What are side effects of chemotherapy besides losing your hair?
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I am a lung cancer survivor (hence my name). A month after surgery, I was put on cis-platen and gemsar for twelve weeks.
I had nausea, fatigue, memory loss, loss of appetite, sore bones and muscles, trouble sleeping, extremely sensitized sense of smell and taste (which will drive you insane when your a nauseous) and loss of hearing (temporary). That is all I remember. I suppose memory loss could be a good thing.
This does not mean that every one on this regime will have all of these symptoms or only these symptoms. Nor does it mean that there is a specific set of symptoms for other regimes. It will depend on the individual receiving the program, the supporting drugs given, the type of cancer and the stage of cancer to name a few variables.
The good part is that there are many new support drugs to help with most of the symptoms.
Believe it or not, the one thing that helped me the most was laughter.
Sore throat, nausea,headaches &blurred vision are just a few.
I'm not a survivor, but my mom is. She had breast cancer as well. When she started the chemo and radiation, it was almost like her life was taken away. She was always tired, and didn't really feel like doing anything. Especially right after her treatments. Sometimes she would get a little bit sick too. Losing her hair was one other thing, but once it started falling out even the slightest bit, she just shaved it and said "screw it" . But, I think the hardest part of the chemo & the radiation for her was just the emotional stress. But, having family & friends around during that time was good for her. It takes a lot out of you, but I guess in the end, if it clears up, then its worth it. good luck, hope everything works out
Im not cancer person but it runs in my family Skin Lung brain. I do know It kills red & white blood cells... But, I still dont know much... I'm sure there is lots of studies just google "side effects of chemotherapy"... I know there is alternative treatment ---- I've been reading up on Human Growth Hormone "HGH" That might be something to look into... Best of luck! & To whomever it may be my prayers are out.. Can I just Say BELIEVE THAT IT IS GONE!! KNOW IN YOUR HEART THAT GOD HAS TAKEN IT AWAY ///// REALLY AND TRULY BELIEVE ----Mind over medicine ----The double blind Placebo effect "IS" Real
chemo attacks rapidly dividing cells (like the cancer), so it not only attacks the hair follicle cells (hence why it falls out), but can also attack the stomach lining, which is why many cancer patients receiving chemo often have to go on a special diet and often lose their appetite, in addition to the other symptoms listed.
I am 30 and just finished chemo for breast cancer. ( 6mos worth).
Its all going to depend on the type of chemo given and how often.
I had Adriamycin/Cytoxan every 3 weeks for 12 weeks. The side effects from that was the hair loss, nausea,fatigue and anemia, mouth sores, dry mouth, taste and smell changes, memory loss, body aches from neulasta shots ( to bring your white blood count up to fight infections), trouble sleeping because I was given steriod injections, some headaches and blurred vision. Those are the ones I can remember off the top of my head.
The next 12 weeks I had Taxol every week. The side effects from this chemo was much different. I had severe bone pain, neuropathy in my hands and feet (pain and numbness in my hands and feet), a little bit of nausea, some headaches, trouble sleeping, dry mouth, and vision issues.
However that being said the doctors have alot of medications that they can give to help with nausea, pain, and other effects from chemo.
There is several things on the market for the dry mouth/sores issues such as biotene products in the toothpaste section of Walmart and places like Walgreens that helps with mouth issues.
Also every person reacts different to chemo than the next. Not every person is going to experience all the side effects at the same degree level ect.
I am two months out from chemo and Im still having some problems but it takes time for the body to recoup from all the chemo.
Best of luck and lots of hugs to whomever is taking the chemo. It certainly is not a fun ride but Im thankful that we even have this option to try and battle this cancer.
*hugs*
Chemotherapy medicines usually target cells that quickly divide. However, normal cells -- including those found in the blood, hair, and the lining of the gastrointestinal tract -- also divide very quickly. That means chemotherapy can also damage or kill these healthy cells. When this occurs, side effects such as nausea, anemia, and hair loss can occur. Some persons who receive chemotherapy also have fatigue, nerve pain, and infection.(MedlinePlus)
The treatment can be physically exhausting for the patient. Current chemotherapeutic techniques have a range of side effects mainly affecting the fast-dividing cells of the body. Important common side-effects include (dependent on the agent):
* Nausea and vomiting
* Diarrhea or constipation
* Anemia
* Malnutrition
* Memory loss
* Depression of the immune system, hence (potentially lethal) infections and sepsis
* Hemorrhage
* Secondary neoplasms
* Cardiotoxicity
* Hepatotoxicity
* Nephrotoxicity
* Ototoxicity
* Death
(Wikipedia)
Please see the web pages for more details on Chemotherapy and Breast cancer.
