Anyone on just Taxotere and Cytoxan?
Comments
-
Oh really? Taxotere and latex are related? I'm severely allergic to latex, adhesive, teflon. The list is pretty extensive. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I take to abraxane.
I should have done more research, bah. Ever since being diagnosed, that's pretty much all I do though. Not enough time in the day.
0 -
They aren't totally related -- but in the same family of trees. I'm severely allergic to latex as well. Not so much teflon, etc. but I can't eat avocados or bananas either.
Completely agree on the research -- its exhaustinng -- but also glad that there is a way to get informed if you want to -- some don't and I understand -- but for me (control freak a little bit) its been a way to control this completely unconntrollable situation:-)
0 -
Hi Lalalara,
I just finihsed TC X 4 last Monday. I have a history of allergic reactions and was terrifed that I wouldn't get through chemo unscathed. One thing that I did beforehand was to consult with an allergy specialist who works with chemo patients. (I live in Boston so I have access to major cancer centers like MGH, where I got my chemo). Here are some things that I learned/experienced that might help you:
1) make sure that they do the "slow drip" for each infusion. I started off on an 8-hour schedule (first slow drip C, then extra pre-meds of benedryl and zantac before the T. Over the course of the 4 infusions, they sped it up a little, but I was still there for an 6 hours instead what I think is the usual 3.
2) the allergy specialist said that he is part of a de-senstizing team that works with specifically with allergic patients to help them through chemo. I didn't need this, but it is good to know it exists if you end up with a problem with Abraxane, ( I believe that you are going to be ok, just like me!)
3) start of with the recoommended doses of steroids and ask for additional premeds of benedryl and zantac. However, I want you to know that I had a worse reaction to the steroids than the chemo (my first TC was my worst by far) so I ended up just taking 5 steroid pills (3 day of infusion and 2 day after) instead of the usual 12 over 3 days. And I still didn't have an allergic reaction!!
Good luck and let us know how it goes for you!!! Best, Beau
0 -
I finally had my first treatment today. They got a late start, but long story short, I had NO reactions. They game me Aloxi, Benedryl, and Decadron (12 mg) in IV. I start the Zofran in the morning, per the nurse, and I'm supposed to take a Decadron later tonight. My Decadron is only 4 mg. I am going to take it extremely late tonight because I already had 12 mg early afternoon. I feel good so far, so taking the opportunity to clean my house a little. I'm drinking a lot of water. I think I had 48 oz while I was there. Yes, eight - 6 oz cups... 48. One down, 3 to go! I'm 25% done!!
0 -
cc4npg- Well done on 1st treatment.... YEAH!! Really hope SE's minimal. Remember every persons treatment is different but...I take almost the same meds, but I don't have Benedryl. Here's a bit of a 'heads up' for you, if I might...Take a stool softener or lax morning and night if you can...eat probiotic yog too. REally helps with the constipation, which these drugs give us. You don't want it... believe me . Eat little and often if you can...if you have any nausea... If you are having Neulasta shot, you might feel joint pain/achy/fluey feelings in a couple of days...Tylenol will help or nurse can give something stronger... and keep drinking the water. It really REALLY helps. Very best of LUCK.
0 -
outsidethebox: Love your screen name! Thanks for the tips. They don't have me down yet for a neulasta, because of my age, they want to see if I can hold my own. I get blood taken in 10 days. I've been eating prunes, one a day, for a while now. I may eat a few more to help with that, but I do have a stool softener if needed. No, I've been constipated before after my first c-section and it was bad! I'm planning on getting yogurt. That crossed my mind in terms of keeping yeast away. Don't want thrush or mouth sores.
The nurse today says they don't have ice chips because they don't have an ice machine. They want one, and are trying to get one, but I guess so far they've not been able to do that. I wanted to have my fingers in ice, but that didn't happen. I also wanted to eat ice chips during the taxotere. I'm doing the Tea Tree oil and maybe next time I'll try to bring my own ice. The nurse said I should be ok with the mouth and fingers, claiming that I'm only having 4 rounds and it's a light dose. We'll see...
0 -
All,
I have been following the thread here for just a few days as I start my first round of taxotere and cytoxan Wednesday. I am scared to death. The reason being is that I have had chemo before (Leukemia Survivor 7 YRS NOW) and that was the worst and most truamatizing experience of my life. I luckily survived after being hospitalized for over 6 weeks.
