Taxotere

jane38
jane38 Member Posts: 123
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
This is for all the ladies who have taken Taxotere. My oncologist (who is no longer my oncologist, but that is another story)told me at the beginning of chemo that I would "like" Taxotere, that it would not make me as sick as CAF. CAF was very hard for me, lots of nausea, no vomiting, and fatigue, malaise and just generally feeling punk. Taxotere did not make me nauseated, but I do believe every bone in my body hurt as if someone was beating on them with hammers. My feet got numb and tingly. The soles cracked around my heels and my toes. My fingertips got very sore and tender and as I type for a living this was not good. I got sores in my mouth each cycle. All of this has since gone away and it has been 13 months since I had my last dose of it. But my toes still crack on the bottoms making it very uncomfortable. It's just like paper cuts all the time with little pieces of skin getting caught on my socks, stockings or if I am barefoot (which I prefer) on the carpet. Do any of you still have these problems? If so, did your doctor tell you about these before hand or was it a well-guarded secret? Just curious! Jane

Comments

  • lalonde13
    lalonde13 Member Posts: 6
    #2
    Dear Jane,
    I was put on a protocol(study) because I fit their criteria. No history of breast cancer in my family, had my children early, breast fed, and premenopausal. I was in the group that was assigned 4 A/C and 4 taxotere. I experienced pretty much the same as you except I began to spit up blood after not eating for 14 straight days. I lost 20 lbs. and was a mess. No one told me anything about my nails falling off after turning green nor about the "frozen" feet and fingers which I still have today, and I finished chemo April 25th. They keep telling me, "everyone's different" when I ask when I might expect to have feeling back. If I had it to do over I'm not sure I would take Taxotere again.
    Trudy
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #3
    This comment has been removed by the Moderator
  • mjdp2
    mjdp2 Member Posts: 133
    #4
    I was given Taxol, a cousin to Taxotere and it was supposed to be chemo "light" but boy were they wrong!! I could barely walk. I had to stop after the first treatment. We both fall into the 5% group that suffer pain and neuropathy. Try smothering your feet and toes with lotion containing aloe. The rubbing of your heels against your carpet might be drying your heels. Wearing sock and slippers will protect from dryness. Putting vaseline on your feet and wearing socks to bed helps too. I notice the sheets rubbing against my feet dries my skin. I know exactly how you feel. When your feet hurt it's hard to maintain a cheerful attitude but hang in there. Margaret
  • jackies
    jackies Member Posts: 28
    #5
    mjdp2 said:

    I was given Taxol, a cousin to Taxotere and it was supposed to be chemo "light" but boy were they wrong!! I could barely walk. I had to stop after the first treatment. We both fall into the 5% group that suffer pain and neuropathy. Try smothering your feet and toes with lotion containing aloe. The rubbing of your heels against your carpet might be drying your heels. Wearing sock and slippers will protect from dryness. Putting vaseline on your feet and wearing socks to bed helps too. I notice the sheets rubbing against my feet dries my skin. I know exactly how you feel. When your feet hurt it's hard to maintain a cheerful attitude but hang in there. Margaret

    Hi. JAckie here. I'm in the process of getting 4 cycles of Taxotere. The 1st one really hit me hard. It caused excruciating head-to-toe pain. It also made me so neutropenic (my white count was 1.0! normal is 4.5 to 11) that I had to be admitted to the hospital for 4 days of reverse isolation and IV antibiotics (as a precaution). As a result, my Taxotere dose was cut by 25%, and my Dr. also gave me a Rx for Vioxx (a new arthritis drug). So treatment #2 last Monday has not been nearly so bad. I've only had to take Percocet twice, and I've been able to do most of my normal daily activities. It's still not easy, but I'm really hoping to be able to finish all the chemo. I look at it as an insurance policy. Take care and God bless you. Jackie
  • rteq2000
    rteq2000 Member Posts: 4
    #6
    Has anyone done taxotere and cytoxin at the same time? Side effects?
  • vjean
    vjean Member Posts: 14
    #7
    mjdp2 said:

    I was given Taxol, a cousin to Taxotere and it was supposed to be chemo "light" but boy were they wrong!! I could barely walk. I had to stop after the first treatment. We both fall into the 5% group that suffer pain and neuropathy. Try smothering your feet and toes with lotion containing aloe. The rubbing of your heels against your carpet might be drying your heels. Wearing sock and slippers will protect from dryness. Putting vaseline on your feet and wearing socks to bed helps too. I notice the sheets rubbing against my feet dries my skin. I know exactly how you feel. When your feet hurt it's hard to maintain a cheerful attitude but hang in there. Margaret

