NED, Erbitux, Fever

Phil64
Phil64 Member Posts: 838 Member
edited February 2015 in Colorectal Cancer #1

So I had my liver resection on 12/5 (40% of liver and gallbladder removed).

After surgery my CEA has remained under 1.0! Yay!

However, given my very fast recurrences in the past my onc wants to treat me with Erbitux (alone) for a year.I went into treatment 1 thinking this would be a breeze compared to FOLFIRIFOX (basically all the drugs).Treatment 1 was last Thursday.  The worst part during the treatment was the Benadryl. It made me feel agitated and unable to concentrate, then drousiness. I didn't like the feeling of this...Anyway, the rest of treatment wasn't that big a deal.  And this was the first time I actually walked out without the portable pump.

Then on the way home (1-1/2 hour ride) I started feeling bad. Went to bed when I arrived home and fell asleep.  My wife woke me up because I felt hot. 101.4 fever.  Took a motrin and went back to sleep. She woke me up a little later and temp was up to 102.7.  Called the on call doctor and she told me to go to the ER.  First time I ever went to the ER after a chemo treatment. I had to go to make sure it was not an infection.I felt horible. Very bad headache. Nausiated. Very weak/fatigued. No infection per blood tests at the ER.  Most likely a reaction to the Erbitux.We managed to beat the fever with Tylenol and Motrin.  Then headache finally went away on Saturday following the Thursday treatment. I felt great Sat afternoon through now. 

Skin is feeling wind-burned now as I think the Erbitux rash may show up soon (hope not).

Bottom line.  CEA is under 1!!!  And last set of scans are clear!!!  And I'll survive this chemo!!!

 

Love to you all!

Phil

Comments

  • Steve444
    Steve444 Member Posts: 105 Member
    #2
    Fever

    I hope your CEA stays low and am glad you at least made it home without incident.  I feel bad for those of you who have such a long drive, seems pretty dangerous with the benadryl.  I had an issue with fever during my Folfox treatments.  Without fail, the night after my treatment the chills and fever would come.  The highest it got was 104, not a fun night for my wife.  I eventually started taking 800 mg of ibuprofen early in the evening on treatment days and if it started climbing, took some more.  This seemed to keep it Under 100.  The doc thought that was ok as long as my platelets didn't get too low.  Hopefully it gets more tolerable...

  • Annabelle41415
    Annabelle41415 Member Posts: 6,742 Member
    #3
    Sorry

    I'm sorry that you are going through all of this as you have definitely had your share of problems.  Glad that you got the situation under control and hope you feel better soon.  Awesome news about the scans and CEA.  It's easier to tolerate a rash when you know you are doing well on the inside.  Hope you feel better soon.

    Kim

  • Yolllmbs
    Yolllmbs Member Posts: 360 Member
    #4
    Hugs and prayers

     cyber hugs too. I'm hoping things get easier. You are amazing!  

     

    Yolanda

  • UncleBuddy
    UncleBuddy Member Posts: 1,019 Member
    #5
    a plan

    Maybe it's best to make a plan to bring someone else to drive or see if you can take somethng to counteract the chemo before treatment.

    My brother took Erbitux, but didnt get the fever. He got the rash, so his onc put him on minocin (minocycline) and it cleared it up nicely. Today, due to his weak heart,he is only on irinotecan alone. Yay to your low CEA!

    Lin

  • Phil64
    Phil64 Member Posts: 838 Member
    #6
    Sorry for confusion.  My wife

    Sorry for confusion.  My wife insists on going with me to every chemo treatment. When she can't go my sister would go with me.  I also had my daughters go on occasions as well. Anyway, I drive there and my wife drives home. Surprisingly, I seem to tolerate my wife's driving home just fine. lol As I'm usually so drousy/tired I simply doze off. 

    Steve, thanks for the info about your experience. That at least makes me feel like I'm not alone with the fever symptom.  And I did tell a few people that one thing I've learned with chemo is you need to adapt and develop management plans for the symptoms...  So now that we know to expect a fever as a possible reaction, well I'll be planning for the motrin and tylenol sooner than later.

    Blessings and happy Thursday to you all.

    Phil

  • Trubrit
    Trubrit Member Posts: 5,804 Member
    #7
    It seems to follow a pattern

    The good, the bad & the ugly.

    The good = Great CEA!  Woo hoo (no dancing man as I am out of town and on my iPad)!

    The Bad = Side effects - Yuk!  You're right though. Once you know what to expect the better prepared you are for the next hit. 

    The Ugly = Cancer.  Which is now a large part of your life  

    I am happy to hear about your CEA.  Here's hoping your run-in with Mets and active tumours has come to an end.  

    I am with you on the long trips to treatment. About 3 hours for me.  Thankfully, I always felt 'well' for my return trips. I hope your next trips aren't so uncomfortable as this last trip.

    Hugs!

    Sue - Trubrit

     

  • Fight for my love
    Fight for my love Member Posts: 1,522 Member
    #8
    Hopefully your doctor will be

    Hopefully your doctor will be able  to manage the side effects ahead of time, and best luck with the rest of treatments. NED is really great news.

  • NewHere
    NewHere Member Posts: 1,428 Member
    #9
    Great News

    About the CEA and scans.

    Hope the chemo starts treating you a bit easier as you acclimate.

  • sflgirl
    sflgirl Member Posts: 220 Member
    #10
    Steve444 said:

    Fever

    I hope your CEA stays low and am glad you at least made it home without incident.  I feel bad for those of you who have such a long drive, seems pretty dangerous with the benadryl.  I had an issue with fever during my Folfox treatments.  Without fail, the night after my treatment the chills and fever would come.  The highest it got was 104, not a fun night for my wife.  I eventually started taking 800 mg of ibuprofen early in the evening on treatment days and if it started climbing, took some more.  This seemed to keep it Under 100.  The doc thought that was ok as long as my platelets didn't get too low.  Hopefully it gets more tolerable...

    Hi Steve,
    i just had my first

    Hi Steve,

    i just had my first chemo last Thur.  Felt terrible Friday.  I thought Motrin was off limits but it's ok with your doc?  I sure would have liked some last week....

    andrea

  • Steve444
    Steve444 Member Posts: 105 Member
    #11
    sflgirl said:

    Hi Steve,
    i just had my first

    Hi Steve,

    i just had my first chemo last Thur.  Felt terrible Friday.  I thought Motrin was off limits but it's ok with your doc?  I sure would have liked some last week....

    andrea

    Double check

    I'd double check with your onc to be sure.  when discussing the fever mine said that they typically stay away from it, but it was ok as long as my platelets were above a certain level.  Unfortunately I now don't recall what that number was, just that mine never got that low.  I hope your chemo treatments stay tolerable and do the job.

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