Taxotere, Carboplatin and Herceptin

thank you! I will try to keep up with boards! Have a ton of information and feels good to connect to others!

I didn't have those Side Effects... but mouth sores/tender mouth, gum, tongue, can be pretty common. Also eye problems-- too dry or too teary, blocked tear-ducts, etc. Tell you Oncologist about ALL your issues. There are things they can check and ways to help just about anything, or at least they will know if anything serious is going on or not. Ask what can be done if they don't seem to be telling you anything helpful.

Generally, mouth tenderness can sometimes be helped with various mouth washes. There are prescriptions you can get for some, but some just use over-the-counter ones for dry-mouth... just don't use the really harsh ones with alcohol! Something gentle. My MO said that taking L-glutamine could help with mouth sores, but I'd check with you MO to see what he says. I got sent off to an opthamologist when my eyes seemed to get dry. I think I did get some weird flashes at times, but not intense colors as far as I know! Definitely get it checked out. Chemo seems to affect the body in all kinds of odd ways, so you never know what odd SEs may occur!

It's been 8 months since I had 4 rounds TCH, 3 more of just H (heart failure - had to stop treatment), 36 rounds radiation, 7 months of Tamoxifen.....now starting to have some late developing issues and am not sure of the cause.

About 2-3 months ago I started having trouble "catching my breath" like I had back when my LVEF was at 35% (it has since recovered up to 49% - which my cancer center cardio department says is normal but if that is correct, then why did I start out with 56%, which according to my own cardiologist is low/normal).

I also began having pain in my wrists and knees but within just a few months, the pain has gradually taken over most of my body. I ache as if I have a high fever/flu but I don't have a fever and am not sick. Headache to go with it.

Also am noticing more simple mistakes at work and a lack of concentration, short term memory....I have to write post-it notes on everything I do, so that I know where I am on every little project I put aside.

My July labs said my thyroid meds needed to be reduced (for the second time) and that I was anemic (although my cancer center cardio dept said my labs looked good to them).

I have since consulted my primary care physician (PCP) who now has me on B12 injections and iron supplements and lowered by thyroid meds by half. Either of these issues could be the cause of the breathlessness. The cardiology/pulmonary department at my cancer center ran a full day of tests in July and saw nothing wrong with my lungs or heart.

My PCP wanted to try me on Xanax but at my suggestion, is trying me on Gabapentin for the all over pain I am having, hot flashes and insomnia. I had dropped Effexor because side effects and it was not helping with hot flashes anyway.

After the first night of 100 mg of Gabapentin, the all over pains are greatly reduced and so are the hot flashes, plus slept much better. I am supposed to up the dosage every three nights until I get to 300 mg or all symptoms are relieved. Looking forward to getting full relief.

Is anyone else who did the same regimen of chemo, etc having the same issue of delayed onset s/e's and does anyone know if the cause is chemo related or Tamoxifen related?

I still have 2 more TCH to go, when taking the flight of stairs I am out of breath and HR up in the 115's takes about 10-15 min to recover. I haven't had thyroid checked since March. Go back in Oct for that. Have been writing stuff down for past 6 weeks or so.

Mom passed last week so added stress, improper eating have exagerated all side effects. I have been sleeping a lot this past week due to exhaustion. Steroids next week will mess things up as well. For the past 2 nights have played binaural recordings to help fall asleep instead of classical music per suggestion of therapist.

I see MO Monday and will ask when next echo due. I am taking Pristiq, to help with depression, myalgias and hot flashes. I won't start on AI til september.

Mouth Sores. I started to have them after my first chemo. My oncologist had me suck on ice chips all through taxotere. Never got another sore. Also my taste changes weren't so bad either. You must keep the ice in your mouth all through taxotere infusion and about 10 minutes after. Must stay really cold. Doesn't work for everyone but did for me.

Also on this treatment pre surgery, w/ Perjeta. 3 completed, 3 to go. Side effects have been rough but manageable for the most part. Think it's the Neulasta booster making me feel so weak, fatigued as much as anything. Lots of GI issues, dealing as best I can. Like many other folks, it's a tough balance to find things you can eat, tolerate, keep down (and in).. lemon drops have been my friend.