"Cancer chemotherapy is known to produce severe side effects such as heart muscle damage, gastrointestinal damage, anemia, nausea, and lethal suppression of immune function.
Nutrients and hormone therapies can be used to mitigate the toxicity of chemotherapy. Bolstering the immune system may help alleviate or reduce the severity of the complications associated with chemotherapy. As discussed earlier in this protocol, however, using natural antioxidants to protect against chemotherapy side effects could possibly reduce the cancer cell-killing efficacy of the cytotoxic drug(s). Regrettably, there are no survival studies to verify the long-term effects of using natural therapies to mitigate the toxic effects that chemotherapy inflicts on healthy normal cells. In other words, we know that certain nutrients can protect normal cells against the immediate toxic effects of chemotherapy, but we do not know if this protection extends to cancer cells in such a way as to diminish cancer cell death.
For those who choose to use antioxidants to protect against chemotherapy side effects, supplementation with these nutrients should be initiated several days or even weeks before any planned chemotherapy is begun and should be continued well after the chemotherapy has been completed. "
(source:http://www.smile.org.au/ourapproachtocan...
Please visit www.smile.org.au yourself. It's a very good website contain detailed information about cancers.
It really depend on what type of cancer is being treated, what drugs are being used, the dosage, and the length of time the patient is on the protocol. My son has had high dose chemotherapy as an inpatient for 9 months with Vincristine, Cytoxan, Doxirubicin cycled every 21 days with Etoposide and Ifosimide. That was pretty brutal, but he tolerated it extremely well. He lost his hair and suffered fatigue, nausea, and vomiting. But, as the months went on he learned how to handle each session. Chemotherapy is given in 21 day cycles which means that for the majority of time he felt fine. It is only during the days that he had treatment that he felt rotten . . so the HD-VAC was for 5 days and the Et/IF was 3 days a month. He learned that if you are well hydrated it cuts down on nausea, he also took anti-nausea meds routinely, and he slept alot! It worked for him.
He has also had 9 months of low dose chemotherapy using Irinotecan and Temozolimde. He had this at home over a two week period and other than some mild nausea and diarrea he was fine. He also had an experimental procedure called intra-peritoneal hyperthermic chemoperfusion where the chemo was heated and placed directly into the abdominal cavity after cytoreductive surgery. He was in the hospital for 8 days, but recovered rapidly after that.
He has had other rounds of chemotherapy just to stablize the disease and had them all at home. Sometimes he'll have them at the Childrens Cancer Clinic, but mostly at home.
His next step will be a Clinical Trial, which he will also take orally and at home.
He has been fortunate in not having side effects from all his treatment. I would say that the worst has been the diarrea but that is controllable too with meds.
Best wishes to you.
I am sorry that you are dealing with this awful disease!
The reactions are different based on the chemo you are going to receive. I, personally, have been on the following:
Adriomiocin/Cytoxin Combo (A/C) - I had 1 treatment every four weeks, four times. It felt like very severe morning sickness. I was very easily nauseated, couldn't stand strong smells and flavors. My oncologists office had me on several different anti-nausea meds until we found the right combo. I was also very tired and weak. And right after the treatment, your pee is red/pink from passing the Adriomiocin through your system. My white blood counts were effected as well, and I had to have neulasta shots the day after treatment.
Taxol - Very little side effects for me on this treatment. I had 12 weekly treatments. There was a build up of fatigue towards the end and my skin was very dry and sensitive. I also had an allergic reaction to this treatment, so before each treatment I had to have a steroid to help prevent it. Neuoropathy (tingling fingers and toes) is also a side effect, but I experienced very little of this side effect.
Taxotere - Currently taking a treamtent once every three weeks, indefinately. The side effects that bother me the most are from the steroid I have to take first to help prevent fluid from building up around my heart. I loose my sense of taste, constipated, and have insomnia. It only lasts for about a week, but the longer I take it, the more it is attacking my white blood counts. I am going to start the neulasta shot again next week. Hopefully that will help with the fatigue like it did last time.
If you know what chemo you will be receiving, you can go to breastcancer.org and search the name of the drug and it will give you all of the information you will need. Also, the on-line community there is fantastic, you can post this question on their bulletin boards and you will get feed back very quickly! It is a wonderful site!
Good luck to you!! You will get through it! Just take it one treatment at a time and try not to get too overwhelmed by the process!!
Jen
Well my mum had it and obviously losing your hair but also you feel extremely weak and I'm afraid that's all I can say because I was only 12 at the time and my mum didn't want to worry me too much. But eat plenty of green beans because chemo attacks your blood cells (either red or white) and green beans replenishes them.
extreme fatique on and off between treatments. General tiredness the rest of the time. Vomiting. Depending on the type of chemo, leg pains. I am a survivor.
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