Just Diagnosed and Ready to start Chemo

Hi
I am glad that you have found this board! These women are wonderful, courageous and wise. They will help you through all of your problems and worries. Your first treatment should start with a pre-treatment of meds to keep you from having an allergic reaction and probably something for nausea. If you are taking Taxol and Carboplatin as your chemo drugs it will take about 2 to 2 1/2 hours for the treatment.(If I remember right) I was lucky in that the pre-treatment drugs made me sleep so I slept through all of my treatments! I woke up in time to leave. I was ok for 2-3 days after the treatment but about the 3rd to 4th day I would have leg pain and would be weak. This usually only lasted a week at the most. One thing I learned was that as soon as I had a treatment I would start taking a stool softner because the chemo drugs constipated me. The only time I got sick was when I got constipated and the buildup made me very ill. I only let that happen once! After that I took the stool softner and never had trouble again. The more treatments you take the worst your symptoms may become or you may not be affected at all. Everyone is diffrent in how they react. What stage is your cancer? I hope that your treatments go well and your road to better health is smooth. Good luck and let us know how it goes.
Live, Love, Laugh!
Jami

Hello, and welcome to the site. Your first reply was very thorough. I had Stage 1C ovarian. My chemo was taxol/carboplatin and lasted approximately 7-8 hours. My doctor is very good and VERY thorough. He had them give it to me very slowly to minimize reactions. One time, they were trying to speed things up because it was getting late. The minute she inreased the speed of the drip I got REALLY sick, so they backed off. Be sure to keep them informed as to how you are feeling. They can even give you meds during the infusion if you have problems.

I could write a book, but I'll be brief (but e-mail me if you want more details). The stool softener is important, but so is good nutrition. Try to drink LOTS of water. Eat good, fibrous foods like raw vegetables. Keep up your lean protein intake. It helps the body to repair itself and keeps up your energy. Rely on good carbs like oats and other whole grains. Some fruits are okay, but try to avoid the ones that are too acidic (including tomatoes if they cause problems).

As hard as it will be, try to get some form of exercise. I kept up with my weight training as much as I could. But maybe if you want, just a nice walk everyday, or ride on a stationary bike, etc. Whatever you can tolerate. This helps to keep the blood moving in your system, helps to maintain strength, etc. But the key is also PLENTY OF REST! Don't overdo it and get as much sleep as you can.

I did develop neuropathy (pain in the arms, legs, feet). That will go away in time, but there are also some things you can do for that. I did lose my hair. I bought two wigs to wear to work or whereever. But at home I wore a turban or hat or sometimes nothing at all! You might get a horrible taste in your mouth or have no taste at all. I like Altoids because they helped that situation but also helped quell some of the minimal nausea I had. You may get mouth sores which might discourage you from eating. So get Zilactin or Orabase. They coat the sore and enable you to eat.

Bring a book, crossword puzzles, personl CD player, or whatever you want to pass the time. I always fought falling asleep even though I was tired from the anti-allergic-reaction meds. I have a tendency to fight it off because I always think I'll feel worse when I wake up. But, rest if you can. Bring something to munch on. The place I was at had much to offer me - pillows, blankets, snacks, beverages, TV, etc. But I also brought my own afghan to cover up with and some things to eat and keep me occupied.

My very best to you during this time. You will get through it and hopefully you have a good support system available to you (family, doctor, etc.). Please keep us informed and as I said, e-mail me at any time (I'm on the memeber list).

God bless!
Monika

Dear mdunnk, Jami explained alot already. We are all glad you found this board but sorry you had to. My treatments of taxol/carbo lasted about 5 hours and yes you will probably sleep through most of it. The advice of the stool softeners are wise advice, between the chemo, steroids and antinausea drugs the constipation is bad. I actually started taking senacot the day before chemo. Pray all goes well for you. Let us know how you are doing and if we can help in anyway.

Prayers and Hugs BonnieRose