Taxotere SE lingering

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Lkott921
Lkott921 Member Posts: 8
edited June 2014 in Managing Side Effects of Breast Cancer and Its Treatment

My course of treatment was 4 rounds of AC every 2 weeks then I was supposed to have 4 rounds of taxol every 2 weeks. I did ok with AC. I experienced some SE but could manage them with meds. Unfortunately, I had terrible problems with taxol. After my second round, Onc determined I was allergic so he switched me to taxotere for my last 2 treatments. The taxotere for me ended up being worse than taxol. 7 out of 10 of my fingernails are black, and 4 of my toenails. It has been 4 weeks since I finished my last dose yet I am still struggling with terrible bone pain and flu like symptoms. I am extremely fatigued and having terrible headaches. My Onc ordered a brain MRI last week and thankfully it was clean. One of my biggest issues is that my hands and feet developed a burning purplish rash. Now all of the skin on my hands and feet are peeling and cracking all over. I would love to hear from others that are still suffering with SE one month after chemo and some insight on how long does it take to be SE free. I just started radiation last week and I will be taking herceptin every 3 weeks for 13 rounds. At this point I am getting terribly depressed as I'm still having so many SE one month after chemo. I guess you could say I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired!

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  • beegee
    beegee Member Posts: 32
    edited February 2012

    I had taxotere/cytoxin cocktail x 4.  My last treatment was Dec 5 and I was so excited, thinking that, by Christmas I would feel normal.  That wasn't so.  The fatigue lingered until after the surgery, which was January 5.  I had intermittent fevers and chills for the whole month of December.  I couldn't do any Christmas shopping or cooking or baking.  My nails are also a mess.  Who knows when that will clear up.  I still have neuropathy in my feet and legs, gradually getting better, but still definitely an issue.  My energy is back to about 75% of what it was before chemo.  Hair is coming in sooooo slowly.  After all the chemo, I lost my eyebrows.  I was depressed when I wasn't getting better, but was reassured by my oncologist that by March, I will feel like a different person, that it takes several months to recover from chemo.  

    I hope your energy comes back soon.  When my energy came back, it was sudden and very noticeable. I was feeling pretty depressed up to that point also.  That really lifted my spirits, and makes dealing with the other stuff a lot easier.  

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  • thefuzzylemon
    thefuzzylemon Member Posts: 2,630
    edited February 2012

    Everyone is different. I'm still having side effects from chemo and rads. Significant pain, fatigue.

    Have you looked at threads on moving beyond treatment or Treatment SE's? I iced my nails and used lemon oil on them during treatment. ..Just started having nail issues this year...weird eh?

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  • ma111
    ma111 Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2012

    Taxotere caused me to get migraine headaches. I take depakote for them that I get from my family doctor.

    Oncs don't seem to be very good at treating SE's, so go elsewhere for treatment of them. Dermatologists for the rash and nails.

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