These boards have been helpful, wanted to say thanks.

just a quick note here, if you know how to yoga breathe, that saved my life.... Tummy breathing, or the heart rate goes up with shallow breathing.

bchubby - Welcome. Is your wife having neo-adjuvent chemo (before surgery)? Everyone is different, but yes, you should expect continuing or worsening side effects. Many of us had Neulasta shots 24 hours after every infusion. I'm not sure Neupogen has the same SEs, but if she has joint aches & pains, tell her to try Claritin the day of the infusion and for several days after. I had no taste or nasty taste for rounds 2-6. I also had continuous diarrhea & went in for extra fluid infusions every week. Still lost 60 lbs but would have been in the hospital w/o the extra fluids. You don't mention hair, that should be going shortly. Is she icing her fingers & toes to help possibly ward off neuropathy and nail loss from the Taxotere? You can expect continuing fatigue that will last for some time after treatment is through. Let her sleep when she can sleep. Encourage her to keep somewhat active if she can - like just walking.

You might check out some of the threads for people going through treatment now - like Summer chemo or chemo August 2015. Or check the one just before - like spring or June chemo. It often helps to be talking to people who are experiencing just what you are and posting daily.

Thank you so much, MinusTwo, for all your suggestions! No the chemo she's having now is post-mastectomy. The main SE of Neupogen is supposedly bone pain, but after the first round she didn't feel much of it. I read that Neulasta is a more recent alternative to Neupogen and has the advantage of just a single dose/injection per cycle. She had to get neupogen injection daily for 5 days.

Yes her hair loss started about 2 weeks after 1st infusion, and I've shaved her head already. This turns out to be the easiest SE to deal with! (sorry, at least to a guy). She does feel a little bit of tingling in her fingers after each infusion, but it goes away after a day or two. She has started taking vitamin B6 for that as recommended by the MO. The nail loss is new to me - I need to read more about that.

Neulasta shot is just one given one or two days after an infusion. Neupogen are a series of shots, around 5, given on successive days. They do similar things, but Neulasta is a bit more expensive. I did the Neupogen shots my first cycle and had to inject them myself... which wasn't terrible, but no fun, either. I changed MOs and insurance plans and was given Neulasta the rest of the time. But at least they gave them to me before I had any problems. So my WB counts were never an issue, thank goodness. I didn't have any problem with bone pain, either.

The taste/eating issues... THAT was a problem. I would drop 10lbs each cycle because everything tasted terrible... and the food texture just felt awful. I found that I could eat a few things (different for everyone, but the chocolate-flavored Instant Breakfast poweder in milk managed to be OK all through chemo. Other protein drinks like ensure were tougher to take as time went on. I also liked sherbet... they gave me cups of this while at the hospital and they were great). Luckily for me, I recovered a bit at the end of the cycles and could eat things, so I'd make the weight back before it started again. Although by the end, I was anemic and was down 20lbs., and could barely move around...!

BUT it was SO good to have chemo done with, I was still happy. Slowly recovered... still recovering, three months later!

Nails--- they will get little bars showing each cycle. Some people will get dark spots. Some people will have the nails start to peel up from the nail bed from the top and may lose their nails. Icing nails during taxotere can be done to mitigate this. And/or using dark nailpolish (something about the light affecting them during the infusion), or using nourishing clear polish on them. I used the latter to strengthen the nails a bit. I still got some nail separation, but they only went part-way down and stopped and are now back to normal, although I'm still keeping them cut short for the time being. Most of this happened AFTER chemo was finished.

Neuropathy -- the tingling in fingers and feet can be a sign of this. Yes the B Complex vitamins are recommended. But also watch for signs of tingling, pain, numbness, etc. in those areas and tell the MO. I got some mild neuropathy in my legs... I didn't even know I was getting it because there wasn't pain for me. They just got weak over time, and caused me to trip and wrench my ankle, which is how I found out about it (the nerve there went numb... I still have numbness in my foot, but it's getting better).

My MO reduced my taxotere after cycle 1 because I was getting some bad side effects. Chemo can be pretty harsh and sometimes that needs to be done. Some people don't finish all their cycles because of SEs...

Hi - To those who finished tx, anyone have dental issues afterwards- seems like I'm getting cavities and I take care of my teeth and don't eat much sugar.

Thank you!

cut the corn off the Cobb, hubby can't bite with his partial, but he still loves corn, as for the brittle you will have to let it melt in your mouth, like m&m's....enjoy. Oh, no dental issues that I know of yet

Yup Jerseygirl - I'm cutting the corn off the cob. It just pisses me off that there's one more thing in my life that I've had to change because of cancer & cancer treatments.

No dental problems but that's the only area that doesn't hurt.

Blownaway - so sorry to hear you are still having pain. Hugs, Houston sister.