soon come around.

L Xx

Ah that looks perfect I’ll get that one on order thank you  

Hi Irene,

What a lovely message, I’m so glad I found this little corner xx