Hi all! I’m Emily, diagnosed young at 23 and here for support really. ☺️ Had a large (football sized) cyst removed in September and in October found out it was cancerous.. Undergone fertility treatment, strongest dose for 6 rounds of carb/tax chemo and finally finished it this month! 🙌🏻 Waiting on scans and next steps with the pending hysterectomy operation.. If anyone has any words of wisdom with how to do this waiting game like an adult and not cry on a daily basis I could really do with that pep talk!
Thanks 😁
P.s how quickly do eyelashes and hair grow back?? Fed up of looking like an egg! 🐣
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EmStephens
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You will find lots of lovely and very supportive people on here.
I finished first line chemo in November 16 and by January I had hair and lashes, very short hair and lashes but some.
You are allowed to have a good cry, it’s a bloody awful disease and not what you should be having to deal with at 23.
However you are though chemo now and need to start taking each day and wringing the good things out of it. Try to find and do something you enjoy each day, see friends, make playlists, think about a trip or holiday you might like when your treatment is finished. For me that meant starting to work again, it helped me get back to a normal which didn’t revolve around this disease.
It is hard to get back to any kind of normal when you are waiting for results as i’m sure most of us run away with what ifs!
Your sense of humour will help you get through this, the support of your friends and family will be backed up by the lovely ladies on here.
So sorry you have had to join us and at such a young age.
Don’t worry about being adult with your emotions, I am old enough to be your mum and can tell you we all have bad days.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom, you have been caught young and early and it’s all positive, don’t google! the stats are so out of date.Remember others are not your experience, I had the op and 6 months carbo/taxol 3 years ago and am still clear.
I finished chemo in March and went without my wig on August the first the same year,but we are all different.
Totally agree with Lisa, do what you enjoy doing and take strength and support from friends and family, it will get you through,
Oh Emily! I'm so sorry you're going through this. And what's wrong with crying every day after all? It's a release. Do it to let the feelings out and then write down something that gives you great joy (I keep a joy journal to remind myself to go one day at the time) and move on. As for hair, I finished treatment in January. Eyelashes are almost fully back. Head is fuzzy. I missed my eyebrows the most. They're returning but more slowly. Making do with temporary tattoo eyelashes--yes! such a thing exists!!
Hi Emily, welcome to this forum, although I wish you didn’t need to be here, if you see what I mean! I feel you are too young, most of us are older. But hey, that’s how it goes...It’s great that you’ve finished chemo & the cyst is out. I wonder if you are planning to return to work? It’s a good goal to have.
Just concentrate on getting & feeling well for now. I am 6 months on from chemo & my hair is about 3cm long (has been trimmed & coloured) & in a kind of pixie style. I can’t wait for it to grow longer though!
Hi! Sod being adult about it! Wail and scream! Or drink gin 😆
As for the hair thing, mine came back ridiculously quickly. I did the cold cap so kept quite a bit but it’s now back (3 haircuts and I finished chemo 6 months ago) and eyelashes/brows etc back very speedily. Only irritation is my once blond locks are now dark brown and defy gravity by standing on end!
Oh one extra positive is hairy legs and armpits are slower to get hairy now so there’s one tiny silver lining! 😀
Everyone has given you good advice and feel free to ask questions about every stage of your treatment for at least one of us will have experienced the same things.
I've found it very helpful for lots of little annoying symptoms or serious questions.
Which brings me to hair.
I never liked wearing a wig, made my head hot, and mostly I was too sick to care about my appearance, but when I was in hospital for my operation, the lady across from me had a great natural hairstyle. When she told me it was a wig, I couldn't believe it!
Turns out she got help from the McMillan charity, and they helped her purchase her wonderful comfortable wig.
Well, I did the same. I found a great style for me, with the McMillan wig lady's help, and I love my wig and I put it on first thing in the morning and it is the last thing I take off at night.