What can I expect or should expect?
0 -
patty 61 ~ I understand how you feel. Think many of us are terrified. I know I was. I am having my second round Thursday. First treatment I was so scared. But the nurse was awesome and I did not have any reactions. Really mostly fatigue. No mouth sores, no taste changes, no vomiting - didn't need anti nausea, no Nuelasta shot.. blood counts were low but not too low... little things -- NO BIG THINGS.... the fear of it I think is worse than the actual... I'm just about 100% again... just in time to get zapped again. A woman on another thread mentioned that she was 90% of normal through the whole thing and a friend of hers was 87%. This has been my experience so far. YOU CAN DO IT! I'll be thinking about you on Wednesday.
0 -
patty61 i agree with Lmflynn most of it is small stuff that you have to deal with and usually only lasts a few days. I have had 3tx I am on day 14 now. I feel fine now. Just get tired easy and my eyes tear a lot. My worst days are 4-6 i got bad fatigue, plus i get very restless because they give me steroids day b4, day of, and day after. I get thrush every time and i take meds and it goes away. It seems like the SE are things that you might be prone to thrush is mine. I had a few days with some nausea took the meds the doc gave me to keep at home and it went away pretty quickly. The worst part of it is my hair falling out, even though the fatigue was really bad it was only a few days. But I have learned to rock the hat look. get some wigs and hats and scarfs to have ready try to have fun with it.
Be sure to call your onc office with any SE do not suffer any more than need be, and be sure to find out that it's not serious. Get meds for anxiety they help a lot with the nausea and the sleep i take ativan works wonders.
0 -
patty 61 you can do this! just remember that there is a solution to every SE and being diligent about them is so critical. the second you feel the least bit nauseous (you may not even get nauseous) have ginger tea and ginger candy.
force yourself to take 3 walks a day until you get really fatigued but still go out at least once or twice.
take claritin to avoid both allergies and neulasta pain.
take ativan or klonopin after the steroids so you can sleep.
drink water every hour and eat 2 apples a day.
when you feel good, do something fun! have visitors, watch movies, LAUGH!
if your stomach is upset, take Imodium (i have found that constipation trumps the opposite bc you do not want to lose fluids).
if you lose your appetite have chicken soup for the protein and fluids....or if you can, smoke pot. in all honesty pot is what got me thru chemo. i only smoke it the first and second day to keep my appetite bc i am very skinny. i have now gained a healthy 10lbs!
we are here for you if you need advice or just to vent!
today is my last TC! yay! before you know it, you'll have your last TC. good luck.
0 -
shirAMAG CONGARTS ON YOUR LAST TREATMENT WHO HOO!!!
0 -
Shiramag -- Congrats! Awesome to be done I'm sure!
0 -
shiramg: So you did the marijuana thing? Did that really help? I'm not a user but am curious about how much it really seems to help. I weigh between 98 to 102 lbs depending on the scale they use. I'm not looking to gain a lot of weight, but it would be nice to have a more natural drug that seems safer than some of the others. Congrats on being DONE!!!0
-
Shiramg- SOOOO JEALOUS!!! Congratulations! Hope your last set of SEs are super mild!!
Tiffany
0 -
cc4 npg... Yeah pretty cool and Thanks ...I'm still trying to thinkoutsidethebox. Hope your SE"S remain low.
Shira mg YEAH! Congrats....Some of us will be finished in Dec. BRING IT ON !!!! I say.. In fact I wonder if I can get it done earlier... MMM. Maybe not...
Patty This first part is the worst part ... not knowing.. You will soon be over this part and you can move on. You are not alone...
0 -
cc4npg the pot thing works - at least for me, but i advise only using it the first 2 days. i am 5"7 and was 108 and as of today i am 116! healhty weight! the pot helped my appetite, eased my stimach, and made me feel relaxed. the trick is making sure you have the right kind. there are so many strains these days that can make you paranoid or really out of it. i was lucky to find a medical grade called lavender. its what got me thru chemo!
g-d i hope i don't get arrested for posted this.
i noticed you're in ohio. do you have any friends or fam in cali? they are the ones that can help.
