Chemo Infusions Fast or Slow

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melly1462
melly1462 Member Posts: 84
edited December 2016 in Chemotherapy - Before, During, and After

My friend was diagnosed with IBC a couple of months ago and is taking the chemo regimen TC + H + Perjeta. Her third infusion was so bad she had to go back a week later to get IV anti-nausea meds. Her oncologist group is VERY busy with some patients there into the evening receiving infusions. My question is whether or not infusions are being given too fast and this is why the vomiting occurred daily for a week after.

Thank you

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  • Cowgirl13
    Cowgirl13 Member Posts: 1,936
    edited December 2016

    The length of the infusion time can affect how you feel. Sometimes they need to run it slower. That's very true of Herceptin. Another thing to look at is when your friend started taking her nausea meds. Start right away, and do not wait for nausea to start. Once nausea gets out the gate, its very difficult to control. My oncologist told me 'we don't like to treat nausea' and that is why you start the meds before it happens.


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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited December 2016

    I'm a poster girl for slow. I had Taxotere over the standard 90 minutes. I had 5 other infusion drugs over a year. Only one time did the infusion center try to give me one of the others (maybe herceptin?) at a rate faster than 60 minutes. They always wanted to speed up all of the 5 other drugs I received by infusion, but I fought it regularly. The side effects were much less with a slower infusion.

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  • Cowgirl13
    Cowgirl13 Member Posts: 1,936
    edited December 2016

    MinusTwo, good for you!!!

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

    With my first DD A/C, I was warned when they started the Adriamycin to let them know immediately if I got a "brain freeze' as it needed to be slowed down. I did - they did and it went away quickly. The next 3, they went slower and no issue.

    With the first Taxol, my BP dropped drastically/dangerously low. Theu shot me up with more IV benadryl and it came back up. After that for the next 11 Taxol, I got shot up with more IV Benadryl before each infusion. As soon as the RN would start it, she would tell me " Nighty Night" as I would promptly go to sleep and happily sleep til a half hour before end of infusion.

    We are each so unique.


    Wanikiya Tunpi Anpetu

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