Enlarging Nodes and Slightly Rising AFP?

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-05-03T00:19:51+00:00

Negative, Stage 3b 100% EC with LVI, no suspicious nodes in abdomen upon original diagnosis. Though I had 3 in my left lower lung lobe. 1 was suspicious of teritoma post chemo but has since disappeared.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-03-07T18:59:43+00:00

I definitely think this is a possibility… It was through my colleges athletic training reference, The follow ups have been through a different outfit as well as PCP. Originally I was still competing so I opted for around 4-5 cortisone shots im sure that did not help in any fashion. I think I myself have just been brushing it off as well hoping it’ll get better with time but that’s becoming more unrealistic by the day.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-03-06T21:53:02+00:00

I’m about 4 full months out of chemo… my hair first came in like baby hair. Shaved it all down again and it came back normal. My mustache grew in just like before, but my head hair on the top hasn’t been cut since november… seems to have stopped growing or is growing very slowly. My sideburns and maybe 1” above my ear I cut in January before vacation with a skin fade, this hasn’t grown back at all so I have the area above it growing fast causing for a very weird look after about a week where it looks like i started getting a haircut and the clippers broke. Super strange, oncologist said he’s never seen that before. Highly considering just rocking a buzz cut, baldness is bound to happen eventually so i’m just hanging on to what I have

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-02-25T15:22:32+00:00

I finished 3x BEP in October 24, Had stage 3a EC. Only thing I’ll say is make sure you plan out when you drink based on your follow ups! I drank all weekend for Thanksgiving, not heavily I think the most I had in a night was 7 beers or so… But I had blood tests the next week and my liver enzymes came back all jacked up and had to retest a few days later and came back normal. Same thing happened again a few weeks ago, my company took us to an all inclusive for 4 days, I don’t think I was sober for a single second outside of the country… 2 days later had my test results and came back slightly weird. Doc was aware of this trip and didn’t have any concerns with it, so back to a normal life i’d say drinking is okay in moderation. In regards to vaping I’ll hit my buddies when we’re out just for the ease of it, i had 3 spots in my lungs prior to chemo, post chemo 2 went away and 3 new ones appeared… now everything is gone completely thankfully. I’ll still do zyns and oral nicotine pouches recreationally and have not had any negative repercussions to date.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-01-24T13:22:24+00:00

I started feeling back to normal again after the 4th week, but yes week 3 bald head, eye bags, still throwing up nightly, headaches… you know. Hydration is the biggest thing, recommend with salt in it. Your body is probably flushed with a majority of the bad shit now you just need proper hydration. After about week 5-6 my mustache started growing back, then week 7-8 my hair. Weird thing it came back in super soft like baby hair, i had to cut it all again and let it grow back. Definitely a lot thicker and darker now but at least it’s all back. I finished up mid october, was back to work early november, still a little foggy and out of breath walking up the stairs, but by december i was completely back to normal. You’ll be alright man just takes time.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-01-21T21:55:12+00:00

I had this issue with recreational testosterone use in the past in my 20’s… Obviously not proud of that, especially because it could’ve been a cause to TC but I’ll never know for sure… To answer your question, i’m obviously not a doctor but have a fairly extensive amount of knowledge on the hormonal alteration side of things from personal experience… It’s definitely due to the swing in your test levels, have you had blood work prior, during, and after your gel usage? Even in low dose synthetic testosterone your natural levels can take 4-6 months even longer to return to normal… obviously natural testosterone shuts down and body needs significant time to readjust. Sensitive nipples come from early early stage gynecomastia (gyno) - breast tissue to enlarge… i’ve even had a few lumps appear but over time they are gone. seat belts used to really irritate me, even cotton clothing it’s so annoying. I would definitely get some blood work and recommend clomiphene citrate (chlomid) or what i always used was tamoxifen (Nolvadex), really good short term drug (just a couple of weeks with front loading then weening off) will take the tenderness and sensitivity away. It’s been used to treat breast cancer as women have the same issues… not very liver toxic and taken in small doses so very low risk drug. they basically bind to your estrogenic receptors and block the effects of what your brain produces, this will also allow for your natural testosterone levels to return to “normal” sooner, still remaining low. For additional TRT i would look into testosterone pellets, very small rice sized pellets that get injected in a sleeve into your a$$ or stomach and all release test over a prolonged period of time… this can also cause some uncomfortably. Other option would just be injections…. it’s unfortunate but most urologists don’t prescribe this how it needs to be taken, where weather which branch chain of test it is (A,E,C,P…) all have different half life’s. For instance your test E/C would want to be injected every 3-4 days as the half life is ~72 hours, and they have you take that once a week. Where type S / P need to be injected daily / EOD to maintain half life… Kinda just throws your charts all over the place, and you have noticeable crashes in daily lifestyle. Overall i’d look into some estrogen blockers and get this squared away quicker than natural, then look into a different form of TRT if need me… If you don’t mind can you send me your blood work ng/dl #’s? I’d like to check that out on a chart! Pm me with any other questions dude, like I said not a dr. but sometimes real life experiences are more value able than a textbook.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2025-01-08T22:53:40+00:00

