All about Xeloda
Comments
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@soldanella…LOL to ice cream and pizza, which I could eat anytime. I am always hungry so I don't know if just a banana is enough. But you can try it and see. We are supposed to take the pills a half hour after eating since the pills work better with partially digested food.
Do you know what your dose will be?
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@denny123 : You're lucky to have an appetite in the morning! Personally I'm going to have to push myself a little.
I start with a dose of horse!! 1800 mg 2x/day for 2 weeks then break for 1 week. (62 kg/162 cm). I think my MO wants to hit hard from the start because my last PET scan is bad, my TMs are very high and I have progressive respiratory symptoms.
I'm apprehensive because I'm a specialist in having strong reactions to treatments (skin rash, stomach pain)...
I see my MO on Monday, I will have taken the 3 day treatment and we will see what he says...
Thanks for all the good advice, it’s reassuring to know that you have such extensive experience on this subject. I hope that these end of year celebrations will be sweet and comforting for you.0 -
@soldanella ..Wow! That's a high dose! But maybe he will reduce it after the initial dose. My onc won't go over 3,000 for anyone. If you want, I would have the banana, milk and ice cream or pizza-lol. Whatever you can eat, to prevent nausea.
What isn't mentioned very often, is that the skin on your feet will peel off initially, since it is old, tough skin. That's okay, and then use a lot of creams. I use Aquaphor or Gold bond diabetic foot cream.
Thanks for the kind words and I wish you the best for the Holidays!
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THANKS. So now I have old and tough skin... Lol!!!!
I bought the moisturizing socks, started the Voltaren and intensive ointment....
Day 1: I followed Dulcea's advice and had 2 toasts for breakfast. No nausea today but I too took Zofran. A bit of a headache this evening but that might be caused by lack of sleep. Well, the first day is done... I'm going to plan pizza/ice cream for the weekend. 😉
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I had a difficult night with a lot of coughing and a fever this morning. I have pain everywhere, a bad headache and a fever. I took a Dafalgan this afternoon and the temperature is starting to drop. I think I'm having a reaction to Xeloda with medication fever (this already happened to me on Piqray). I don't think my neutros had time to go down in just 3 doses of Xeloda. I am going to stop the treatment and will see my oncologist on Monday. Damn,... it's desperate
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@soldanella Sorry about that and I hope that you get that figured out quickly! And your initial dose can be lowered.
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@denny123 thanks. Yes, we will see Monday. In the meantime I'm going to try to regain my energy.
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@soldanella cold pizza for breakfast is my favorite! I eat an english muffin with cream cheese and that works for me. I can't eat a lot in the morning either. I try to then take the meds a half hour after that as suggested by the medication insert. As I mentioned, I don't have nausea from the meds per se, but when my stomach is empty, I do have a little nausea so I just nibble on something and that helps so then I can get a meal into me.
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@dulcea Thank you for your details. I think I'd have a hard time with a cold pizza. This morning I had vanilla cream and a banana.
Are you still tolerating the treatment well?
Because for me after only 3 doses it's a disaster: fever, headaches, cough and chest pain. I'm going to stop it, Monday I see my MO.
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@soldanella How long do those symptoms last?
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@denny123 : It's been 48 hours and it's like a bad flu. I have no desire to go to the emergency room, I'm better off in my bed at home. I'll give you news tomorrow.
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@soldanella hopefully it is just a virus and not related to the medication. It is cold and flu season here for sure! I had the neutropenic fever on Ibrance and it was terrible, as in I just wanted to sleep, but I didn't have a cough or congestion with it and Tylenol made me feel "normal" because it brought down the fever. Is anyone else you know sick?
I am still doing OK on it. I feel a little more tired than usual I think. I am almost done with my second 14 days and I get to start the 7 days off on Christmas Eve. Good timing because I have the week after Christmas off from work. I didn't notice any difference from the active week to the rest week though but not taking a "meal" of medications is always nice.
Rest up, drink liquids and take some fever reducing medication. I hope you feel better soon.
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@Dulcea: mthanks for your feedback. I also hope that it is just a virus. I take Tylenol and it helps quite a bit.
I'm happy that you're handling it well and wow...that you're able to work.
I wish you a lovely Christmas.
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@soldanella…. That does sound like a virus. I have never heard of those symptoms on Xeloda. It doesn't affect me at all, unless I eat the folic stuff.
Merry Christmas to all!
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@denny123 Yes, I think I had bad timing between the start of Xeloda and a flu virus. We did some blood tests and a smear and I'm waiting for a phone call from MO. If it's flu, it's really strong, I've already cancelled Christmas meals. And considering my lack of appetite there won't even be a pizza🍕!
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@soldanella Sorry that you are sick. But hopefully you can recover soon and get back to that pizza!
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@denny123 : Thank you so much for your encouragement. My MO wants me to start Xeloda again on 26.12. I hope to be sufficiently recovered by then. I think I will spend my Christmas quietly in bed.
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Hello All.
