taxotere side effects

IamNancy

Sheryl - Congrats on completing chemo! I wondered how long a break it is between chemo and radiation - 3 weeks seems like a good break.

MsW2012

Congrats Sherylb! Woohoo!

Any chance you could take a little longer break? I got six weeks. Good and bad I guess. Great to get to feeling so good those last few weeks but just one week into rads I already feel the fatigue and kind of thick like chemo brain. A little disheartening. There must be a few things they look at to determine how long to give you to recover.

Either way, it sure feels great to be done with chemo! Hooray!!!

blondiex46

the first time I had chemo every 3 weeks and 6 weeks of rads, sometime i went from one to the other.....

congrats on completing chemo!!

Happy friday!! My 2 days after chemo usually my "bad" day...in the after into evening....just waiting for it to start...and can't make plans really!!

artpetals

I am nine weeks out from four rounds of Taxotere/Cytoxan and have completed 17 of 28 rounds of radiation. The chemo made me very weak (had to sit in a chair to shower and cook), had to use electric scooters in the stores, very sore fingertips and feet and burning feet. In particular my left heel which suffered the most with hand foot syndrome was so painful I had to take Percocet to be able to sleep.



Last week I was feeling so much better, I was able to shop on my own two feet, I had energy to start on my taxes, and I even returned to the gym. But the day after the gym, the chemo aches in my legs were back. I had gotten down to half of a Percocet at bedtime but now I have to take half of one mid-day as well. And I can tell I need more, which I don't want to do as it is constipating. Tylenol, aspirin, and naproxen (and in combination) don't relieve the pain like the Percocet. And my feet are burning and my fingertips are sore.



Has anyone else had this experience of pain starting to go away and then coming back during radiation?

websister

Hi Artpetals

I am finding that I also have been having increased pains, I am finished rads as of today. Balls of feet, toes and fingers sore again for the last week and a half. I am feeling very fatigued also. They tell me effects of rads will continue for about 7 - 10 days and then things should start to improve.

SherylB

MsW2012,

I have been very fortunate that my numbers have been good all along and I healed well from the surgery and port insertion. SEs have lasted about 5-6 days except for the taste buds which I hope return soon. So all of that plays into how long of a break between the two treatment modalities. I just want to get through.

Hugs, Sheryl

MsW2012

Sherylb, that's great. I fared pretty well thru chemo too. I never asked about the timing but where I go they generally give you a month. Maybe they go by how eager the patient is to get it done. I was most eager to get my energy back, and I was ecstatic to be done with the chemo. It sounds like rads wasn't bad for you either. Encouraging to hear!

I will ask this on a rads forum, but did anyone here have a bollus with rads, where they put a rubbery patch on your skin during treatment? My skin gets puffy there and the doc freaked out and ordered extra ct scans to see if the implant material was reacting to the rads in that area. Plastic surgeon said no way. I feel like the ro is incompetent to overreact like that. We're talking just a little puffiness right where the patch was, and it goes away after several hours. No redness or other irritation. I plan to ask for a second opinion before I agree to more scans for this.

carlads

Hi Everyone,

Had 4th treatment on Thursday..  So far not too bad but it really hits me end of 3rd day and the 4th day. 2 left.  Sheryl- I know I was the one who wanted 6 instead of the 4 but I wish I were done also..  I really feel with my little 1mm in the Sentinel Node it was the correct choice, even though all 22 Axillary were clear..  Just a little added protection.. 

I do need some advice..  I always take Senokot-S the day of treatment... I took it nothing!  Last night I made myself down MOM yuk..  Still nothing..  Any suggestions!!  My new MO did put me on Lasix I wonder if that has anything to do with it..  Miserable feeling.

Hope you all have a great Saturday...

Carla

MsW2012

Carlads, of all the otc remedies, metamucil worked best for me. I took one packet in water in am and one in pm every first week of chemo. After the onc reduced my steroids I didnt need anything. Except if I took any anti-nausea or sleep aid. Those have the same effect on me.

When I was really bad after 1st chemo they prescribed lactilose. Two tbsps twice a day. That worked really fast!

Hope that helps. The lactulose worked in about 12 hrs.

carlads

MsW2012, thank you I will give it a try..  Usually the Senokot-S works great for me but I think it might be due to the Lasix. Treatment #3 I had a lot of swelling and she put me on Lasix before this last treatment..  I will talk to her about lactilose this week... 

Thank you!!

Carla

websister

Hi Carlads - yes, it sounds like the Lasix is taking the fluid that may have normally gone to your GI tract, keep on top of it



MsW2012 - I had a bolus placed over the entire chest wall each if my rads but I don't have an implant or reconstruction yet

35_smiling

Has anyone been on herctptin by itself for one year once finished with taxol/herceptin for 12 rounds?

SpecialK

35 - yes, I believe those of us who are Her2+ have all received Herceptin for the remainder of the year once chemo is finished.  The only people I am aware of who have not done this are those whose cardiac issues have meant that had to discontinue Herceptin early.

35_smiling

SpecialK ~ thank you so much for this reply. I was so confused because I thought I was finished my taxol/herceptin which I completed my 12 rounds last week Wednesday, March 13, 2913...then was told I had to continue the herceptin every 3 weeks for a year. Okay then I will be at ease with this process. Thank you once again.