0 -
Yeah, the one time I tried it I became paranoid and I don't like feeling drugged up (thus, I'll never be a druggy). That was a long time ago. Yes, I'm in Ohio... not legal here. I just wondered if I became desperate if it actually worked. I wouldn't be able to get the lavender probably, but hopefully I won't reach the desperate point anyway. I wish they'd just make it legal everywhere for medical purposes. It's a shame to waist such a good option for so many medical problems.
0 -
I'm on day 4 post TC # 3 and I"m doing okay except for these damn taste buds being gone. My taste buds left me 3 days post 1 treatment and they still haven't come back. I can't even detect salt, sweet, nothing. Everything including water tastes like sawdust, pasty, just no taste at all. Are my taste buds gone forever? That makes me soo sad.
Other than that - my stomach feels bloated, gnawing, always hungry and I have thrush again despite using Difflucan.. Those damn steroids.
Hope everyone is doing well... My last treatment is December 17th and I'm hoping, praying taste buds are back for Xmas.
0 -
No, I don't believe your taste buds are gone forever. From what I've read, the taste does come back after treatment ends. Most of the side effects dissipate, some taking longer than others naturally, and it depends on our individual chemical makeup on who gets what, when, where. But then, that's been the way this dx has worked from the get go... no real rhyme or reason. I sure hope you're able to enjoy your Christmas dinner and deserts!! I'm hoping I feel up to baking. We have a tradition of 3 days baking for friends and family, and I'm just not sure how much I'll want to do.
0 -
Rachel i found that the thrush was causing everything to taste bad. It went away when i took this prescription mouth wash called nystatin, it's a swish and swallow. I get thrush every time and it peaks day 4 or 5 and then it starts to go away by like day 9 or so and everything tastes better again. If the diflucan isn't working you should tell your onc you don't want to get thrush in your throat.
0 -
I think it might be in my throat because my throat feels very thick and pasty. The Nyastatin I have at home and that did not work at all for me, that's why the doctor gave me Diflucan which worked well the first time but not so much this time.
I'm taking the steroids still because of hives, zantac, difflucan, sulcrate mouthwash, biotene although I don't and never had dry mouth. I'm just so sad because I love to cook and eat and it's so hard cooking all these great things for my family and not being able to taste them at all. I can't even detect salt. I can't put anything anywhere on any side of my tongue to figure out taste - it's very frustrating.. Even water tastes like shit.
0 -
Hi pinkwarriors! I had 4 rounds of TC from April to June of this year. I hated all the taste issues too, but know that it passes soon after your last treatment and I truly appreciate the flavor of my food now. Big kudos to you, Rachel for COOKING for your family through chemo. I was pretty much on the couch the whole time. A word of caution regarding the toenails... I used Tea Tree Oil faithfully on my fingernails and toes and thought I had made it through with all nails intact (though my fingernails did develop ridges) BUT the end of October ALL my toenails fells off!!! (I finished chemo JUNE 30!) I was sad but the nails underneath were about 1/2 grown and at least it happened in the fall when I am not wearing my flip flops every day! So I think Sugar may be on to something with the ice...
((HUGS)) to all and wishes for an SE free Wednesday!
0 -
Rachel sorry that did not work on your thrush the nystatin seemed to work instantly on me. It did not get rids of it completely on my really bad days just lessened it, but as soon as i started coming out of it my tongue went pink again. I also used a tongue scraper and i rinsed my toothbrush with alcohol after every use. Also when i use the nystatin i hold it in my mouth for a while gargle and swallow. I was using the biotine mouthwash in the beginning did nothing for me. I also tried salt water rinses did not work on me.
arubajan05 that is shocking. your nails fell off so long after tx ended. That is crazy. I am really worried this will happen to me but i hate the idea of ice on my feet i get cold so easy, anyway i only have one tx left. I put on clear polish that has calcium in it before each treatment. My nails actually look really good. Very scary.
0 -
ladies,
you will get through all of this! i promise! for those of you having taste issues, add a little lemon. lemon has worked wonders for me throughout this experience. it makes water taste great and quentch my thirst. add some lemon to spinach (also some truffle oil), it tastes great and will keep your hemogloben up. i also discovered that pizza is amazing after you've had it for 2 days. mybe thats weird.
keep your heads up!
0 -
Evening all!
Just got home from my first round. Had a reaction to Taxotere which brought the nurses and doctor running. severe back pain, hot feeling all over and shortness of breathe. More steroids and another hour wait but was able to finish and not have to change treatment regimen. Tired but most i think is from the stress of the day and was up at 4:00am.
