Chemotherapy - what to expect?

[CastleDreamer]

Hi there, I am new on the Disboards and have been browsing and your thread got my attention...I am an oncology RN and am sorry to hear what your family is going through...from the pieces I can pick out from your posts it sounds like your MIL is on a FOLFOX regimen of which there are a few variations. The scary issue of not eating or drinking anything cold is due to a drug called oxaliplatin...the sensation she may feel is terrifying to patients ...we tell patients to avoid cold food, cold air etc so they don't get scared or uncomfortable. Sounds like her nurses did excellent teaching with you guys so that is great and don't hesitate to call her nurse with any questions or concerns...its never a bother!

You will get through this...my own Mom is going through chemo for breast cancer now also...its hard to watch a loved one go through it but you will get through it. Most important thing for your MIL and everyone around her is handwashing! Sounds simple but it the best thing to do to keep her safe when her WBC goes down. Best of luck and reach out when you need support! Also the American Cancer Society is a great resource too...they gave me great coloring books to explain to kids why Grandma is losing her hair...and they also can provide wigs and the "look good, feel better" program.

It helps our family to look forward to our big cancer survival celebration trip to WDW once chemo and radiation are done...Disney trip planning is an excellent distraction! Take care....

 

[LCoulter]

Hugs and take care.

 

[Pooh2]

My MIL went for her first chemo treatment today and it went pretty well so far.

She was there for 7-8 hours and gave her a megadose of chemo meds and then hooked her up with a pump that slowly releases meds over the next couple of days. Then they remove the pump and will redo in two weeks. She is scheduled for six treatments. Their goal is completely curing her which is good news.

She is tired but she went up stairs fine and back down stairs for dinner. She needs to try to keep her weight up since she has already lost 25 pounds since the surgery.

The one scary warning that they gave her is she can't have anything cold over the next couple of days......nothing colder than room temperature. If she has something cold, she will feel like her throat is closing up and there will be a lot of pain and this pain may or may not go away or it could take weeks, months or an entire year for this pain to go away. It messes with your nerves.

We'll see what the next few days are like for her.

When my dad went through chemo and radiation at the same time (lung cancer), one of his biggest complaints was the food tasting weird. He stopped drinking coffee for 6 months, thinking my mother was doing something weird to his coffee. Everything tasted metallic.

My dad is 3 years out and doing great despite a very grim prognosis (prayers do work!) but still deals with his throat closing up when he has something cold like ice cream.

Best of luck to your family during this difficult time!

 

[Name26]

Well, if she is going #2 too much, then try to give her rice, cheese and bananas as that should help to bind up the bowel. Not all together at once! Offer them as snacks, or sides to meals. Seperately they all have binding properties. Also, remember Gatorade to help with dehydration and potential electrolyte depletion.

Glad to hear its only 5 more treatments. Keeping my fingers crossed. Good luck

Thank you for the advice. I will pass the information along to her.

 

[Name26]

Hi there, I am new on the Disboards and have been browsing and your thread got my attention...I am an oncology RN and am sorry to hear what your family is going through...from the pieces I can pick out from your posts it sounds like your MIL is on a FOLFOX regimen of which there are a few variations. The scary issue of not eating or drinking anything cold is due to a drug called oxaliplatin...the sensation she may feel is terrifying to patients ...we tell patients to avoid cold food, cold air etc so they don't get scared or uncomfortable. Sounds like her nurses did excellent teaching with you guys so that is great and don't hesitate to call her nurse with any questions or concerns...its never a bother!

You will get through this...my own Mom is going through chemo for breast cancer now also...its hard to watch a loved one go through it but you will get through it. Most important thing for your MIL and everyone around her is handwashing! Sounds simple but it the best thing to do to keep her safe when her WBC goes down. Best of luck and reach out when you need support! Also the American Cancer Society is a great resource too...they gave me great coloring books to explain to kids why Grandma is losing her hair...and they also can provide wigs and the "look good, feel better" program.

It helps our family to look forward to our big cancer survival celebration trip to WDW once chemo and radiation are done...Disney trip planning is an excellent distraction! Take care....

Best wishes to you and your mom. Thanks for the suggestions.

Maybe we will need to look into taking DMIL to WDW again....it's been a few years since we took her last.

 

[Name26]

Hugs and take care.

When my dad went through chemo and radiation at the same time (lung cancer), one of his biggest complaints was the food tasting weird. He stopped drinking coffee for 6 months, thinking my mother was doing something weird to his coffee. Everything tasted metallic.

My dad is 3 years out and doing great despite a very grim prognosis (prayers do work!) but still deals with his throat closing up when he has something cold like ice cream.

Best of luck to your family during this difficult time!

Thank you for your responses.

At this point food just isn't very appealing to her but she forces herself to eat and drink. Her appetite is picking up a bit but Monday she goes back again so she will probably lose her appetite again. She went to the doctor today for a check up so we will see if she lost any more weight.