SpecialK

No problem - the time will fly and I hope any side effects are minor.  I found that my Herceptin only infusions were pretty easy - much shorter because it is only one drug, but I did do better having it run over 90 minutes - shorter than that gave me some bone/muscle pain.  Good luck!

hope4acure

Well tomorrow i face the dreaded 1st infusion of taxotere(my second time being on taxotere) Not looking forward to it but right now it can't be any worse than perjeta side effects.

blondiex46

car...good luck, I take senakot everyday, b/c I have divertisulitis and because the zofran constipates me...

hope, good luck...on my 6th round of tax.... 

hope4acure

I think it is worse getting taxotere a second time cause i remember all the side effects. Hopefully they wont be as bad as i remember.

IamNancy

Hope4acure - At least you'll be better prepared and I do hope it is easier than you remember..

blondiex46

took fingernail polish off, nails are looking weird and so are toenails, will show dr. on wednesday.....

have a good day!!

PaEaglesFan

MsW2012--Nadir is the low point in the blood count.  I am SO GLAD you stuck to your guns and kept checking on it.  We are our own best advocates.
Prayers for minimal SE's to all who are going thru treatment.  It's been 6 months-2 weeks since I finished chemo and I'm still having issues with water retention.  I refuse to call it Lymphedema because it is a whole body issue, not just surgical areas.  Is anyone else having these problems?

MsW2012

Hope4acure, I feel you! It's scary facing chemo no matter how you slice it. Just keep remembering that you got through it once. It will be over. Like IamNancy said, you know what to do to ease symptoms, and nurses or doc can help with new ones.

My heart and prayers are with you.

Linda-n3

Just a couple notes:

Carlads, I used Miralax, suggested by my chemo nurse for constipation.  Works better for me than senekot-based, didn't cause cramping.

Artpetals, my neuropathy got much worse a few weeks after finishing taxotere and I did not do rads.  There is a phenomenon called "coasting" during which time the damage the drug has done is actually establishing itself.  I heard a toxicologist describe this as a situation similar to tearing up the railroad tracks in Nebraska, and there is no food shortage in NYC for a few weeks. The same thing happens with the nerves - the damage takes a while to manifest itself, so you may notice symptoms AFTER treatment, sometimes as long as a couple months even.

Wishing you all well on your chemo. 

carlads

Hi Ladies,

Finally relief! Thank you all for the remedies. SE's a hit a little sooner this time which I expected..  I just keep thinking I would have been done..  two more not so bad.

Hope4acure- I will be thinking about you today!  Please keep us posted on how you are doing..

Blondiex- Hope SE's aren't too bad!

Everyone else have a good Monday!

Carla

jeanieb2

hope4cure - I completely understand where you are coming from on starting Tax the second time around.  I am 99% sure I will be starting it again on April 4.  I was fine with that a couple of weeks ago but the closer I get to that date the more I am dreading it and DO NOT want to take it again.  It was so rough the first time and I feel like I lost September-December 2012.  I figure it will be the same way this time but I guess prepare for the worst and hope for the best, at least like IamNancy said, I will know what to expect as I kept a journal the first time around so I will know what each day will bring.  I will be thinking about you and hope things go well for you.  Please let me know how it goes. 

fight4two

Hi ladies. I've heard a lot about the toenails falling out, changing color, etc on taxotere. But has anyone's toenail stopped growing?? When I was 9 weeks PFC the nail bed on both of my big toes was sore and puffy. The sides of those toes had been sore/reddish during tx, but not the nail beds. The right big toe feels fine now, but I noticed the left bed is still a little sore altho less puffy. However when I was trimming my toe nails I noticed that nail didn't need to be trimmed. I also noticed the nail polish hadn't grown out, confirming the nail isn't growing!! Is this a normal se or should I be concerned?

MsW2012

Hi Fight4two. Yes, my nails stopped growing on tax too. That was the first thing I noticed. It was after chemo #5 that they started getting the white spots and coming loose. They do weird things. The moons disappear and then reappear in cycles. Not to worry. Do take care not to use sharp tools on them, not even your fingernails. Guard against infection. I am still keeping polish on all my nails even though I don't normally use it. If I look at them bare, I can't stop picking at them!

SherylB

Hi all,

I haven't been on the boards the last few days have felt poorly. I was so excited Thursday and Friday that when the first SEs hit Saturday, they were mild then Sunday and Monday, oh Lord I felt like crap and still do. Can't sleep which for me aggravates everything. My muscles and joints have really been aching this go round and the taste buds are the worst they have been. Just tired, tired. This will pass and not to soon for me. You have all been in my heart I just didn't have the energy to type.

Hugs, Sheryl

IamNancy

SherylB - did you ask for sleeping pills? my first round I couldn't sleep - it made everything worse not getting to sleep-body ached felt like I had the flu -after 5-6 nights of that, I called for sleeping pills - wow, what a difference getting to sleep through the night made..Hope you feel better soon - and that your energy returns quickly.

Traii

MSw2012 naughty you picking at your nails.....:) I used dark coloured polish on the day before on and after chemo. Apparently nails are light sensitive because of the Taxotere. My nails all came off one by one, some in the middle some at the end, but last Tax was on the 12th Dec and they have all come back beautifully, cuticles are nice bright and white.

Toe nails popped off one by one. Big toe nails did hurt a couple of days before they were lifting. my little toe nail (last one that was my 'old' nail) came off the other day...didn't realise until my poor DS whos' 3 saw bright pink 'something' on the carpet and said mummy whats this.....!! whoops!!

Sheryl, sounds like you are not having such a great time this time round with Tax.....it was suppose to be full of celebration being your last one hun ..... hope the SE's start to ease off and you start feeling back to your self again. Taste buds were always an issue with me...lasted 2 weeks and I was right for a week before i had to start again!!

hope4acure, hope this time around is easier for you hun. No one should endure Tax once let alone twice   So long as it does its magic with minimal SEs hey!

Wishing everyone minimal SE's with your treatment take care all xx