Bright spot of the day was 2 of the infusion nurses that had me when I was treated for leukemia 7 yrs ago for in hospital chemo.are now in the infusion area. Meagan looked at me and said do I know you? i said yes, Meagan. We had a nice chat and the she sent Althea in and we had a nice chat also. It's great to know that they remembered you also as these 2 were absolutely fantastic in their profession.
0 -
Hi Rachel - I just finished 4 rounds of TC. I got the white tongue and throat every time. I took nystatin on the third TC because I didn't realize until then it was thrush as it usually got better over time as my immune system got better. But the third TC it hung around. The doctor said the steroids also knock out your immune system so maybe when you get off them, a few days later, you might re-try the Diflucan, etc to see if it works then.
I ended up being allergic to the nystatin so for my fourth TC, my onc prescribe another drug (Mycelex? not sure of spelling, but they are throat logenges and a different drug from Diflucan or Nystatin). However, I have had some liver problems (and diflucan and Mycelex are hard on the liver), so I tried some "natural remedies" that I looked up online including swishing with cidar vinegar, rubbing fresh garlic in my mouth, using the tanin of a strong tea for a swish ( all of these feel ghastly for a few seconds), but I am now 10 days post chemo and my tongue is pink again. So, I am not usually a big believer in this stuff, but it seems to have worked for me so you might consider some of these ideas too.
Patty - I am so sorry that you had an allergic reaction on your first TC, but I am glad they got you through it. You probably will now be on a "slow drip" plus extra pre-meds protocol for all the remaining TC infusions, but just be sure to double check each time. I have a history of allergic reactions, so I started on a real s-l-o-w drip plus extra premeds for my first TC (I was there for 8 hours) and they kept my on a slow one every time (last one was 6 hours). Just make sure you advocate for it. They will listen to you. Good luck going forward.
At day 10, I am now on antibiotics for my chest cold and starting to feel a bit better. Still really tired but since I am sick and the effects of chemo are cumulative, I am dealing with it. I have been sleeping and taking it easy. I managed a short walk yesterday and plan a longer one tomorrow. We shall see....
My DH is sick too, so I am trying to get back in the game a bit with the kids,but he is still a huge help. It makes it much easier for me to get better when I have him as a safety valve to take the kids to school in the morning,etc. I am really grateful to be done with chemo and am now just waiting for the side effects to work their way through. Still feels a bit unreal to me, as I feel the usual tiredness, no taste buds, hemmroids,etc, but I imagine by day 20, things will start to feel more upbeat.
ok, the font changes are probably happening again, but it is the computer gremlins not my artistic expression!
I wish everyone a s/e free day! Best, Beau
0 -
Patti, glad to hear you made it through! I had the severe back pain with my 2nd tx. They gave me benadryl and additional steroids, waited 20 minutes and started again-very slowly. Scared me, but the pain stopped pretty quick. I didn't have shortness of breath, but had a dry cough which the nurse told me was a reaction. So next time I will get benadryl automatically in my pre-meds. I hope number 2 goes smoother for you!
Tiffany
0 -
I'm day 8 post tx #3 of TC... I feel like crap. My thrush seems to have calmed down a bit, but what I'm feeling now is an elephant on my chest and a some phlegm in my throat / lungs. I try to cough it out but its not coming out. When I'm able to get a little bit up, it's really nasty tasting and burns a bit. Is this normal or pneumonia starting? I have no fever at all. I just feel tired and blah.. My last TC is on December 17th - can't wait to be over.
How long after chemo is done do you: A) get your hair back?
get your taste buds back? and C) get your life back to feeling normal, no pain, no side effects?0 -
Rachel: What color is coming up when you cough? Green isn't good... and frothy can be bad too. If you're getting pneumonia, or think you are, then you need to call the doc today... not tomorrow... today. Don't stay in bed, that makes it worse. Don't stay in a lying position. Try your best to get up and move around some. As for hair... my research indicates that the normal time to see a shadow is somewhere around 8 weeks post. This link is a hair grid posted by someone else in weekly format. http://www.karinstack.com/images/hair/HS_grid.jpg
I've heard it just takes time to get taste back and feeling back to normal. Many say they've felt much better 9-12 weeks out, but some take longer.
0 -
ok round 4 was the hardest by far and day 3 sucked! i'm ok now and you all will be too!
0
