What to expect, how to prepare - new to this Mom starting chemo

mdnikki

Hello, I am new here. My mother (77 years old) has been diagnosed with lung cancer and will be starting chemo next week. She lives alone but my sister and I are both close by and will be doing the majority of the care.

I want to stock up her house with food she may want to eat. I know she will most likely not have much of an appetite but didn't know if I should get some soups, crackers, water, etc.

I also don't know what to expect in regards to how she will feel physically. She is scheduled to do 3 sessions right in a row, first one a couple hours and the next 2 days 90 minute sessions, then off for 3 weeks.

We have never gone through something like this and we just don't know what to prepare for. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

mysarial

Chemo
It's great that you're planning ahead, and I would definitely recommend having plenty of crackers, soups and whatnot. Everyone reacts a little differently, so I can only tell you what my husband has been going through, and hope it helps.

The main thing was when he first started, he wouldn't eat or drink at all, even water, because he wasn't used to the nausea. He thought that if he didn't eat or drink, the nausea would eventually subside enough for him to do so. He ended up in the hospital suffering from dehydration. What we've learned in his case, is that it just doesn't go away for a few days, regardless of what we do. He's had to learn how to power through and eat regardless.

The second thing is that he has food cravings worse than a pregnant woman. One day, he HAS TO HAVE Kentucky Fried Chicken. The next day, he may HATE garlic, which he actually loves.
So while it's wise to stock up on bland stomach settlers, Try not to go crazy stocking the fridge, because she could drastically vary from day to day as to what she likes. I had a lot of food that I thought was foolproof end up going bad

The other thing that my husband goes through is severe fatigue. Just like eating, if he doesn't force himself up, he will just lay around for a few days, which isn't good.

There are a lot of factors that can impact the side effects of Chemo. Try and be ready for anything, and God Bless

grandmafay

Different
Each person seems to react differently even to the same chemotherapy. My husband wanted different foods, too. Even though he did the same chemotherapy three different times, each brought different likes and dislikes. The first time around he wanted mac and cheese. Next time it was Mexican food. The third time it was a variety. He never seemed to know what he might be hungry for on the third time. Cooking for him was one of my real challenges. Fatigue seems to be a somewhat universal side effect. Best of luck to all of you. You might read through the lung cancer section of this board. They might be able to give you a better idea of what to expect. Fay

grcran

chemo and nutrition
my wife endured chemo and had every known side effect plus a few more. she kept working at her regular job throughout, but never ate well during the entire 4-5 month period. she also had plenty of constipation. i believe it is true to state that good nutrition is part of the treatment, and unfortunately my wife was not a compliant patient in that way. but she did get through it. she was rather overweight going into chemo and ended up losing about 35 pounds in those 5 months.

i found that i could cajole her into eating a little, if i tried a variety of foods (i am a very good cook). for example, pickled beets was one of the dishes she took a liking for, during this time, but her taste changed from day to day. for another example, she has been a diet coke drinker (addict) for 20-plus years, and during chemo she found that she did not enjoy it, so she took to drinking water which i thought to be much healthier for her.

acs has a very good nutrition booklet which they will send you free of charge (call 8002272345), or you can find it at
http://www.cancer.org/docroot/MBC/MBC_6.asp?sitearea=ETO
it has general info, recipes, etc.

as far as how she will feel physically, some patients get to "enjoy" nausea/fatigue/mouthsores and on and on, while others skate by with not much discomfort... remember there are effective meds for many of the side effects, and it is not required to endure nausea and vomiting as part of the treatment. tell the nurse and doctor about how she is feeling, and there are often some simple solutions.