Chemo and digestive problems

LDenton09

My father has large B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. His cancer is in his bones and liver (stage IV). He's dropped 48 pounds in 2 months. He hasn't been able to keep food in him since the second round of chemo. He's getting the CHOP + retuxin program. He also has severe dry mouth and diarrhea. Has anyone had the same problem and any luck with addressing the issue?

winthefight

side effects of R-CHOP
Hello,

I too was diagnosed with large b-cell non-hodgkins lymphoma with the spots on my liver, spleen and bones. I am so sorry to hear about your dad and the side effects he is experiencing. The nurses should be giving him ice chips/ or something frozen to suck on while they push the chemos in the IV.

I sucked on sugar free (sour)hard candy when I had a dry mouth at home. And for the diarrhea, the dr had me take over the counter medicine for that. If this didn't work for me after three days, I contacted the oncol office. There they gave me fluids via IV. That is what worked for me. The ACS is great for resources. Perhaps they can provide some helpful hints for you dad. You can call the 1800 # 24/7.

I hope this helps. Take care and God bless you.

Win

Gaz

Toothpaste and Mouthwash
I'm sorry to hear about your father. I had the same cancer diagnosed in February 11, 2007. I had trouble keeping food down as well. Ironically, my wife is director of Hospice Nursing. Fortunately, she has extensive experience in cancer. For keeping the food down, she put me on a European diet (she's also Scottish). What that meant was eating smaller portions more frequently; even if it was just a cracker. This will take some experimenting as each person is different. My trouble was constipation and smooth foods like yogurt and milk shakes helped, whereas I seemed to have trouble with heavier/more solid foods. Your doctor can help more than I can for his particular symptons and diet. For the dry mouth, Biotene toothpaste and mouthwash helped tremendously. During the entire treatment I only had one minor episode. You can get both products without prescription at your local pharmacy. Hope this helps.

Lelah_77

Similar Symptoms!
Hi
I also have B-cell NHL and am receiving RCHOP and for my dry mouth and nausea my oncologist actually recommended ginger candies. I found them at my local earthy-crunchy store and I keep them in my bag at all times. They wet the mouth AND settle my stomach.

Good luck.