Good or Bad?

lizzydavis

I went in for Round 6 today but didn't get it. My Onc met with me and told me he was going to change my Chemo from FOLFOX to Xeloda. My husband and I were shocked. I thought it was great to hear at first (no IV chemo and no take home pump). Now, I am getting concerned. What are the side effects of Xeloda? Also, the IV chemo was covered under my insurance. Now, I will be charged for the Xeloda pills. I am not sure how much yet. I should receive a call after they process the info. Should I be happy or sad? I am not sure if this is good news. Could anyone enlighten me who has had the same? Thank you.

PhillieG

HI Lizzy
Did your Onc say why he was changing your protocol? Was it no longer effective or are the benefits greater with Xeloda? I would HOPE that the insurance would cover it, I would think it would be cheaper in the long run. They can be such PITA at times.
I'm sorry but I have no experience with Xeloda but I've heard about it a lot on here so I'm sure someone will pipe in.
I'd stay with being happy unless you get a good reason to be sad...
-phil

lizzydavis

PhillieG said:

HI Lizzy
Did your Onc say why he was changing your protocol? Was it no longer effective or are the benefits greater with Xeloda? I would HOPE that the insurance would cover it, I would think it would be cheaper in the long run. They can be such PITA at times.
I'm sorry but I have no experience with Xeloda but I've heard about it a lot on here so I'm sure someone will pipe in.
I'd stay with being happy unless you get a good reason to be sad...
-phil

Hi Phil
Hi Phil. The Onc said that he thought I went through enough of the harsh treatment for my circumstances. He said that only 1 lymph node was involved and no tumor. The lymph node was removed during the colon resection. So he said this was the best way to go at this point. I guess I am a little confused but like you said, I will take this opportunity to be happy. Thanks!

SandyL

lizzydavis said:

Hi Phil
Hi Phil. The Onc said that he thought I went through enough of the harsh treatment for my circumstances. He said that only 1 lymph node was involved and no tumor. The lymph node was removed during the colon resection. So he said this was the best way to go at this point. I guess I am a little confused but like you said, I will take this opportunity to be happy. Thanks!

Same here
as far as the one lymph node being involved. Colonectomy for my husband, but he had 11 treatments of 5/FU. He had issues with blood counts being too low to continue with the
Oxyal. but other than that they didn't switch his chemo treatments.Just eliminated the OXY the last two treatments. He had his 3 mo. CT scan last week and all is well-it's clear. So, I hope the best for you.....

Sandy

karguy

Xeloda
I did my chemo with xeloda,and some of the side effects were loss of appitite,numbing of the fingers,and feet swelling,but I didn't have any problems with my feet.The xeloda was covered under my insurance,I just paid for the prescription which wasn't very much.I also did radiation at the same time,I had more problems with the radiation.I hope that helps.

PGLGreg

The change might well be
The change might well be good news, so far as side effects go, since it is more or less the same as being taken off oxaliplatin, part of the Folfox regimen. Xeloda is the pill form of 5FU, another part of Folfox (which is not to say Xeloda will have exactly the same side effects as 5FU).

Sundanceh

Hey Lizzy - Xeloda
Lizzy, I did Xeloda for about 8 months.

I was on a prescription plan at work, but my end of the bill was $150 for each bottle that I took.

Xeloda is strong and toxic stuff...it messes with the stomach really good, nausea meds help some but it still is hard on the stomach.

I was doing 4,000 mgs a day and at one time it was 14 days on with 7 off...but after awhile we adjusted the days to 7 days on and 7 days off.

Toxicity will build up quickly and it hit me hard in the feet...doctor never told me what to look for...so my feet began to crack and split open...it was hard to stand or walk for any length of time.

What I found helped was Bag Balm...found at the drugstore and it is an udder cream with excellent emollient properties - keeps the feet moistened. Put it all over your feet in the morning and in the evening and right before bed...wear socks after you put it on to hold in the moisture...this helps. If you start early, you probably would even head it off before it got started.

