Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin

My blood pressure spiked while on chemo too. My MO started me on a low dose of Lisinopril. She thought I'd have to increase it, but the low dose did the trick! She was concerned that my rising blood pressure and heart-related Herceptin risks would not be a good combination. I haven't had any noticeable side effects and will continue to take Lisinopril until my Herceptin treatments end in September.

I understand the frustration. I was very, very healthy until this cancer thing. This week I am having baseline thyroid and pulmonary function tests to prepare for 6 weeks of radiation. {sigh}

Taxols push potassium out of your body so it is important to make sure you get extra. Raisins, orange fruits like tangerines and cantelope, plus spinach are good sources. Don't bother with supplements, they have barely any potassium in them.

You can read more about symptoms of yew poisoning (Taxols were derived from the Pacific Yew) and hypokalemia.

Carboplatin pushes magnesium out of the body and many people are deficient in magnesium from too much stress or insufficient amounts from their diets. Magnesium can be supplemented but it is best taken (I have learned after looking a lot into this) orally in small doses taken frequently, or else through the skin (transdermal) by soaking in epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) which goes right into the blood stream. I found Natural Calm brand magnesium, a powder that I mix into a liter of water and sip throughout the day. You know you are getting enough if any constipation starts to loosen. Even with diarrhea you should probably supplement magnesium if you are getting Carbo.

I would work really hard in between the rounds to try to restore my intestinal health my taking probiotic supplements, and eating probiotic foods such as fermented sauerkraut, cottage cheese, yogurt, gouda, miso. It really seemed to help. Chemo is way worse than antibiotics on the gut, it kills the flora and destroys your gut lining and the microenvironment. In order to assimilate nutrients and help your body deal with the toxins and stress of chemo you need to fight to get your gut back in gear as much as you can.

My Mother told a story about her younger sister saying potato skins were her favorite "vegetable". This would have been in the 1920's, but i love them too.

Fionascottie -- Thanks for telling me your experiences. I'm suspecting the Perjeta, too, since my MO reduced the taxotere and it didn't make any difference at all! (I don't know why he hasn't re-upped the dose, but since he figured it would be OK to reduce it, I'm not going to worry too much...)

I'm taking Immodium and Lomotil and Questran powder... but it really doesn't make a dent. I'm getting two weeks of IV drips (24 hours a day), staring 4 days after I get the chemo. I'm losing 10lbs each cycle, but I have a few days at the end of the cycle and the beginning of the next when things nearly get back to normal and I make sure to eat a lot then. Yo-yo-ing up and down can't be good, though! But I'm never getting too skinny, so that's one good thing at least (going between 130 and 140 each time... and I'm 5'5").

Being tied to the IV drips is crazy-making, but I just have to deal. At least it's not uncomfortable... just restricting.

I am getting a bit weak from lack of exercising, though...!

I'm hoping that the diarrhea will stop when the chemo ends... So far I've been bouncing back decently at the end of each cycle, so I have hopes!!!

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Thanks all for the tips on potassium-rich foods! ... heh... I'd eat more of them if I think I was actually able to have them stick around long enough for my intestines to absorb it!!! gah... That's the problem with the diarrhea... I can eat and drink a ton, but it doesn't help. Of course, I don't really feel up to eating and drinking so much! AND... I can always try to eat the right stuff on the few days when things aren't so bad, of course.

Thanks, CassieCat.

You know... it's not so bad. I think a body can get used to just about anything. Now that I'm going through this for the 4th time, I sort of know what to expect, at least, so it's not quite a scary. Still a pain in the a**, (sometimes literally!), but do-able, at least. I'm just happy not to have something really horrible, like the heart problems some people have! Getting tied to an IV drip is very inconvenient and frustrating, but at least I know it won't last forever!

