Abraxane: will I go totally bald?

WOw, Barley - you must be one strong lady. You must also be getting REALLY tired of all this... Losing your hair is a side effect of Abraxane (a.k.a. Taxol), but each person differs - you might not lose all of your hair. It'll be a wait and see thing... Sorry I can't be more help.

Hre aree some other possible side effects:

• You may have pretty significant joint pain that (hopefully) lasts just a couple of days, but may stretch beyond that. Ibuprofen, taken at fairly high doses, usually helps with this. Ask your doctor how much to take.

• You may also have tingling in your hands and feet. Not much you can do about that; it's annoying, and can affect your balance, if it's in your feet (since it feels like your feet are asleep); but it should go away once you're done.

• Chemo brain: This rather disheartening side effect is experienced by many women as they go through chemo. And in about 15 percent of women, it lingers for years. Short-term memory loss and difficulty concentrating are its main characteristics. You may forget your best friend's name, your own phone number, or which way to turn a doorknob... any number of heretofore simple tasks are made more difficult, simply because you've (temporarily, hopefully) lost some short-term memory. Until very recently, this side effect wasn't officially recognized, nor taken seriously. But now, as more and more women experience it, researchers are trying to figure out just what's going on, and how to provide relief. If you do run up against chemo brain, try not to stress; if it doesn't disappear pretty quickly once you finish chemo, it should lessen over time.

Good luck with this, Barley- PJH