Has anyone experienced a tightness in the stomach when starting Xeloda? I am in the middle of my 2nd "on" week and have noticed a tightness on the right side as well as middle, a bit below my sternum. I
I've been communicating with my MO and she just ordered an abdominal scan (still waiting for the date). I am starting to freak out. Thanks in advance for any insight
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@smallmoments did you take the Xeloda after a meal?
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@denny123 - I do take the pills about 30 minutes after a meal. I was able to get an abdominal scan on the 24th and waiting for results. Really hoping it's nothing serious and that Xeloda is working
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@smallmoments : I am with you wholeheartedly for your start with Xeloda and I wish you a good result for your scan...and that we find a solution for your abdominal pain. Sending you sweet thoughts for the end of the year.
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@smallmoments Good luck with your scan! I have had a fatty liver mentioned now and then. But recently my PCP ordered a liver ultrasound. I have to talk to my onc and PCP to see how bad it really is. A fatty liver can be painful and apparently is very common.
But that is preferable to something worse!
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Thank you both, soldanella and denny123. I hope the new year brings comfort to everyone here.
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just got my scan back, shows very slight ascites but everythjng else stable. i guess i had an inkling since it's uncomfortable. waiting for MO/Nurse to callback.
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@smallmoments : I hope we found something to relieve you.
I also developed hepatitis on the Piqray, then the Truqap calmed things down a bit until it stopped working and my liver showed signs of fatigue again. I also feel heaviness in my liver after taking Xeloda but for now it remains bearable.
Courage for the future, we are soon jumping into a new year which I hope will bring us less torment.0 -
@smallmoments Yay for you! Stable is good!
@soldanella courage is right! We do our best!
@kbl Praying for you!
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@denny123 : 😘
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First of all, I wish a very happy new year to all who make this forum live and who make it so interesting with your experiences.
I have been taking X for 6 days now, 3600 mg/day (without fever, so it was definitely the flu that got involved!)
6 days with nausea despite taking Zofran 2x/day and respecting the times of taking it (30 minutes after eating). Some heaviness on the liver side. In addition, I feel extremely tired and I sleep like a baby. I changed Zofran for Primperan and it seems that it is a little better on the nausea side. As for the fatigue, I will still need some time to adapt. No problem F/M for the moment. In short, a rather acceptable start under X, hoping that it will do its job.0 -
Hi all, Happy New Year everyone! I'm just coming back to the boards after our holiday in France & Christmas/NY chaos. Despite stopping round 5 of Xeloda early I still had stomach pain up until our first day of holidays but gradually less. My stomach completely recovered during my extended break from Xeloda and I started back on round 6 on Dec 23rd. Only a few days left (14/7 cycle) and so far no stomach pain (yea!). I'm now feeling a bit more hopeful that I will be able to make it through the next couple of rounds but my MO says he would not be surprised if I need to take another break. My red blood cell counts are also quite low.
@denny123 my dosage is only 2000 mg a day so not sure it would benefit me much if they decreased it further. Appreciate your input on the peeling feet as I wasn't expecting it.. now I know. They continued to peel through the whole holiday but actually are back to normal now… just dry. I'm continuing the daily moisturiser. Will they continue this cycle of going dry, then peeling, etc?
@soldanella gosh sounds like you have had a rough holiday season between switching to a new med (Xeloda) and the flu. Glad to hear you are recovering. I do eat just a large banana sometimes before taking Xeloda in the morning and it seems to be fine… no nausea. I did get nausea after a few rounds in a row but it seemed to be related more to a cumulation of the drug in my system, not the timing of when I took the pills.
@smallmoments good to hear all is stable with you. Let us know what your MO/nurse says about the cause of the abdomen pain. I did have tightness/pain in the middle of my abdomen from Xeloda which went away after taking a break from it. If it comes back for me, I'm going to ask if my MO if I can move to 7/7.
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It sounds like we are all in a good place on Xeloda! Happy new year!
I started my third cycle yesterday (12/31) and am doing pretty well. My biggest complaint is I am experiencing fatigue which I really don't like. I have been able to keep up with my job and house cleaning etc. so far. It better not get any worse. I find it interesting because this is the first time in a year that I am not anemic! My blood work after the first cycle showed my usual low red blood cells and for the first time my liver AST was a few points high. MO thought it was due to the X so we were keeping an eye on that. Blood work before this cycle showed everything was in the green except BUN which was a few points high. So my blood work does not explain the fatigue but I like everything in the green zone!
No hand/foot issues at all so far. I dropped the diclofenac for now and just use the Udderly Smooth and wow, let me tell you that my hands and feet are in the best shape they have been in for many years! I can't believe how soft and smooth they are with none of that winter heel cracking!. Why didn't I use this sooner? I might use it on my whole body! LOL
I do experience some waves of nausea a little while after my morning dose but it is fleeting, thankfully. I need to try to eat more pizza for breakfast!
I also experience liver "uncomfortableness" too but I always thought it was due to the injury of cancer and never considered it was the medication. I guess it could be either. @soldanella I like your description better of heaviness. It stinks because it's a reminder that I have cancer.
Hang in there everyone! Best wishes for a happy and HEALTHY new year!
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