I do think I'm losing muscles, though... It's hard to even walk around, even if the IV is supposedly portable! I can do it, but I still have a line that gets caught on stuff... and the IV bag is pretty heavy when it's full! Also-- the chemo makes my feet tender (neuropathy, I'm guessing)... I really should try and get to a stationery cycle... but as I said, it's a bit of a pain getting around. I'm just hoping I will be so happy to be done with chemo... and then surgery... that after that, I'll be diligent about getting some exercise!

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I'd be happy enough if it was the Perjeta causing the D, I guess... as long as it isn't the Herceptin, since I'll have to continue on that for years, I think! ... Some people are getting Perjeta after surgery, too... but I think that is only with chemo, right? ???

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CassieCat-- So you did Radiation, too? I'm not exactly clear on who gets that, but I think I'll probably have to have it after surgery also... Are you done with it yet? I hope it's going OK for you!

I had rads because of node involvement also, sometimes they do it for large tumors, if the margins weren't clean or if the tumor was really close to the chest wall.  Just a few reasons.

Thanks for all of your support. Day 9 of the LAST chemo. It's kicking my butt!

Anyone know how to make those red spots from docetaxel go away faster?

What kind of red spots?

It is pretty common to have a rash from taxanes.  Mine went away once I was done, my friend who did AC-T had this also, and once she was done with tx hers went away too.  If you are prone to rashes, or have sensitive skin, this seems to happen a lot.

Hey all! Was just browsing through and wanted to share my experience (some of it anyways) I lost so much muscle during my TCHP treatments. I finished my last chemo on Feb. 10th of this year and am just now able to walk only a mile on my treadmill. I went from being very active, working out 4-6 days a week, to not being able to stand up on my own (during the worst part) I lost about 10-15 lbs and only gained about 5 back. I was wondering how long it took any of you to regain your strength? Much love to you all XO

hi, this is not an answer to your question but wanted to say you give me hope about nails. Mines are lifted and growing but not reattaching. It's good to hear that there is a possibility that they will attach in a couple of month

I'm 3 months PFC and still on Herceptin, and I'd say most of my nails are lifting in minor to major ways. Most look like they're about halfway grown out, so I'm hoping that the part that looks healthy will remain that way. I hope they aren't going to lift again months and months from now. This has been one of the most irritating SEs for me, becuase it lingers on and on and is a daily irritation.

Jacs...I think I've lost muscle mass, too, as my weight is down and I'm having a hard time putting it back on. I'm in rads right now, and my energy levels are somewhat down, too. I'm hoping to do the local YMCA Livestrong program this summer, if they offer a session of it. My BS's office is going to help me with that. I've been walking, but I think I need to do more.

How many total herceptin tx did everyone do? I did 14 out of an expected 16.  My MO asked if I wanted to stop, that by now it had done its job and if it didn't 2 more tx weren't going to make a difference. I elected to do the last 2 tx, but I starting to wonder if his rational made sense and I should stop. So far I'm not having any se's from it and my LVEF is 65. Hopefully it stays that way 

Can I just vent and say I am tired of hearing "oh" and no fixes. I have rashes on my arms that Benedryl, Claritan and hydrocortisone don't touch. My eyes are weeping with an eye infection and my mouth tastes like ((:)@". I have an antibiotic for the eye but they are not optimistic it will help. My kidneys aren't outputting much and my heart races. The doctor and nurses just say be patient. I feel like hell. It's day 13 of cycle 6 of 6. I'm tired. My support system is tired too and expecting me to get well. Me too. I'm not hopeful that tomorrow will be better because the last 7 days have all been bad. I'd think since my vision is blurry an opthamalogist would be necessary. Guess not. Thanks for listening.

Minivan, so sorry to hear of your troubles and it only adds to your anxiety when no help is offered. An infusion of  extra fluids can really help. I too had the weepy eyes and blurry vision. I held off seeing my eye doctor till a few months after chemo ended, and interestingly my vision improved.

The bad mouth taste and taste changes were the worst! I thought my taste buds would never return to normal, but they did. I found the mints with xyitol helped, but nothing took it away.

Hope you are feeling better soon!