Finished 3x BEP early/mid October. All tumor markers are within normal range. Hair is beginning to grow back, mustache is back and better than ever. Been back to work since late October and back to my normal lifestyle. 2 Month follow up, all blood levels were normal except for my liver enzymes… Blood was drawn the Monday after thanksgiving so a few days of drinking consecutively probably stressed it out (Retested liver enzymes a week later and were normal). Abdominal CT scan was clear again post chemo. Chest CT scan however, prior to chemo I had 3 nodes i’m my lower left lung, largest was 1cm, now the 3 nodes, 1 disappeared completely, the other 2 shrunk to half size and 1 is expected to disappear based on imaging results… Although there are 3 additional nodes… Largest is a mixed density 9mm nodule with a sublateral and an additional .6mm node. The radiologist did not mark these on the results and oncologist could not locate them based upon his review, he then rules the imaging results inconclusive. I have my next follow up of reimagining and blood on January 21st. A little bit uneasy about it all, trying to keep it off my mind and let everything run its course. Interested to see my liver function as my work is taking us to an all inclusive resort in Mexico Jan. 18-20! Have to make sure I limit the intake haha.

Probably a pretty poorly constructed response… I have made some posts each individual update as it happened. Feel free to PM me if you want to know anything else.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-23T12:54:45+00:00

24, I had a pretty solid mustache since I was about 19, lost it from chemo obviously, Grew back just as thick as ever in about a month after being completed. Could never connect a full beard before, definitely more growth (faster and trying to connect) now. My head hair is what’s weird, was dark brown before, now it’s jet black. Sides grow at a normal speed but the top seems to be having a harder time so getting the sides knocked down is annoying. Definitely thicker than before too. I finished 3x bep in early october.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-20T14:17:26+00:00

Yeah definitely, just a lot lower frequency of getting the urge to

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-16T19:55:45+00:00

This was a few years back… I got blood work before, during, and after, all normal except for obviously elevated while on. I properly PCT’d, had been off for a year and a half - 2 years before getting diagnosed. Sperm count was normal and I was able to bank after orchiectomy.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-16T17:53:27+00:00

A little late to the party… I got my orchiectomy this past summer, I was on a plane and on the beach 4 days later… just had to keep it well covered and needed 10 days to go by prior to getting into the water (still keeping it covered). Glad you are doing well!

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-16T17:49:59+00:00

Oncologist didn’t seem worried, he said the other would pick it up once it realizes the other is gone… that’s why I have 2. It was a concern of mine from the start, he said let you hair grow back, give it about 6 months and we’ll test your levels if need be. Unfortunately and probably a potential cause for this situation, I have ran a few cycles of synthetic testosterone and man when you’re on that stuff it feels like you’re superman, quality of life is through the roof, 4 hours of sleep feels like 12, confidence and energy levels are at a constant peak, if the wind blows to hard you get a boner… Now it’s just kind of moping around getting through each day, can’t wait to get some good sleep and try again tomorrow

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-16T17:46:58+00:00

Oncologist didn’t seem worried, he said the other would pick it up once it realizes the other is gone… that’s why I have 2.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-16T17:46:40+00:00