Xeloda is effective. Is OK taken alone, but works better when used in conjunction with Avastin, which is done by IV...ask your onc about this...Avastin cuts off blood supply to the tumor(s). It's like a big one two punch

I had to quit Oxy at #8 and we finished up my treatments with just the above, so they do work. Be sure to ask about Avastin, wonder why he did not mention it?

You take care and let me know if I can be of any help

-Craig

lesvanb

Sundanceh said:

Hey Lizzy - Xeloda
Lizzy, I did Xeloda for about 8 months.

I was on a prescription plan at work, but my end of the bill was $150 for each bottle that I took.

Xeloda is strong and toxic stuff...it messes with the stomach really good, nausea meds help some but it still is hard on the stomach.

I was doing 4,000 mgs a day and at one time it was 14 days on with 7 off...but after awhile we adjusted the days to 7 days on and 7 days off.

Toxicity will build up quickly and it hit me hard in the feet...doctor never told me what to look for...so my feet began to crack and split open...it was hard to stand or walk for any length of time.

What I found helped was Bag Balm...found at the drugstore and it is an udder cream with excellent emollient properties - keeps the feet moistened. Put it all over your feet in the morning and in the evening and right before bed...wear socks after you put it on to hold in the moisture...this helps. If you start early, you probably would even head it off before it got started.

Xeloda is effective. Is OK taken alone, but works better when used in conjunction with Avastin, which is done by IV...ask your onc about this...Avastin cuts off blood supply to the tumor(s). It's like a big one two punch

I had to quit Oxy at #8 and we finished up my treatments with just the above, so they do work. Be sure to ask about Avastin, wonder why he did not mention it?

You take care and let me know if I can be of any help

-Craig

I agree with Craig
I took Xeloda with an oxy infusion 1x/week at 1/2 dosage during radiation 2000mg every day for 6 weeks with a 2 week break in the middle when I had a GI tract bacterial infection. Xeloda was hard on my stomach and My doctor prescribed an acid reflux medicine (can't remember the name now). I also slathered on the grease (I used Burt's Bees or a Shea butter based lotion whioch is like Bag Balm) on my hands and feet during all the time I was on chemo before and after surgeries. I also used socks on my feet. My naturopath had me wet a pair of light cotton socks with warm water and then pull a pair of heavy wool or fleece socks over them. They should dry by morning. This should help keep your immune system up.

Xeloda was very expensive and I was glad that our insurance covered it. For a couple of weeks the prescription was over $1000. With the first prescription, the pharmacist came running after my husband while we were shopping (small town, pharmacy located in grocery store)to let him know how much it cost because we had to pay up front and then submit the receipt.

Leslie

lizzydavis

lesvanb said:

I agree with Craig
I took Xeloda with an oxy infusion 1x/week at 1/2 dosage during radiation 2000mg every day for 6 weeks with a 2 week break in the middle when I had a GI tract bacterial infection. Xeloda was hard on my stomach and My doctor prescribed an acid reflux medicine (can't remember the name now). I also slathered on the grease (I used Burt's Bees or a Shea butter based lotion whioch is like Bag Balm) on my hands and feet during all the time I was on chemo before and after surgeries. I also used socks on my feet. My naturopath had me wet a pair of light cotton socks with warm water and then pull a pair of heavy wool or fleece socks over them. They should dry by morning. This should help keep your immune system up.

Xeloda was very expensive and I was glad that our insurance covered it. For a couple of weeks the prescription was over $1000. With the first prescription, the pharmacist came running after my husband while we were shopping (small town, pharmacy located in grocery store)to let him know how much it cost because we had to pay up front and then submit the receipt.

Leslie

Craig, Leslie, SandyL, Karguy, and PGLGreg - Thank you!
Craig, Leslie, SandyL, Karguy, and PGLGreg - Thank you!
It is good to know about the cream. I will definitely use it - thanks for your suggestions. I truly appreciate your time and answers!!!