Eating during and immediately after chemo

max2111

Hi Everyone,



I desperately need y'all's input. I have 2 more treatments of F.E.C. aka the notorious red devil.



Please tell me what to eat AND what not to eat before, the day of, and the days after chemo?



In reference to the yucky nausea, what foods can/should I eat?



PLEASE - I need your help.



Thanks!

ruthbru

I ate plenty of things I enjoyed the day before. I ate lightly the day of, but drank tons and tons of water before, during and after the infusions. The first couple days after I just ate what I could stand....which, for me, was mostly mashed potatoes. Just follow your body's needs, but be sure to stay hydrated.

Trisha-Anne

Max I had FEC too and ate whatever I wanted the day before.  I even ate pretty much what I wanted on the day of as well.  As ruthbru says you really need to make sure you are hydrated though - lots and lots of water.

I found that the taste changes varied with each treatment, it was worst with the first one.  I remember I ate a lot of jelly beans (don't know which country you are in, but here in Australia they are jelly beans) I would really just suck at them, they have lots of glucose and settled my tummy.

Make sure you take all the anti nausea meds you are given, whether you think you need them or not.  I was never actually sick, but felt queasy from time to time.  Taking the anti nausea meds before you start to feel sick is best, as it's easier to prevent nausea than stop it once it's started.

You'll know what your body can tolerate, eat what takes your fancy.  Don't try to eat your favourite foods, as you may not be able to stomach much of it after chemo finishes if you persist.  I love lasagne, and ate quite a bit of it while on FEC (a friend kept making a big batch of it and dropping it in to our place) and now I'm not so keen on it.

And remember - lots and lots of water.

Trish

xoxo

Sassa

I had AC and had a very dfficult time with nausea.  On the day of chemo, my dinner was always roasted white meat turkey (I always eat dark meat, but couldn't after chemo), mashed potatoes, herb stuffing, and green beans.

Anonymous

The best medication to prevent nausea is EMEND - a bit more expensive than some of the others.  Ask your doctor if you can get it.  Make sure your insurance will cover it.

I lived on yukon gold potatos.  Truly.  I could only deal with very mild, bland, soft food.  Never had nausea, just couldn't BEAR the thought of "crunching" anything.  Try, as ruthbru says, there seems to be something about potatoes that is, well, not disturbing.

Also, room temperature ginger ale.  I also used fresh ginger to make TEA, and that was very pleasant, with a little bit of honey.

Drink as much water as you can b4 and after the infusion.

SelenaWolf

"White" food; potatoes, rice, bread, bananas, yoghurt, cottage cheese, pasta.  Although I never suffered from nausea, I just could not eat a great deal or a wide variety of food during chemo.  "White" food I could choke down.