Taxodere scare

Catherine3

Help! Istart chemo next week and they want to use Taxodere as one of my meds for chemo. I just read all this info from Facebook saying patients are suing because they are having permanent hair loss with this drug but my dr says he has used it on thousands of patients whose hair has grown back. Can anyone share their experience on this drug? I amworried. Thank you!

ksusan

Search here for "taxotere" for lots of threads. The permanent hair loss rate seems to be 6-10%.

cathiero

Hello, Catherine. Just because your Dr. says he has used Taxotere on "thousands of patients whose hair has grown back" doesn't mean there isn't a problem with it. It annoys me when our oncologists are so dismissive of our concerns and/or questions. My oncologist did the same thing when I asked her the question about permanent hair loss. She basically scoffed at me. I knew the risks going in (no thanks to my onc) and chose to go ahead with the Taxotere. My hair has grown back nicely; most people who use Taxotere do get their hair back. But, by all means do your homework and make an informed decision about your treatment. Good luck to you.

Catherine3

thank you Cathiero, sorry for the spelling mistake there:) I appreciate your understanding. I really pushed the nurse on it until she had the dr come talk to me. I wasn't trying to be trouble but more curious their thoughts on it because I assumed they have heard of the law suits. I was just trying to advocate for myself you know? I admit that I am still nervous but it helps to have heard your experience. I think I am just going through a lot of pre-chemo nerves really. Anyway thanks for your post. It made me feel better.

Smurfette26

I understand your concerns Catherine3. I had 4 rounds of Taxotere/Cytoxan and my Oncologist never mentioned permanent hair loss. I read about it here. My last infusion was Jan 12th and my hair IS growing back. It's very grey. Never was before. But at least it's hair. Yes I still would have gone ahead with the treatment but we have the right to know all the risks so we can make informed decisions.

It's a good idea to ice your fingers and toes during the Taxotere infusion to help prevent neuropathy. Also painting your nails with a dark nail polish can help protect the nail bed.

Stay ahead of nausea by taking your anti nausea meds before you need them. Don't wait until you feel sick.

I wish you well with your treatment. If you have any questions feel free to ask. Hugs Donna.

debiann

I knew the risks because of my own research. My MO did admit it's possible, but not typical. Fortunetly my hair came back fine. Oddly, sometimes when my thoughts go to the dark side I wonder if the cancer is growing back as quickly as my hair.

I'm not certain, but I think Taxol is a similar drug with less risk of permanent hair loss. Do others know if this is true?

Ironically, right after my hair grew back, my daughter-in-law, only 26, lost most of her hair to alopecia. It is heart breaking for someone so young to go through this. She's in treatment, but still not getting enough regrowth to go without a wig.

This made me realize that there are lots of reasons other than chemo people experience permanent hair loss: genetics, medication and illnesses other than cancer. You could skip a life saving chemo only to lose your hair for some other reason. Just another way to look at it.

Good luck to you.

Catherine3

thank you to everyone posting. It is nerve wracking to me just asking questions but I feel better hearing from all of you. My dr did call me this morning to follow up and ask if I had any further questions and he explained again that while he understands my concerns, he feels this course of medicine is the best for my case. I think I am at the point where I am going to trust him and go for it but you know I am glad that I could have these conversations with him so honestly and I am going to remember that I am trying to save my life here. I need a little perspective I think. This has put me in bit of a roller coaster of emotions. Thanks everyone for talking it through here.

Meow13

Is taxotere really better than taxol? Did your doctor explain the difference?