Weight Gain / Loss

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Owens69
Owens69 Member Posts: 66
edited April 2016 in Chemotherapy - Before, During, and After

I keep reading posts that speak of substantial weight gain on chemo. I am scheduled to start chemo in a few weeks. I am already overweight and the thought of gaining more absolutely terrifies me. I'm pretty sure I would become depressed. Do most people gain or lose? And if you are one who began to gain weight, what did you do to combat the gain?

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  • muska
    muska Member Posts: 1,195
    edited April 2016

    Hi Owens, I am at the higher end of normal weight. I ate without restrictions during chemo and gained six pounds over six months. Once chemo ended I started watching my diet and lost that additional weight rather quickly by reducing the food intake - stopped breads and pasta, reduced sweets and meats, introduced more fruits and vegetables. I lost those few extra pounds rather quickly and have not regained anything since despite being on AI. But I continue watching what I eat.

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  • Veronica31
    Veronica31 Member Posts: 97
    edited April 2016

    Hey Owen69. I think the most important thing to remember is that everyone reacts differently to chemo. Some people gain weight, some people lose weight, and some people do not notice any change in weight. I have read that most people who gain weight, seem to gain it from steroids and it goes away soon after chemo is over.

    For me personally, I had steady weight gain of about a pound or two a week. I realized it was from steroids and since I heard that it was mostly water weight, I just made slight changes to what I ate. The only thing I did was cut back on salt and really paid attention to whether I was eating because I was bored or hungry. That's it. After that change, I slowly started to go back to my normal weight.

    It's scary to start chemo, but try to relax and take it one day at a time. You'll get through it and you'll be happy that you're doing everything you can to prevent a recurrence. You've got a big support system here. Good luck!!

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  • KBeee
    KBeee Member Posts: 5,109
    edited April 2016

    I maintained my weight. I was lucky to not gain fluid weight. As far as eating, I did not fall into the "eat whatever I want because I am on chemo". I still tried to eat healthy, and I also exercised

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  • Kicks
    Kicks Member Posts: 4,131
    edited April 2016

    I did not gain any weight at all - instead I lost weight. Was within 'normal' weight for my height/age, so didn't need to loose any. Chemo took away my appetite so just didn't think to eat unless reminded to.

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  • ksusan
    ksusan Member Posts: 4,505
    edited April 2016

    My experience was the same as Kbeee's.

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