    Hello mjdp2,
    I just discovered this discussion board today (9/13/03), so I hope you're still checking it, and can help me. I know exactly what you meant about the numbness and tingling in toes and fingers. My newest problem is extremely swollen feet and ankles, that hurt and have been swollen for over three weeks now. We've done CT scans, ultrasounds on my legs, and PET scan (all to rule out blood clots or anything); tests have been good, but doctors still don't know what's causing this terribly painful swelling. Any ideas?
  • renee616
    renee616 Member Posts: 181
    #8
    My Dr told me before my
    My Dr told me before my first treatment that Taxotere would be hard on me, He said there were possible side effects of blisters on hands & feet, mouth sores, diarrhea, bone pain, nail loss. He said the important thing was to let them know if I had any side effects, Don't wait to let them know. After first treatment,Its been 10 days and I had diarrhea, rash on hands and teary eyes so far.
    Renee
  • renee616
    renee616 Member Posts: 181
    #9
    unknown said:

    This comment has been removed by the Moderator

    I just discovered Aquapfor
    I just discovered Aquapfor the other day but not for my hands & feet, but I will use it now! I had diarrhea from the first round of taxotere & asked the pharmacist for something for a rash on my butt. He recommended Aquaphor mixed with an equal amount of malox or other generic antacid. IT worked! I guess its used as a treatment for diaper rash....I did'nt ask my Dr first, but since drinking malox is allowed on my list, I assumed wearing it was ok!
  • phoenixrising
    phoenixrising Member Posts: 1,508
    #10
    I thought taxotere would be
    I thought taxotere would be a walk in the park but exactly 72hrs after my first shot I was in excrutiating bone pain from my waist down. It was so severe I was going to go to emerg. I eventually had to take morphine for it. I still continue to have problems with my feet and it's been 4 yrs. I have osteoporosis and a pharmacist friend wondered if that had anything to do with it. Do you have osteo? I'm on Aromasin now and will not know what I'm left with till June 2012 when I finish tx as it is causing it's own aches and pains. The oncs did not speak to me specifically about the SE but I did get a handout concerning each chemo I had.
  • MAJW
    MAJW Member Posts: 2,510 Member
    #11
    phoenixrising said:

    I thought taxotere would be
    I thought taxotere would be a walk in the park but exactly 72hrs after my first shot I was in excrutiating bone pain from my waist down. It was so severe I was going to go to emerg. I eventually had to take morphine for it. I still continue to have problems with my feet and it's been 4 yrs. I have osteoporosis and a pharmacist friend wondered if that had anything to do with it. Do you have osteo? I'm on Aromasin now and will not know what I'm left with till June 2012 when I finish tx as it is causing it's own aches and pains. The oncs did not speak to me specifically about the SE but I did get a handout concerning each chemo I had.

    Old old post!
    This post is old old old!
  • IndeNanc
    IndeNanc Member Posts: 2
    #12
    MAJW said:

    Old old post!
    This post is old old old!

    Old post??
    THis post may be old but the problems still exist. We're still being prescribed Taxol and still having pain, neuropathy, etc. etc.
  • BMS
    BMS Member Posts: 127
    #13
    phoenixrising said:

    I thought taxotere would be
    I thought taxotere would be a walk in the park but exactly 72hrs after my first shot I was in excrutiating bone pain from my waist down. It was so severe I was going to go to emerg. I eventually had to take morphine for it. I still continue to have problems with my feet and it's been 4 yrs. I have osteoporosis and a pharmacist friend wondered if that had anything to do with it. Do you have osteo? I'm on Aromasin now and will not know what I'm left with till June 2012 when I finish tx as it is causing it's own aches and pains. The oncs did not speak to me specifically about the SE but I did get a handout concerning each chemo I had.

    @ Phoenix...
    By shot I think you mean the Neulasta shot. That is different from the Taxotere. I was on TCH and got neuropathy in both feet. Then we took a break because I had elevated liver enzymes. When we started up again we went to Taxol, which was worse for the neuopathy (had it in both feet and finger tips). Still have it in both feet after finishing chemo nearly 9 weeks ago.

    As for side effects from Taxotere...bad for me. Nausea, the big "D," fatigue, and horrible hot flashes since it put me right into menopause. Taxol was not as bad but only because my doses were smaller and given weekly.

    Bonnie
  • MAJW
    MAJW Member Posts: 2,510 Member
    #14
    IndeNanc said:

    Old post??
    THis post may be old but the problems still exist. We're still being prescribed Taxol and still having pain, neuropathy, etc. etc.

