Cytoxan Taxotere Chemo Ladies- February/March 2013
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THANK YOU for taking the time to write all this for me! I do have ziplock bags with me for the meds, so I can transfer the ice over!
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jmg - If your chemo center doesn't provide, be sure to take cold drinks & snacks & lunch. Mine provides drinks & snacks as well as warm blankets. They also have a microwave so you can make hot soup. Hopefully yours will at least have water!!
It's my understanding that the icing is mainly for nails. I did ice with frozen peas. So much easier than ice. While I didn't lose my nails, unfortunately I do have neuropathy in fingers & feet.
Good luck with this first go. You'll do fine.
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jmg58 My sister kept telling me "Don't be a hero, take the drugs". She is right, take the Ativan. I ate breakfast not knowing if I would be able to eat after my 1st Chemo. Everyone has different side effects. Just be attentive to your body. I kept a daily journal of the date, after-chemo day# and what I ate, felt and side effects. This was a major help to me for the next chemos because I could look back and say to myself 'ok, this is my normal" which in itself relieved a lot of my anxiety. After the 3rd chemo I was recording less and breathing more; 5 deep breaths and spell the word 'relax' in your mind while you do it, works for me. I didn't have anxiety Chemo 1 - 3 treatments but I am coming up to the 4th and final one next week - NOW - I'm getting anxious, seems to be backwards. So, my advice is this - just take it ONE day at a time. Try not to worry about tomorrow or next chemo or possible side effects. It is hard (I know) but if you find yourself thinking to much - change your scenery. Also, at my cancer center they give us warm flannel blankets and if I am there around lunch - they feed me too. If you are going alone, take a book. Keep in mind there may be others there too so it is a great time to meet some people and share stories and get helpful hints. Glad to have you one here. It is such a great forum and lots and lots of help.
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jmg58,
Just like Caren I have finished 3 of my 4 chemo treatments. I have 5 weeks left. The treatments are fine (I have a port). The following week is tough for me. I am hoping to go to work for a half day on day 8 as long as my blood work comes back in the correct range. Then go to work around doctors' appointments for 5 days. Then 3 days before my next chemo.
My only other suggestion is if you do not feel properly hydrated ask for the large back of saline IV. I had it the first time since I was not allowed to eat or drink anything after midnight so they could place my port before chemo. The second time the nurse said it was not necessary. Wish I had pushed the issue. I had the worse S/E than the first. My 3rd the doctor ordered it so there was no question. It gave me the extra boost of hydration and reduced some of the S/Es.
Keep coming back to this board. I could not have gotten through without it!
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OH, you have all been so nice! Thank you! 12 hours until go. I just got back to the hotel after having the PICC line "installed." Took 3 hours from initial time of appointment...they did the whole thing and then took 2 chest xrays and decided the line was too short. Then they pulled the whole thing out and did it all over and more xrays. At least it's right now, but it was started to get to me. I am NOT looking forward to tomorrow, but honestly, right now I'm a little better after I've read all your helpful tips and encouragement. I will let you know how it goes.
I hope everyone has a great day...as for those of you coming up to #4 (out of 4, I hope)...it's almost time to celebrate. I will be thinking of you!
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I agree with MapGirl about the saline. I requested an extra liter of saline every time. It took an extra two hours (550 ml per hour max at my center) but was REALLY worth it. I tried to get some extra saline earlier this month with my Herceptin infusion since i knew I was dehydrated & my MO had approved, but there is a nationwide shortage so could only get 100 ml, not even their normal 250. I'd read about the shortage but was surprised it's still causing problems.
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Made it through chemo #1 today! I had an extraordinarily nice nurse and she put me in the back that was a bit more private and I appreciate that. Back in the hotel relaxing, but have made several fast trips to the bathroom already ... may have to take an immodium already. Other than that, I am so happy I didn't experience anything bad in that chair! The nurse said the first time isn't so bad....but I may feel it in day 3-5. Shot tomorrow, so we'll see about the bone pain thing. Thanks for being there for me, ladies!
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jmg58: remember your claritin, and meanwhile hydrate hydrate hydrate! It will dilute the chemo and will get it out quicker and it won't burn so much in the way out!
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jmg58, way to go! Post here if you need help.
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jmg58- Like PatAlameda said.... hydrate, hydrate, hydarte. it may mean getting up in the middle of the night to go to the restroom but keep drinking and go to the restroom. If it is burning, get a sports bottle with a nozzle top filled with warm water and rinse yourself off. You may ask the nurse for a spray bottle tomorrow when you go in. Yes .... do take the 24 hour regular Claritin in the morning before you get your Neulasta shot later in the day. Rest and eat some easy bland dinner tonight.
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your weight divided by 2 is the amount of fluids you have to take (in ounces) every day. What that chemo off your system! One less to go!
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way to go jmg! Take care of yourself.
