Lactose intolerance caused by chemo

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laurissa
laurissa Member Posts: 773
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
It's been a month since my last chemo and my lower abdomen was in such pain from gas and bloating. I figured out I developed lactose intolerance due to damage to intestinal lining from chemo. Started taking Lactaid with each meal and pains and gas are gone. Maybe some of you others are going through this too.

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  • lndsmom
    lndsmom Member Posts: 20
    #2
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    I didn't notice this, but..
    ..it did happen to my mother in law!!

    Chemo is rough on a body!!! ;-)

    Penny
  • Christmas Girl
    Christmas Girl Member Posts: 3,682 Member
    #3
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    Yes...
    Chemo can be very hard on the digestive system. To this day - mine is still not what it was prior to.

    It is quite possible, laurissa, that your current problem is temporary. Only a month out from final chemo is not very long at all... In fact, the effects from the last treatment continue for weeks.

    I'll be hoping that with time and further healing, you'll be back to where you were.

    Kind regards, Susan
  • meena1
    meena1 Member Posts: 1,003
    #4
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    Christmas Girl said:

    Yes...
    Chemo can be very hard on the digestive system. To this day - mine is still not what it was prior to.

    It is quite possible, laurissa, that your current problem is temporary. Only a month out from final chemo is not very long at all... In fact, the effects from the last treatment continue for weeks.

    I'll be hoping that with time and further healing, you'll be back to where you were.

    Kind regards, Susan

    Happened to me also, and i
    Happened to me also, and i completed chemo in Oct 2008 and i still have a problem with dairy. I used to love to eat scrambled eggs, and now even the smell of them makes me gag. I don't even want to go out to breakfast anymore, we used to go to this restaurant with the most awesome eggs benedict. I can get away with a little ice cream but i do get the burps.
  • DianeBC
    DianeBC Member Posts: 3,881 Member
    #5
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    lndsmom said:

    I didn't notice this, but..
    ..it did happen to my mother in law!!

    Chemo is rough on a body!!! ;-)

    Penny

    I didn't take chemo, so, I
    I didn't take chemo, so, I don't know. Just want to wish you good luck and hope you feel better soon!
  • natly15
    natly15 Member Posts: 1,941
    #6
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    I've been on prilosec since
    I've been on prilosec since December. My stomach is sore and so bloated for days after chemo, and look like I've swallowed a large watermelon.
  • Angie2U
    Angie2U Member Posts: 2,991
    #7
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    Christmas Girl said:

    Yes...
    Chemo can be very hard on the digestive system. To this day - mine is still not what it was prior to.

    It is quite possible, laurissa, that your current problem is temporary. Only a month out from final chemo is not very long at all... In fact, the effects from the last treatment continue for weeks.

    I'll be hoping that with time and further healing, you'll be back to where you were.

    Kind regards, Susan

    Hoping that this is just
    Hoping that this is just temporary for you. Maybe, once you are done with chemo, you will feel better. What does your oncologist say?
  • KathiM
    KathiM Member Posts: 8,028 Member
    #8
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    Ever since my colon cancer treatment.....
    I figured it out while in Holland (a country known for their cows/dairy/cheese). Now, 5 years later, I still have trouble, but can eat SOME cheese, as long as it isn't alot. This visit, I have also found milk-free koffie melk....it IS a lifesaver!! Lactaid didn't work very well for me, abstinence was all that truly worked... Oh, and I also found some YUMMY goat cheese this time...slices and tastes just like regular cheese, but it's white...and it has (naturally) no lactose in it!!!

    My symptoms are the same, bloating, gas, and loose bowels after eating dairy...sigh...I LOVED ice cream...but, no longer! I had chemo/rads and a bowel resection with the colon cancer, but still ate ice cream during my second cancer (breast) treatment. So, I figure it happened with the ACT chemo....

    The GOOD news is that I AM better, albeit slowly...and I am DEFINATELY living life large!!!

    Hugs, Kathi

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