6 weeks after my last Chemo, my hair is coming back. Just at the peach fuzz stage, so it will be a long time before I am comfortable in public without my wig. But, try McMillan and let them help you find a fetching affordable wig.
I wish you all the best on this harrowing and difficult journey.
My eyelashes and eyebrows grew back very quickly. I used the cold cap but still lost the hair at the crown-I suppose it took about 3 months but is quite thick now after 10 months but not as long as the rest so looks a bit odd. The waiting is horrible- probably a lot worse than the op itself - wishing you the best of luck. Please let us know how it goes.
Hi Em. My heart goes out to you. And I cry, I laugh, I get furious, I feel loving, feel low, negative and then positive, all the range of emotions. Trick is to allow them, but not to stay stuck in them too long! I often say its like a big storm sweeps through me and then I let go and it passes. Hair goes and then comes back again. My eyebrows left me on the very last chemo. Boy, was I pissed off. LOL. But it all came back within 2/3 months. Eyelashes just about hung in there. Let us know how things are going for you. Sending hugs from Australia.
Hi and welcome to the club nobody wants to be in but here we all are. What kind of OVCA do you have? I have met many women of your age who had germ cell which seems more common in young adulthood and they have done really well after chemo. I was diagnosed with clear cell at a premenopausal age (although older than you) , was still going strong with periods even though I had major fertility problems and was never able to have kids. I hadn't really finished grieving that when I got the cancer. The overnight menopause has been tough and years later I still have tons of symptoms. Clear cell is considered very aggressive so I did the whole 9 yards surgery and 6 months chemo. I'm 4 years out without a recurrence. Next check in 6 weeks and just holding my breath I remain NED. As far as the hair goes , I actually started to get some fine down type hair growing back by my last cycle of chemo. I thought that was weird bc the eyebrows and eyelashes were coming out full steam but the hair stared to sprout a bit. My nurse said that can happen. I went back to work a few months after finishing chemo and still wore a wig. The hair grew in all uneven with the sideburns really sprouting so I needed a haircut to even things up I would say about 4 months after chemo stopped. By 6 months I had a cute very short and curly (chemo curl) do that I really liked and got tons of compliments on. Unfortunately I lost all the curl after a year and it went back to straight hair but I have chosen to keep my hair quite short. I used to spend so much time on my hair BC (before cancer) and decided life is too short and I've got better things to do!! Regarding the daily cry, I could not get through a day without crying for months and months after my diagnosis. I finally went on an antidepressant - Effexor (Venaflaxine) seems to be quite effective for many woman and it really helped to staunch the tears. Not that there's anything wrong with having a good cry but I needed something to help me get a bit of a distance from all this. The further out you get the better things feel too. The other suggestions are really good too, such as planning small treats. I also found journaling and sending out bloggy type blast emails to my circle of supporters periodically helped too. Hang in there and keep us posted!
Welcome to the family we’re a friendly bunch so please make yourself comfortable for the ride 😘. 23 what a young age to get diagnosed! You’ll find lots of ladies on here who have cancer and also support people with cancer who will look after you and will be a support network for you. As someone has said already don’t consult with Dr Google he’s out of date with his information any questions you have that your oncologist can’t answer or your CNS (cancer nurse specialist) can’t answer ask someone on here as somebody will have the answer for you. Xxx
Hi Em, so sorry youve had cause to join the forum... be kind to yourself, we've all cried (regardless of age). Have you found the Younger Women's Guide to Ovarian Cancer? Its available from all the main charities (Target Ovarian Cancer, Eve Appeal, Ovacome & Ovarian Cancer Action) Lots of women were involved it its creation and it definitely worth getting a copy (download and/or free paper one)
Also, have you found the site Look Good Feel Better? Do have a look... Sx
I really wish you hadn't had to meet us, but welcome.
There are a number of a younger women on here.
Ovacome run a young woman's group. You could contact the support line to find out more about it.
You may find your hair grows back in interesting ways. I had curls for the first time in my life and lost all my grey.
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