Taxotere is a nightmare

Thanks Betsy. It's on my list of threads to check for more tips.

I'm going to be going through TAC all at one time - once every three weeks for six weeks. Has anyone else done that? Should I brace myself for even more trouble dealing with all three at one time? 

Rachel...there are a couple of gals in our Sept Chemo group that are doing TACx6.  Check out the thread to see what they have gone through.  I just finished dd taxol x4 and am moving to ACx4 tomorrow. My SE's from the taxol were mild neuropathy in the feet after #3.  No biggie for me..like bdavis it was mostly at night and not the entire foot.  Very slight in the fingertips.  Ac is scaring me!!

Maggie

ok.. so you are doing ACT/TAC but with Taxotere not taxol... Taxol causes more neuropathy, taxotere  has more nail issues, but icing the nails during taxotere helped me 100%.

rachlvk do the icing! as someone who not only had the problem but got it really bad I must say it was probably the worse SE I had. One of my toenails is permanently ruined and I still have many of my fingernails lifted. Not sure if they will ever get better. I still have to wear nail polish because the nails still look crappy. I was not a nail polish wearer before.

Its not a common SE but some of us do get it.

Rachel... I reused the same 4 bags and then chucked them when I was done... Bags of peas during the TAXOTERE infusion, and Sally Hanson nail hardener all the time, and keep the nails short... And I bought the Bryan Joseph lash/brow gel...and used it everyday.. It did lose my brows, but never lost my lashes... they thinned a little, but always had something to put mascara on... now, 7 months later, lashes are normal, and never had the second cycle of losing them, nor the brows... They came back in June/July, and stayed.

I am doing well...have had 3 major surgeries since July (last one was 3 weeks ago) and feel good... I have been crazy busy at work, so am tired, but its not related to the surgery.. Thanks for asking!!

Windlass,



I am now 10 weeks past my last chemo (taxotere), and I feel pretty good. But, around weeks 5 and 6 I couldn't believe how crappy I felt. I seriously thought I had wrecked myself for all time. Taxotere takes a long time to get over, and for some (like me), it gets worse before it gets better. It does get better though. Hang in there.

Hi Ladies I am 4 weeks after Taxatore still feel like crap I am having pain in breast area and clavical area the bone the pains just started a week ago has anyone else had these S/E after finishing chemo ?

Taxotere kicked my butt!  It was way worse than FEC.  I am 5 1/2 months PFC and still getting over the SEs.  I got a terrible fungal infection all the way through my entire GI track.  I developed really painful, itchy dry eyes that I still have a lot of trouble with.  Did you have dry eye trouble?  What helped/relieved you the most?  I have used the artificial tears, but it doesn't really help very much.

rachelvk...I got hand/foot neuropathy from taxotere.  It is getting better, but not completely resolved yet.  I had not found the boards at the time I was having tx...no one at the cancer center told me about icing toes and fingers...I have read here that it helps with the nail loss issue as well as neuropathy.  They did tell me to suck on ice chips during infusion to reduce the chance of mouth sores and it did work.  Good luck to you!  

I consider myself lucky that I did not have bad nail issues.  I did develope some  deep indentaions that went from side to side all the way across the nails.  Luckily, they did not turn black or fall off.  The indentations have grown out and been cut/filed off already. I did keep my nails cut/filed short because they were very weak and would bend back easily, and that hurt!

 I just completed 3 cycles (every three weeks) of FEC and will start Taxotere only on Monday for 3 cycles (every three weeks).

I have read of the side effects, but what have you been experiencing? How soon do the side effects start? I am planning a short trip 6 days after my treatment and I am not sure what to expect. I really would like to make the trip (to see relatives) for my daughter, but I am worried about how I might feel.

Take care!

wow, glad I stumbled into this topic.  Taxotere sucks.  Still have numb toes, achy calf muscles, nails lifting from beds.  Not to mention the mucositis I got first two rounds (horrible diarrhea).  Here I thought I was doing 'chemo light' because of no A, and thinking that T might be worse! 

Blair, get your wife some really good moisturizer as the drugs dry out your skin horribly.  have tylenol in the house as its the only thing most MO's will let us take.  Pick up some Biotene mouthwash, it works wonders.  Have her chew ice during T infusion.  Ice fingernails and toenails with a bag of frozen peas each round. Buy some Imodium to have around just in case.  Encourage her to hydrate like crazy, especially during and the first 3 days or so after tx.  Our Sept 2011 chemo group got to be quite large, and has many many tips.....check it out and good luck to her.  Thank you for being so supportive of her, please continue as she is going to need it.

Rachel... I sat in a recliner at infusion, so I just laid the bags over my toes... When I went to chemo, I would bring a small cooler of drinks and my peas, with ice to keep everything cold... and I would bring a fleece blanket to stay cozy. I never ever had nail problems... My eyes would tear for the time I was doing chemo, but when I finished it stopped tearing... I had a little neuropathy in my feet while in bed of all things... started taking Vitamin B-50 and it went away. I used Biotene as a mouthwash everyday... never had mouth sores.

And for Normandy... I went to St John USVI for 10 days between my 3rd and 4th infusion... I was hairless, but felt fine. I planned it so that I had chemo and left about a week later, so my time away was week 2 and 3... then came back and had chemo like the next day. The not great day for me was like day 3-5... in there somewhere. So if I had chemo Tuesday, and Neulasta Thursday, I was not happy Friday... Otherwise, I worked fulltime and felt ok. 

I think drinking a lot, and taking the steroids is important... my infusion day included more steroids, benedryl and anti-nausea meds.