Blisters on private areas

somnia

Hi,

I had my first cycle of taxotere more than a week ago. A few days later I noticed a few blisters on my private parts. The blistrers are bigger now. The area is pretty eachy. It also burns when I go to the washroom. Does anybody have the same problem? How do you deal with that? Thanks in advance for help!

Somnia.

Anonymous

Your Onc should have an on-call Onc taking the pager for the weekend.  I think I would call to get a prescription called in - I did it yesterday for a bladder infection.  I hope this isn't shingles.  That's a condition that can pop up in the most insidious ways. 

Good Luck.

Bren-2007

I haven't had this problem, but I would recommend calling the doctor right away.  The sooner you can get some medicine for it, the sooner you can get some relief.

thinking of you,

Bren

DiDel

I had an allergic reaction to the Taxotere after my first time. I had blisters on my chest..I assume the reaction can pop up anywhere. Also the burning when you go..is the chemo flushing out..yes it is normal. drink lots of water and don't hold it..if you gotta go..go. The first 48 hrs you wanna flush it out and not let it sit in your bladder as it can cause bladder infection. Take a benadryl and see if that helps with the rash. Be sure to tell your onc and onc nurse when you have chemo again. They can give you benadryl in IV before taxotere infusion ..also..they can slow down the infusion to minimize the chance of a more severe allergic reaction.

Hope you find some relief soon.

Diane

DiDel

There is a website I visited to learn how to manage the side effects and what to expect from chemo. Chemocare.com  very useful site.

Diane

jancie

I was told to use baby wipes instead of toilet paper the first couple of times I peed after chemo because the toxins are released through the urine.  After you get this issue fixed up you might want to try this for the rest of your treatments.  I got the baby wipes that had no scent and were for extra sensitive skin.

somnia

Thanks for the feedback! I did call my PDN on Friday. She told me that she'll check with my onc and get back to me. Still haven't heard from her. I'll give her another call tomorrow. I had no idea that there should be an on-call weekend onc. I'll check with my PDN about that.

dlb823

Another suggestion -- assuming it's not an allergic reaction but just the result of the chemo touching your skin in that area when you went to the bathroom -- is to spray off with plain water (in a little spray bottle) after you go.  The first 36 hrs. or so after your infusions are the most important.  That's when you're excreting the most toxic chemicals in your urine, and you need to be sure to get every bit of it off your skin.  

Sorry that happened to you.  It sounds really painful.   Deanna 

Anonymous

I've been to 3 chemo centers and they have always had someone for nights and weekends.  In my current center you call the main cancer center number and they take your info and give it to the on-call Onc.  I also have a pager number for my Onc which I use very sparingly.  In my previous situations, I called the Onc's office and the after hours operator connected me through.

In my situation, a bladder infection is not the end of the world but I don't want to suffer if I don't have to although I do try to not call late at night unless it really is an emergency.

Anonymous

Hi,

I was reading some of the SE literature and learned that because the chemo actually compromises our immune system, we are prone to herpetic outbreaks if we have HSV I or HSV 2, even shingles (which are also related to some sort of pox virus).  So, if you get blisters after an outbreak, you should probably request your Onc take a look and maybe check you to see if Valtrex will help alleviate those symptoms.   

Best wishes and many {{{HUGS}}}

amontro

I'm glad someone brought this up. I don't have blisters but a burning on one side below only. I've used OTC cortisone cream and it seems to help for a while.  This all started after I went from once a week Herceptin to a triple treatment every three weeks but only occurs after the second week, just before I'm due for treatment. I would think that it would be wearing off after two weeks but that's when it happens.  I'll ask my onc tomorrow. Maybe the dosage is too strong for me.

somnia

I've spoken to my PDN about blisters and she asked my onc about them. They told me that it's most probably not a SE. But... when I compained about blurried vision they also told me that it's not from chemo. Any chemo SE site/article says that chemo or steroids can cause blurried vision. Anyways I didn't use any medication to treat blisters. I just washed this area often and dried it. Eventually it went away. I am having my 5th chemo tomorrow and I am going to follow Jancie's advice about baby wipes. I will also take benadryl during the chemo and the day after as DiDel suggested. Hope it'll help!

Hugs to everyone!

amontro

I saw my onc today and she had no clue. 

Trisha-Anne

I've only just seen this thread.

I did Taxotere, and had my last one on 15 Feb this year.  One of the many se's I had was burning and blisters down there.  It's the chemicals coming out, and I had terrible diahorrea as well.  I blistered a lot, and using baby wipes helped.  I also used a cream called Bepanthon (sp?)- that's its name here in Australia, I don't know what it's called in the US, but it's used mainly to put on baby's bottoms while still in nappies (diapers?) to stop rashes etc.  It can also be used for stings and the like.

It helped a lot, and it might be worth a try.

I'm so sorry you are having this reaction, it's not nice, and when combined with all the horrible se's that Taxotere can cause it just makes you more miserable.  I couldn't tolerate Taxotere, and only had 2 treatments out of 3 (I did 3 FEC before the Taxotere).  I'm now just on Herceptin and Arimidex and apart from having the joints of a 90 year old - lol - doing just fine.

Trish

xoxo