    Yes.....It is...and
    I agree...I had Taxotere and Cytoxan....My first infusion was rough..and combined with the Nuelasta injection the next day, it's a double whammy with bone pain...I also had severe muscle spasms in my chest4 days later...had diarrhea, etc...but the rest of the infusions and Nuelasta didn't do this...the bone pain was reduced to an achy feeling...no taste buds for a week...I used a prescription called Nystatin, so no mouth sores...I also rinsed my mouth sometimes with warm water and baking soda... I was warned to take extra good care of my nails, and skin ahead of time...I used Sally Hansen triple strength nail acrylic..it's in a green bottle..purchased it at Walgreen's... My nails never fell off...the skin underneath them did "die" and my nails turned slightly yellowish...I kept a pale pink polish on them in addition to the Sally Hansen...I also used this on my toenails...they did turn rather ugly...kept red polish on them... Told no professional mani pedi's though.....I used Eucerin lotion for dry skin....also did the socks and Vaseline on my feet when needed....

    Taxol and Taxotere are sister drugs,but yet different,,

    Many have taken Claritan and have reported a decrease in the bone pain associated with Taxotere and Taxol...wish I had known about that....
    We all do the best we can!
  • poplolly
    poplolly Member Posts: 346
    #15
    Yes--I have some of those
    Yes--I have some of those problems. The thing that is bothering me the most right now is how dry my skin is. The tips of my fingers feel like parchment paper. I ended all chem in February. My oncologist did warn me about the cracking, etc.
  • poplolly
    poplolly Member Posts: 346
    #16
    rteq2000 said:

    Has anyone done taxotere and cytoxin at the same time? Side effects?

    Retq--I had both of those, but not at the same time.
  • swilliamsonrn
    swilliamsonrn Member Posts: 2
    #17
    MAJW said:

    Yes.....It is...and
    I agree...I had Taxotere and Cytoxan....My first infusion was rough..and combined with the Nuelasta injection the next day, it's a double whammy with bone pain...I also had severe muscle spasms in my chest4 days later...had diarrhea, etc...but the rest of the infusions and Nuelasta didn't do this...the bone pain was reduced to an achy feeling...no taste buds for a week...I used a prescription called Nystatin, so no mouth sores...I also rinsed my mouth sometimes with warm water and baking soda... I was warned to take extra good care of my nails, and skin ahead of time...I used Sally Hansen triple strength nail acrylic..it's in a green bottle..purchased it at Walgreen's... My nails never fell off...the skin underneath them did "die" and my nails turned slightly yellowish...I kept a pale pink polish on them in addition to the Sally Hansen...I also used this on my toenails...they did turn rather ugly...kept red polish on them... Told no professional mani pedi's though.....I used Eucerin lotion for dry skin....also did the socks and Vaseline on my feet when needed....

    Taxol and Taxotere are sister drugs,but yet different,,

    Many have taken Claritan and have reported a decrease in the bone pain associated with Taxotere and Taxol...wish I had known about that....
    We all do the best we can!

    Taxotere and Neulasta
    I had 3 treatments of 5FU, Adriamycin, and Epirubicin combination, followed with Neulasta shot, then I had 3 treatments of Taxotere with Neulasta. With the first Treatment only mild queasiness using Emend and a little low back pain, with the second tx queasy, flu-like symptoms and low grade fever that lasted a couple of days, and with each treatment the flu-like symptoms and body aches worsened to the point that I stayed in the bed most of the weekend. What I noticed was the flu like symptoms didn't start until about 8-9 hrs after receiving the Neulasta injection. After my first Taxotere treatment I hurt so bad all over with severe low back pain for 4-5 days. So when I went for my second Taxotere I asked my onc. if I could skip the Neulasta (I happened to see my CBC and that the white count wasn't too bad) due to the side effects from the previous treatment. He said that some people can do okay without the Neulasta with Taxotere and let me skip this one. But he told me that the Neulasta gets a bad rap and that it was probably the Taxotere that made me feel so horrible. I have to say, it was definitely the Neulasta. My last two treatments of Taxotere went so well that I physically couldn't tell I had a treatment. About 4-6 weeks later I started having joint pain and stiffness that made it difficult to get up and move. Now, 6 months later and rheumatologist visit later, it is subsiding some.
  • TNAPLES
    TNAPLES Member Posts: 1
    #18
    renee616 said:

    My Dr told me before my
    My Dr told me before my first treatment that Taxotere would be hard on me, He said there were possible side effects of blisters on hands & feet, mouth sores, diarrhea, bone pain, nail loss. He said the important thing was to let them know if I had any side effects, Don't wait to let them know. After first treatment,Its been 10 days and I had diarrhea, rash on hands and teary eyes so far.
    Renee

    cytoxan and taxotere
    I had my first cytoxan and taxotere treatment last Monday.. It is now day 8 and I can hardly move. Took some Hydrocodone because of the pain but got constipated and then took Senokot which worked but I think I got dehydrated. I tried to go to Lowe's Friday and had to have a friend come get me. Couldn't even walk....I'm calling the doctor in the morning.. I feel semi-okay as long as I don't do anything...I having to pretty much stay in bed. I hope in a couple of days it will get better. Did you feel better the week before your next treatment?

    Toni

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