Pneumonitis

TripNegUnicorn

I have Stage 2 triple-neg. Week 12 of 18 into chemo I developed pneumonitis. It took a month to diagnose. They stopped the remaining four taxol treatments. I'm waiting for all the doctors to agree on how to proceed. Wondering if anyone else experienced pneumonitis while on chemo and what was the treatment plan? Majority of times it's triggered during radiation not chemo.

NorCalS

Hi.

I was diagnosed with stage 3c TNBC, went through AC-T and radiation therapy without pneumonitis. I developed pneumonitis while on Xeloda (adjuvant Chemo due to non PCR). It was during my 5th cycle. MO took me off Xeloda for a couple of days to see if symptoms would level off. I had dry cough and chest compression for over 4 weeks. My CT scan showed lung inflammation. The symptoms have gone away and I am feeling better. No treatment other than taking me off chemo for a few days. MO said the inflammation would last up to 6 weeks and that there was no other treatment needed because my symptoms were not severe

TripNegUnicorn

Hi NorCao S. Thanks for the response. That's interesting. So you are back on Xeloda and they are hoping the symptoms don't resurface.

My symptoms were the same. The coughing got really bad as was severe fatigue from inflamation. I had x-ray and CT scan. They put me on dexamethasone for a week. Coughing stopped within a day and I felt better after 5 days. Two days after stopping the steroid the cough returned. So I'm back on steroids. I'm not finding a lot of information online about pneumonitis so it's good to hear from others who experienced it.

NorCalS

Yes, I am back on Xeloda. I was concerned about going back on Xeloda while I was still having symptoms. However, I was checking my temp and blood oxygen (if you don’t have one, you want to get a pulse oximeter) every day and since both were normal for weeks, MO believed it was a viral infection and that it would resolve without any medication. It did take several weeks for the symptoms to completely resolve. From start to finish, it was probably about 6+ weeks. Hopefully, your pneumonitis will resolve soon

Murfy

I, too, developed pneumonitis after 3rd dose-dense chemo that really worsened after 4th and final round. I had SOB and couldn't talk without coughing. Internist said he could give me steroids or I could tough it out. I did the latter and it took many weeks before I was breathing normally again. Best of luck!

TripNegUnicorn

Thanks for the info Murfy and NorCal S. Both of you seemed to do fine eventually even without steroids. Gives me something to think about.

Moderators

Welcome to our community, TripNegUnicorn! We're so sorry for what you're going through, we know how hard it can be to hit a setback during treatment. We hope your pneumonitis resolves soon, and your medical team can come to an agreement on when/how you can resume your treatment. Please keep us posted!

The Mods

Fab4mom

checking in on this thread, I’m beginning to suspect pneumonitis for myself. I finished 28 rounds of radiation on 10/1. I am also on Kadcyla for residual cancer at my DMX in July. I notice coughing when I talk after my infusions but this cycle (5) it’s worse. I wheeze when I exercise. I don’t feel sick like Covid, it feels more like what I would imagine mild asthma feels like. I called my radiation doc once and she told me to call back if I notice more wheezing. It’s hard to know if it is radiation or the Kadcyla, but I am pretty sure something is causing my lungs to feel inflamed.

I’m happy to hear most get better without treatment. I am definitely going to scale back on my cardio exercises, I tried to up them this month in intensity and then I’m wrecked the rest of the day.

TripNegUnicorn

Hi Fab4mom,

Ultimately I went on steroids to stop the cough. I stayed on for a week But when I went off the cough returned. I did 4 rounds of this. Finally I stayed off the steroids for two weeks. Things definitely got worse before they got better, but after 2 weeks I did get better. Make sure you monitor your oxygen levels throughout.