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One last note…I was able to keep myself hydrated for the 7 days after chemo but day 8 (yesterday) I needed a full bag of fluid. I called my MO and they ordered it for after my port draw. Feeling better today.
MinusTwo - the nursing staff cannot change the amount of saline. So if the doctor ordered 1000 then that is what you should have received.
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Mapgirl, Imam sorry to hear you got dehydrated. Did you have diarrhea?
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Headeast,
Not full diarrhea. I was so hopeful last night I had experienced all of the S/Es for this cycle. Hah! Rashes came back on my neck and hands and a weird looking blister type thing on my leg. Thank you so much for asking!
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mapgirl - the pharmacy dictated the change since there is a national shortage. I did speak with the on-site pharmacist. Everyone is getting the a smaller amount. I'll talk to the doc, but he always orders whatever I want & they just don't have it. And - I'm at a major medical center.
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mapgirl- You may want to let your onco know about the rashes and the blister thing on your leg. If the rashes are bothering you, you may want to call the on call onco this weekend to get some help. Sorry the side effects have hit you a little harder this time. Keep resting, drinking fluids and eating some. As for the hydration, if the water drinking is getting boring, try some jello, popsicles, watermelon, grapes, tea, broth, gatorade, watered down fruit juices. Hope you feel better soon!!!
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Mapgirl, yes, Melrose said it right, call the doctor on call and send them a picture of your rash and blister. All these reactions to the TC can be controlled if you do it on time. I had a bad rash on my first TC and the MO prescribed me Benadryl and the next TC he added one more day of steroids (from one to two after the infusion)
i also read somewhere on these threads that the fluids are retained better if they are not just water, but juices, soups, Gatorade and fruits. All fluids count?
Let us know how it goes with your rash.
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Good morning, ladies! Today is day two after my chemo and I'm feeling okay. I am having the home health care nurse come today and explain about flushing my PICC line and set the schedule for changing the dressing. Its also my last day for the steroid. I know that you all said once the steroid wore off things got bad, particularly on Monday, for those of you who had treatment on Thursday like me. I am just wondering--worse how? Nausea? Bone Pain? Just ickyness? My boyfriend has flown in to take care of me but he is actually leaving early Monday a.m. so that doesn't sound so promising, I'd just like to know what to expect. So far, no real SE except a feeling of being flushed (although I don't have a fever) and a last night a little burning pain in one part of my incision which seems to have stopped.
I am also wondering; I don't want to take the train and go to work during the nadir period, but I am on long-term disability at this point. Used up my short-term with the surgery and just them trying to figure out what was wrong with me, so the more flexible FmlA is now gone. The doctor has to actually say I am unable to work in order for me to keep my job. I don't know if she'll do that just for nadir. Did any of you wear masks, etc.? I don't know if I will have to drive in to escape a closed area full of sick people or just chance it and stay home. . . . .
I hope everyone has a great day today1 Thanks for being there for me and everyone else1
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jmg58, Glad you are doing okay so far! For me, once the steroids wore off, I was SO tired from lack of sleep, that I kind of crashed...and also started feeling down, mentally. Achiness set in and fatigue. You are probably feeling flushed bc of the steroids also. Honestly, I was glad for them to wear off, bc I was so worn out from not sleeping that it was hard to function during the day...and, the constipation went away! If I could have done without the steroids, I would have. Did you get a neulasta shot? That helps bring your WBC's back up, which helps ward off the risk of infections. I work from home, but was extra cautious during NADIR as far as getting around crowds, etc. I did get the neulasta shot, which I'm sure helped. I would probably wear a mask if I was commuting every day on a train...maybe ask your MO. You should be getting a blood draw prior to each TX so your MO knows how the chemo is affecting your counts. Luckily, I never got an infection. I also had a flu shot, but flu season is pretty much over now, so you shouldn't have to deal with that. Good luck. I hope everything goes smoothly for you. Nice that your BF is coming to help!
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Thank you for the quick response, keepthefaith! Yes, I got the shot yesterday...I did sleep pretty well last night but took a Xanax to sleep and it worked! (Didn't the night before). Yeah, I'm really nervous about the NADIR thing...especially since while I'm gone at work they put someone at my desk and last week she left a big note saying she had a cold. That leaves germs on my phone, keyboard, everything! I wish there were a way I could figure out only to work the third week in the cycle...that would be perfect.
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jmg, have you called your HR department? They will tell you if they have intermittent disability like in STD. I was on STD while on chemo and didn't use my LTD. the social worker at your MO office will help you with the LTD. they don't want for you to get sick and their goal is to finish chemo treatments with no events at all. In my case, the MO gave me until March 31st but I decided i could go back to work after chemo treatments and do surgeries and tests when needed. For my exchange i had to take four days (I actually needed more than that) and when I called hR they filed a new claim. I didn't get paid but at least when I went back I still had a job.
