Dizzieness & Lightheadieness

[Carol H]

I have been receiving weekly infusions of Herceptin for over 3 yrs now - diagnosed 6 yrs ago (radical mastectomy, 6 mths chemo, 20 wks Radio)- recurred 3 yrs ago(lots more chemo) - spread to right breast and bones and now classed as terminally ill but still going strong with 2 young kids under age of 10 - anyway - for the last 5 days I have been experiencing very overwhelming Dizzieness whenever I stand, walk, drive or do anything other than sit down.

I am due my 6 monthly MUGA scan this Monday and have not yet mentioned it to the chemo staff but will on Wednesday when I am due my weekly herceptin - the dizzieness is getting worse - was waling round the supermarket today and couldn;t focus and when pushing the trolley kept feeling like I was going to pass out and when I was in the school yard every day this week I had to sit down while I was waiting on the kids - not like me at all - I am always on the go and very active but do rest when I need to which is a hell of alot lately.

Has any of you who have been on Herceptin some time experienced these symptons before - really worried its my heart.

I have been under alot of stress lately as planning to move to Ireland asap with my husband and kids as Tykerb is available there and not in Scotland and there is more family support over in Ireland and a lovely lady(Tricia) whom I met on this site has helped me so much and made it possible for this move but hav been under alot of pressure what with all the planning and selling my houses etc -basically I want my kids settled in Ireland with school etc before I start to deteriorate and if I do then Tykerb would be available which would be an added bonus.

Anyway - any thoughts or advice on the dizzieness would be very much appreciated until I see my consultant.

[tousled1]

I would contact your doctor immediately. It could be that you have low blood pressure or low blood counts. It's not worth taking a chance and waiting. You are under a lot of stress and worrying about this just adds to it. Please do call your doctor ASAP.

[Carol H]

I appreciate your quick reply - its 2.50am here in scotland and can't sleep with so much on my mind - its saturday 2morrow so can;t call my consultant until Monday but there is a 24 hr General Practioner service here in Scotland where you see a doctor out of normal hours but they are not cancer specialists and not my own family doctor - should I just leave it until MOnday - I have my older sister's wedding tomorrow so not sure what to do - what do you think.

[Bev]

I think you should enjoy the wedding. If you're anemic they can fix it on Monday. If It's a brain thing, 1 or 2 days won't matter. If it's a heart thing, then immediate help should matter, Just leave the message with your doc and go from there. My bet is you'll be fine. BB

[Cathya]

Carol;

I have been experiencing dizziness as well although not as severe as you. I have had a problem with my heart due to herceptin and was taken off recently due to low muga....41. Although my onc doesn't agree, I believe that the one week treatment is more difficult on the heart and the three week gives your heart a chance to recover. This is also pure supposition but I also wonder if, when you have a low serum her2 and therefore a low amount of her2 in the blood whether herceptin doesn't look around for something to attach to and go to the heart. This might sound silly but I just wonder. This would mean for you that you actually have your disease in control right now and might need a breather from the herceptin. My onc told me to let him know immediately if I experienced any more dizziness as it has been better since I have been off herceptin. I suggest you tell him right away as it could very well be your heart. If so, and if you are taken off herceptin....don't despair....get the serum her2 test and monitor it regularly. IF it's not available where you are....go to the government and try to get special permission to get it there...you will need to find a co-operative lab which uses Elisa.

Cathy

[tricia keegan]

Carol I'm sorry to hear you're not feeling so good and I think a lot
may be due to the stress you're under with the move and everything.
I thought it odd you just have mugga's every 6 months as I get them every 3 or echo's.
I've had no problems though but strangly I do get lightheaded now and again which I'm sure is herceptin although I have high blood pressure too.
I think you should try to enjoy the weekend and contact your onc on Monday
to see what he thinks.
I know there's no point in telling you to relax right now with everything thats going on but even try sitting still for a while and listen to some of your favourite music,always relaxes me!!
Please let us know how you get on
Hugs
Tricia
P.S..Thank you too for the kind words.
As I said before I was glad to help!

[StephN]

Dear Carol -
If you are that dizzy such that you need to sit down so often, then it seems you have something that needs looking into as soon as the docs offices open. You should also ask for a brain MRI to rule out any activity there that will often result in dizziness and balance problems.

They will check the normal things that have been mentioned in these replies, but don't forget your head. I feel that if you were going to have dizziness as a result of Herceptin, you would have known that before now since you are 3 years taking it.

Great news that you are able to move to Ireland if you feel you will have some increased options there.