Weird side effects

Rachel1414

I am posting this as a last resort. My mother in law went through a mastectomy then chemotherapy. Halfway through chemotherapy she began to have major memory loss such as forgetting who family members are. She was then admitted into the hospital for a month because things got worse. She could not walk on her own, she would throw her feet put in front of her but not in a way that she would be able to stand on them. Her left eye would stay closed like it was to bright, her right eye was fine. She lost about 100 lbs. She has almost every test you can think of and all of them have come back negative. She is being put into a nursing home soon because we can no longer take care of her. Has anyone ever heard of this before and if so do you know what caused it? She was diagnosed in 2014 and we still don't know what's wrong.

Icietla

Welcome, Rachel1414.

Can you tell us, please, what particular chemotherapy medicine/s she had? And what type breast cancer she had?

When you say that she has been forgetting who family members are, do you mean that she does not know them at all, that she regards very familiar persons as strangers? Or do you mean that she forgets their names?

Have her Serum B12, Homocysteine, and Methylmalonic Acid been checked?

Have there been electrical conduction nerve tests on her legs?

Rachel1414

I'm not sure what drugs she had but will know more next week.

In regards to her memory, starting out she would ask who I was. She then progressed to odd things such as she needed to go pick up the boys (her sons) from school. Her sons are both grown with kids of their own now.

She has had multiple mri's, CT scans, spinal taps and such done but I'm not sure about those in particular. She has seen multiple different types of doctors, even two neurologists. She has feeling in all limbs as well but no coronation in any. Even putting a spoon to her mouth is troublesome.

Moderators

Rachel, we're so sorry to hear of your mother-in-law's struggles! Thank you for joining and asking your questions. As you can already see, our Community is full of helpful and supportive members.

Icietla asks some great questions, and ones you should find out the answers to, if you don't know them.

In the meantime, perhaps the cognitive issues are from what is frequently referred to as "chemo brain." You can read more about this phenomenon and tips to help manage it on the following main Breastcancer.org site's pages:

• Memory Loss
• Ask-the-Expert Online Conference: Managing Chemo Brain
• Research News articles on Cognitive Side Effects

We hope this helps! Please keep us posted on how she is doing.

--The Mods

Rachel1414

unfortunately we have looked into that already and do not believe this is the case. It has gone on too long and the issues that are occurring are more than chemo brain.

Icietla

Some of what you describe sounds like possibly effects of TIAs or SCIs. I am guessing that she has been evaluated for that type stuff, though.

The three chemical tests about which I asked should all (all three) be done to evaluate her for possible B!2 Deficiency. B12 Deficiency can cause, among many other neuro complications, memory issues and prioperception problems. From how you describe her leg use, it sounds like she may have prioperception problems affecting her leg use. Multiple Sclerosis could be another possible cause.

Electrical conduction nerve testing could indicate demyelination, which would then put you all on the track of ruling out particular demyelinating diseases.

Understand, "Chemo Brain" effects can be long-lasting, and much neuro damage from other causes can be permanent.