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img58: Glad to hear all went well at your 1st Chemo. I agree - drink water and lots of it. A chemo-gal recently told me the NP/MO told her the reason why her eyes were watering so much was because THAT is how the Cytoxan is released (my words) from the body and that is the reason why they want (her) us to drink so much water. Makes sense, even if we are up all night long. I had hand rashes with the first chemo - let the MO know because they WANT to know this stuff.
How are you doing with the PICC? I haven't seen it before - most people here go for a Port; me - I go IV each time.
Do not even get me started on work issues. I stopped working - before I had my BC surgery and went on EI (Canadas' STD gov't insurance) which is only 15 weeks long. It is just about over so now onto LTD with my work place. I and the MD's decided that for me - NO WORK - was the best option. I work in a drug store - where people who are SICK always come to. It was a no brainer. A gal at work who is in the office - had bowel cancer - would spray down EVERYTHING - EVERYTIME - she went into her office/cubical area and then wipe down all surfaces and had a huge handsanitizer too (plus mask(s)). She was taking NO chances.
This could work for you too. I say, you can NEVER be to safe. I decided to become a short-term germaphob! LOLI am avoiding people like they have the plague (haha) and isolating myself and so far, so good. Mind you the isolating, cabin fever over the winter and lack of socializing is playing havoc on my mind - recently. Talk to you HR about getting LTD; check any waiting period time - it is worth the time off to heal properly. Your body needs to heal. My old(er) body takes longer to recoup.
The Neulasta was great. I took a Tylenol 500mg one hour before the shot and every 6 - 8 hours (no fevers) afterwards for up to 5 days. No SEs the first day but Day 2-4 I had some slight joint aches which I used a heating pad for.
I am rambling - just take it one day at a time. RECORD all your SE's each day and take photos to show the MO next time you see him/her if you can't get in right away. Have faith, we are all here for you. We can all say to you "Been there, done that, and made it through". Remember that when we are going through these side effects it is only for a short period of time (usually) and once we finish with the treatments they will go away.
We can do anything one day at a time.
Carren
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Melrosemelrose & Headeast
Thank you both. I wish I had read the boards earlier! Saturday at 3:30 am I woke up with hives on my arms and thighs. I waited until 5:00 to call the doctor on call. Picked up benadryl and the 5 day pack of steroids the doctor called in. I woke up at 9:00 am with hives ALL over my body so off the the ER. Hydration, Benadryl and a script for 40 mg of predinisone a day. Took the Saturday dose at 1 pm. Took the Sunday dose at 9 am. Just a few hives survived. Sunday (today) afternoon my hands are swollen, warm and ITCH. The Benadryl is not helping!!! Plus the hives are coming back!
Right now I am icing and elevating my hands to reduce the swelling. I already have a message into my MO for tomorrow.
Any recommendations are appreciated?
FYI My breathing is fine.
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Mapgirl, call the MO on call now, please.
If you can't get a whole of him fast, then go to the ER. You are getting intoxicated and they can control it with medicine. You need something stronger than benadryl. Are you still taking steroids?
Please let us know what er doctors and MO say.
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Doc on call said to take claritin and put a steroid cream on the remaining hives. She said she is not concerned about warmth of the hives or palms. My breathing is still fine.
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mapgirl12 - Get to your MO for evaluation. I had similar reaction to the Taxotere. The MO told me it was a red flag on toxicity on the Taxotere. I had hives on my head and groin and swollen hands that I kept iced. No fever so I took Tylenol 500mg. ER gave me a RX for steroid cream for my hands only. It lasted about 3 days and then slowly eased off. Everyones' body reacts differently so, please, make sure you GO and see your MO.
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mapgirl...so sorry to hear that! I hope that clears up for you really quickly; that sounds really tough. Hugs to you.
Carren...thank you for all the tips. I was doing okay until yesterday when I crashed. I had a fever; called triage MO doctor who said it's too soon for white blood cell count to drop; take two Tylenol. Back to normal overnight. Now back to 99.6-99.7. Called MO who said DO NOT take Tylenol to mask any infection; continue to monitor and call in if it goes up another point. Great. I will just cry if I have to go to ER already....and it won't be my chemo hospital..that's too far away for me to get to today; no one to drive me. If I had to guess, it's from the Claritin making crap run down the back of my throat. I'm praying it gets back to normal.
The PICC line is a pain in the $*#(. I have to flush both lines with two different things every day. Home health care nurse comes once a week to change dressing. Can't get it wet. Have to wrap it in Saran wrap to keep it dry in shower. SO far, I have been taking intricate sponge baths...probably shower the day before she comes just in case it gets wet.....thank God no one is coming near me right now. I would've been okay with a port but MO said no...too invasive for 4 treatments.
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jmg how may infusions will you have? I had four and i didnt need a port or picc
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Four, but I have terrible veins and they didn't think it would work as they can't use my right arm because of lymph node removal....it's just a pain; handy, but a pain.
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