Chemo access question

Hiya Kitty 

Hope you're feeling a bit better? 

I, like yourself, have been very difficult to get blood from over the course of my journey, mainly due to dehydration. Are you managing to drink much water? I found it helped when I drank tonnes. 

I've had a PICC line 3 times (for different health issues too) with no problems whatsoever. They were actually a brilliant alternative to having a cannula each time.

It didn't take long to attach, didn't hurt and really cut down the time I was in treatment. The only small thing that bothered me was having to keep it dry in the shower. You can ask your team for special covers.

Could I ask why you're not considering PICC? 

All our journeys are different and nuanced and you have to do what feels right to you. 

I cant give you any info on port a cath as I've not even heard of it.

Sorry I can't help much, but I imagine someone else could

If this is a bit rambling, I apologise (the menopausal brain fog has taken over this morning!)

Sending much love and hugs

Kate xx

Hi,

it’s the needing to keep it clean and dry that’s concerning me a bit. I like to swim as both exercise and for my mental health and having to stop that for the 5 months of chemo is going to take a toll. 

I think that all my negative experiences with needles and cannulas have also led to me not wanting anything sort of dangling - I’m also autistic and although I manage most of the time pretty well, this has become something that’s really causing me a lot of stress. 

I will speak to my team tomorrow - thank you for your reply. 

Hi KittyWilds

Welcome to the forum, I'm Daisy53 one of the Community Champions on this forum. I've been diagnosed with breast cancer twice, the first time I had a PICC Line in which I found great apart from the fact I had to keep it dry in the shower.  The second time I got a port put in which I found even better.  The port lies just under your skin and you don't have to worry about getting it wet, also it doesn't need to be flushed out one a week like a Picc Line does.  I haven't had any problems with the port and I've had it in for nearly two years.

Wishing you the best of luck with your treatment.

Best wishes

Daisy53

Thank you for your reply. I think I am definitely leaning towards the port, so I shall see what the doctors say tomorrow. 

I have a port, as like you I felt a PICC line would impact on exercise and life style too much. Mine has been in place over 3 years (I have metastatic cancer) and it’s never given me any bother. It just needs flushing once a month or so if not being regularly used. It’s been fantastic for treatment. The main challenge is it needs to be fitted by an interventional radiologist in a radiology day case unit. Not all hospitals have the facility and there can be waiting lists. Also, once you have it, you soon find only the specialist oncology nurses are able to use it. This means you can only use it for bloods if you book yourself into the oncology unit for bloods, rather than seeing a standard phlebotomist. I have had 3 operations since having it in place, and none of the anaesthetists would/could use it, nor do the people who see you when you go for a CT or MRI scan. I suspect all of the above would happily use a PICC line if I had one. 

That’s good to know - thank you! 

Hi, just another supporter of having a port inserted here.  I’m super squeamish (to the point of fainting which can be problematic). Having a port has been fantastic. You barely feel when it is accessed and my chemo nurses have said the risk of infection and leakage are so much less with it. I would definitely recommend getting one if you’re able to.  

Good luck

I got a blood clot after my 4th dose of EC chemo. On 3 occasions the chemo nurses had found it difficult to insert a cannula and I wish I had made more of the fact that when younger and a blood donor I had occasionally bled so slowly that they cut it short before I’d made the full donation. Anyway with 12 paclitaxels and 5 Zometas to go i had a port put in - I chose it when offered that or a Picc.

That was 2 years ago and it’s been great! I’ve got one more zometa infusion in January and plan to keep the port until next May as I have regular blood tests with the abemaciclib treatments and my veins in the arm that’s allowed are very difficult to access now so the team who flush the port out also take the blood test samples. 
All the best xx

Daughter had a picc line for first 8 chemo cycles. It was fine but you do have to keep it dry - cover when showering, no swimming - and generally be careful when exercising....if you feel like doing exercise. After radiotherapy and surgery, oncologist decided on a further 14 chemo cycles. She had a port fitted and found it so much better. No restrictions on what you can do.

I think they might try to persuade you to have a picc ...specialist CNS nurses can do that in half an hour, whereas a port is a day case in Interventional radiology. But you could put up a very good case for a port, saying you need to be able to exercise for your mental health. 

Very best of luck.