Question for folks who have done Gem/Cis

Mary –
My husband is in the middle of his last cycle of Gem/Ox and while not exactly the same drugs, similar in some ways. His first 6 or 7 treatments didn’t really bother him much other then the cold sensitivity from the Oxaliplatin. Now that we are hearing the end, he is fatigued a lot and has trouble with his memory and such but other than constipation he is doing really well.
Our ONC gives him really good pre-meds (steroid, Zofran and Ativan) and then meds after to take – Zofran/steroid twice a day for two days and Compazine every 6 hours. We follow the after directions exactly as given and have only had one episode of nausea.
I would think traveling would be okay. I would make sure you stop every couple of hours to get out and stretch to keep the blood flowing in the legs. Alcohol hand wash is a must….use it often and liberally especially anywhere you are around a lot of people. Drink lots of fluids and have fun.

KrisV

Hi Mary (mcwgoat),

I’ve been thinking about you and wondering how you’ve been. I’m sorry to hear Gem/Cis has been so rough. I’m crossing my fingers & saying a prayer for good scan results!

Love,
Caroline

Hi Mary,

I just finished up six gem/cis treatments and then was scanned this past Tuesday, 1/7. I’ll get the results tomorrow, Friday, 1/10 and am hoping for good news.

I had major swelling of my feet and legs – all the way up to my thighs. My stomach became very distended also. Between the both issues, I was very, very uncomfortable. I also had extreme fatigue but was able to deal with that.

Just today, 1/9 I went to see a physical therapist at Memorial Sloan regarding lymphedema therapy to help relieve the swelling in the feet and legs. Today was the consult so no therapy was actually done. But I was told that I am a candidate for leg wrapping which they do to help the lymphatic system drain and bring relief of the swelling. I’m going to Florida 1/15 – 1/25 so they’ll start that when I return. In the meantime the therapist gave me good advice on what to do while traveling. I will see her again the day before I leave for Florida and she will show me some kind of massage I can to do for relief while I’m away and until I see her for the leg wrapping when I return the end of January.

So long story short…my two major issues with the gem/cis was feet and leg swelling, distended stomach and fatigue. Oh and also my hemoglobin went very low a few times which required blood transfusions but did not stop me from getting the gem/cis.

Hope this helps and I hope your husband and the whole family enjoy your trip to Mardi Gras!!!

Peace,
Mary

Hi Mary,

My daughter, Lauren, was on Gem/Cis for a long time. She felt very tired and achy a few hours after getting chemo. She would usually run a low grade fever. Not high enough to go to the ER. She would feel this way for a few days and then say she felt better than before having chemo. We found that taking nausea meds as directed around the clock for a few days helped. If Lauren didn’t do this and got nauseous, she ended up vomiting even after taking meds. So I would suggest staying on top of those. Like everyone else has said, everyone reacts differently to chemo. For the most part, Lauren was able to do a lot after the first few days and never let it stop her from having fun and enjoying life. I hope your husband has a mild reaction. For that matter, no reaction would be even better! Take care, Mary and best wishes to your husband.

Hugs,
-Pam

Mary, hopefully he will handle chemo well. I’m jealous that you are going for Mardi Gras!! The main thing to worry about there are all of the crowds. Most chemo patients have lower tolerance for illness. I’m sure the crowds haven’t gotten any smaller since I lived there in early 90’s!
I hope his docs will work with him so you can all go! It’s lots of fun!! (I rode with the Krewe of Ullysses)

Hi. I just finished my 7th cycle of gem cis. Of course we are all different and all respond differently. Some have lots of side effects some none some minimal. For me mine were minimal and main side effect was fatigue. I also felt pretty good the first couple of months when I started. It started to get more difficult as far as recovering time from chemo after about the 4th month. I began looking very forward to my week off from treatment. I hope all goes well and please keep us posted.

Hi Mary,

I agree with Percy. You will have a better idea of how the treatments will affect him after the first round. Hope it all works out and you are able to achieve this goal.

Love & Hugs,
Darla