Dealing with side effects of Irinotecan

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mruble
mruble Member Posts: 174
in Esophageal Cancer #1
Hi All --

Any tips for dealing with the lovely side effects of Irinotecan (or "I Run To the Can" as the nurses call it)? My husband just finished round two of his second six-week cycle and is frustrated by the diarrhea and to a lesser extent the nausea. Currently he's taking Diphenoxylate-Atropine alternating with Loperamide for the diarrhe and Zofran, Reglan and Dexamethasone for the nausea. Our next step may be tincture of opium. Has anyone tried this? Apparently it's pretty nasty tasting -- but if it's effective it might be worth a try.

Thanks for any input you might be able to offer! I know there is a wealth of knowledge here!

Mary
Caregiver to Chad
Diagnosed stage 4 in October 2009
THE in February 2010
Now battling mets to thyroid and lymphnodes in neck

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  • jojoshort
    jojoshort Member Posts: 230 Member
    #2
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    Irinotecan
    You may find that he'll benefit from IV hydration before the effects have their way with them. With this chemo, don't wait to treat the diahrrea but get a jump on it and report to doc asap if you are not finding relief.
    Good luck. Looks like you are trying to stay on top of it, but don't allow him to get dehydrated.
  • cher76
    cher76 Member Posts: 292
    #3
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    Mary,
    My husband, Rickie,
    Mary,
    My husband, Rickie, has been receiving Irinotecan and Erbitux since late February with good results. In mid March he suffered a sever case of diarrhea that landed him in the hospital for 5 days and a weight loss of 20lbs. Since then he has been receiving an injection of Sandostatin every month. This has helped tremendously. We have noticed a pattern to the side effects of the chemo. Usually the day of chemo and the day after he feels good, but on the third day the fatigue and "yucky" feeling sets in. That seems to last about 2 or 3 days and then he starts feeling better again. Along with the chemo he has also been receiving Neulasta injections. Yesterday he went in for both injections and had some nausea problems throughout the day. He had forgotten to take the medication for the nausea, so suffered with that for awhile. We were suppose to leave this Sunday to attend the furniture market in Las Vegas, but decided last night to cancel as he does not want to take the chance of still having side effects from the chemo and not being able to get any work done. Hope this helps.
    Cheryl
    Wife of Rickie, EC stage IV, dx Oct. 2010
    MD Anderson Houston,Tx
    T-FOX
    Clinical trial
    Erbitux and Irinotecan
  • mruble
    mruble Member Posts: 174
    #4
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    jojoshort said:

    Irinotecan
    You may find that he'll benefit from IV hydration before the effects have their way with them. With this chemo, don't wait to treat the diahrrea but get a jump on it and report to doc asap if you are not finding relief.
    Good luck. Looks like you are trying to stay on top of it, but don't allow him to get dehydrated.

    Thank you
    My husband fails to understand the role proper hydration plays in all this but I keep trying. Fortunately, his doctor and I are on the same page and I'll probably ask him to write the order for a couple of times a week. Earlier this summer we did have to skip one round because of the diarrhea and dehydration and I hope we don't have to do that again. He does feel better when he gets hydration so I don't know why he's so stubborn about it! I have suggested that he start taking the diarrhea pills the second his stomach starts to feel funny! Hopefully that will keep things under control a little better. Thanks so much for your response!
  • mruble
    mruble Member Posts: 174
    #5
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    cher76 said:

    Mary,
    My husband, Rickie,
    Mary,
    My husband, Rickie, has been receiving Irinotecan and Erbitux since late February with good results. In mid March he suffered a sever case of diarrhea that landed him in the hospital for 5 days and a weight loss of 20lbs. Since then he has been receiving an injection of Sandostatin every month. This has helped tremendously. We have noticed a pattern to the side effects of the chemo. Usually the day of chemo and the day after he feels good, but on the third day the fatigue and "yucky" feeling sets in. That seems to last about 2 or 3 days and then he starts feeling better again. Along with the chemo he has also been receiving Neulasta injections. Yesterday he went in for both injections and had some nausea problems throughout the day. He had forgotten to take the medication for the nausea, so suffered with that for awhile. We were suppose to leave this Sunday to attend the furniture market in Las Vegas, but decided last night to cancel as he does not want to take the chance of still having side effects from the chemo and not being able to get any work done. Hope this helps.
    Cheryl
    Wife of Rickie, EC stage IV, dx Oct. 2010
    MD Anderson Houston,Tx
    T-FOX
    Clinical trial
    Erbitux and Irinotecan

    Thank you!
    Cheryl --

    Thanks for the tip on the Sandostatin. It's not something I've heard of but I'll take a look at it. And we're trying to figure out the pattern of the diarrhea so he can be a little more proactive. So far he hasn't needed Neupogen but I'm guessing that may change this week. Since he gets Irinotecan weekly, Neulasta isn't an option. The poor guy doesn't get any time to feel better before it all starts over again! Thanks again for your response!

    Mary
  • Daisylin
    Daisylin Member Posts: 365
    #6
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    mruble said:

    Thank you
    My husband fails to understand the role proper hydration plays in all this but I keep trying. Fortunately, his doctor and I are on the same page and I'll probably ask him to write the order for a couple of times a week. Earlier this summer we did have to skip one round because of the diarrhea and dehydration and I hope we don't have to do that again. He does feel better when he gets hydration so I don't know why he's so stubborn about it! I have suggested that he start taking the diarrhea pills the second his stomach starts to feel funny! Hopefully that will keep things under control a little better. Thanks so much for your response!

    stubborn
    I have no advice for you, have not been down that road with Lee, just wanted to let you know that my hubby is stubborn about hydration too. Not sure why they just don't suck it up and have a glass of water! aarrhh..... I know your frustration!

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