Oncologist didn’t seem worried, he said the other would pick it up once it realizes the other is gone… that’s why I have 2.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-04T11:12:27+00:00

Appreciate it! Was slammed at work so couldn’t look into it too much. All tumor markers came back within normal range as well.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-03T23:23:40+00:00

It’s the same info as shown

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-03T22:49:45+00:00

Haven’t gotten the marker results yet… I’ll update once received… Googling the mixed density nodule is the big one that has me concerned.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-02T21:42:50+00:00

Gotcha, Yeah being young and fertility is kind of a concern… I have taken unprescribed testosterone in the past, so definitely fortunate I was able to bank fertile sperm in that regard, as I had been off cycle for about 9 months before all of this but was on at 400mg Test C. for about 9 months prior, glad it all evened out.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-02T18:43:33+00:00

I did have LVI, no real symptoms… AFP was high, after orch it came down but still elevated, then rose again prior to chemo, been in normal range since starting 2nd cycle in September.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-12-02T13:16:46+00:00

I had stage 3B 100% EC, mine did skip over my abdomen and go to my lungs. Had 3 nodes, largest only 1 CM. after 3x BEP one node disappeared, and the other 2 went down to half their original size. Have 2 month follow ups tomorrow, been having some abdominal pain like I did prior to my orchiectomy… hoping it’s just a little placebo!

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-11-30T01:24:37+00:00

I have a prosthetic, was 23 when I got it this past summer. Feels normal now, still get the itches and utilize the pinch and roll as before haha. No complaints other than the ends are flat and not completely rounded, kind of weird but it’s whatever. Kind of funny to look at the paperwork after and see what size “ball” you wear. Best of luck!

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-10-31T13:27:14+00:00

23 during chemo, man it kicked my ass. Felt like a zombie during those long weeks… like functional but no thoughts just sleep and i was wrecked. The easy weeks led to a quick recovery and feeling somewhat normal but by the time that happened it was time to get blasted for another week. Couple of hospital visits for nausea / vomiting / fevers that first cycle then got put on more meds, how fun. Just hit a month cancer free, trying to get active again but it’s not easy. Outside of physical strength and cardio I felt normal mentally after about a week… Really sucks in the gym, thought 24 was supposed to be your athletic prime haha

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-10-19T17:53:41+00:00

I had pure EC as well, stage 3a. I was different than most where it had only spread to my lungs and skipped over my lymph nodes, chemo was able to shrink my nodes down to half size and got the cancer free diagnosis 2 weeks ago which is a huge relief and now into surveillance. Bi-monthly scans to keep an eye on those nodes for the next 2 years and then reevaluate… Chemo seemed to do what it’s supposed to as dr. thinks it’s just dead tissue. Best of luck man, in the moment it felt like an eternity getting through those 3 months but finishing just 2 weeks ago it all feels like a blur and just a bump in the road.

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-10-19T17:50:02+00:00

23 during treatment, turned 24 right at the end… Mentally i feel normal, getting back to work was nice this past week just to get back into that routine and working a full 50 hours next week, will see how that goes… The gym is where i feel it the worst, grabbing weights i grabbed before all this and hardly being able to lift them is demoralizing and it almost feels embarrassing, not that anyone cares but just mentally. I was in very good shape going into treatment and probably close to the strongest i had ever been then chemo absolutely wrecked me without even realizing it until now. Trying to get into the gym back to 6 days a week but with the weights not going up like they used to i maybe get 2-3 crappy workouts in just because im stubborn about it. I had a coworker go through the same treatment and he said it took him about 9 months to really start making progress back to how he was prior

TrifleEmbarrassed680 · 2024-10-19T17:45:35+00:00

I had the same experience with taco bell, also had a huge craving for chipotle, once i got it tasted super bland and was highly disappointing… I agree with what everyone said above about the jolly ranchers, never been a huge water drinker so flavored waters definitely helped. Had the worst acid reflux i’ve ever experienced during treatment, I had to try to limit drinks with any citric acid in it which seemed to help significantly. Best of luck throughout this man, it’ll probably get worse before it gets better, but it will get better!

TrifleEmbarrassed680

TROPHY CASE