Frozen gloves and socks

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HollowBunny
HollowBunny Member Posts: 5 Member
edited October 2023 in Breast Cancer #1

Hi All. Has anyone used frozen gloves and socks during chemo to reduce neuropathy? If so, do have a brand you like? Thanks.

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  • Chelle1229
    Chelle1229 Member Posts: 8 Member
    #2
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    I used frozen gel packs, held them in my hands and then put them on my feet. I have some tingling and numbness but it isn't too bad. I started using them halfway through chemo, saw the idea on one of the discussion boards.

    Best of luck.

  • Christy001
    Christy001 Member Posts: 7 Member
    #4
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1694100#Comment_1694100

    This is what I did.

  • Christy001
    Christy001 Member Posts: 7 Member
    #5
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1695015#Comment_1695015

    I was also put on extra Vit B6 for 12 months. 🤷‍♀️ Since I’m legally blind and really, really needed to get back as much as possible, we tried it all.

    I got back most of it, but not the very ends, not the tips. I’ve had to modify some of my tactics. 🤷‍♀️😉 But. It’s working.

  • HollowBunny
    HollowBunny Member Posts: 5 Member
    #6
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    Thanks for all the comments! I agree - Healthy Hands works well, and I also bought an extra set of inserts to switch out halfway through the treatment. I bought Relief Genius socks from Amazon and used them, also switching out inserts halfway through. The pads are smaller and they didn't seem to get/stay as cold. As an experiment between treatments, I used the Happy Hands inserts between 2 sets of socks to see how that worked. I put one on top and one on the bottom of my feet. My feet just don't FEEL as cold as my hands do when cold is applied - and I have no existing sensory issues. So, I think I might get more healthy hands inserts and use them on my feet. My feet were definitely cold when I removed them.

    I have only had one treatment so far, and no signs of neuropathy. I am going to keep on using Healthy Hands. Hoping that works. :-)

  • Sunny5
    Sunny5 Member Posts: 147 Member
    #7
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    I never heard of any of these! I just finished 7 rounds of chemo and have some neuropathy in my fingers and thumbs. The dr. told me it could be permanent. I was supposed to have another round of Taxol and he gave me a choice of stopping because my tumor is small enough to remove. Of course, I chose to stop. I wonder if it is too late to try the cold therapy.

  • HollowBunny
    HollowBunny Member Posts: 5 Member
    #8
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1696300#Comment_1696300

    Hi Sunny5,

    Great news that your tumor is now small enough to remove! 😊

    I don't feel qualified to say if using cold can help after treatment, but I can tell you how it was explained to me. I was told that by using cold on the hands and feet while you are receiving a Taxane drug infusion, such as Taxol, you MAY reduce the chance of having permanent neuropathy because the cold might keep the medication from reaching/damaging the nerves of the hands and feet during the infusion.

    I wish you all the best with the rest of your treatment.

  • Sunny5
    Sunny5 Member Posts: 147 Member
    #9
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1696305#Comment_1696305

    Thank you so much! I'm surprised that my medical team never mentioned this at all to me. I did order some of the gloves. I am hoping they will help or at least that the neuropathy goes away. Wishing you all the best also.

  • Sunny5
    Sunny5 Member Posts: 147 Member
    #10
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    I received the gloves and have used them a few minutes at a time. They are so cold I can barely tolerate them longer than about five minutes. I'm sure it's too early to tell if they are going to help. I'm going to tell my cancer team about them.

  • annped
    annped Member Posts: 13 Member
    #11
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    Hi all. Sunny- may I recommend listening to music and I would rock/bop the best I could and count down the songs until I could be done with the ice...I just finished my last weekly (12/12) Taxol/Herceptin this week. I did freeze my feet and hands each visit the best I could as sometimes the hand inserts did not stay as cold as I would have liked... I would then put my hands in a bin of ice then. I really tried hard to keep the blood vessels in my hands and feet constricted during the taxol treatment as I have already dealt with some neuropathy in the past. Thank God, so far I have not had any issues that I can attribute to neuropathy in my feet nor my hands! I wish you all the same results as neuropathy is no picnic!

    I now move on to 13 more herceptin treatments every three weeks to complete a year and the addition of letrozol (daily pill) for 5 years. I had very early breast cancer, no lymph node involvement, but HER+ and ER+, and very aggressive growth. Even though they believe they removed all the cancer with my mastectomy, they recommended I go this route. I am tired of not feeling good! I have begun researching 6 months vs 12 months for herceptin... has anyone talked to their oncologist about these studies regarding 6 vs 12 months?

  • Sunny5
    Sunny5 Member Posts: 147 Member
    #12
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1696492#Comment_1696492
    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1696492#Comment_1696492

    amped, I had already finished all my taxol treatment before I ever heard about the freezing. None of my cancer team nor my dr. ever mentioned it to me at all, and I am not very happy. The neruropathy is driving me crazy. I doubt if the freezing will help now. I'm glad you don't have this, and wish you all the best.

  • annped
    annped Member Posts: 13 Member
    #13
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1696505#Comment_1696505

    Sorry to hear Sunny... I misunderstood your comment. I thought you were currently receiving chemo:

    Your comment April 27 #10

    I received the gloves and have used them a few minutes at a time. They are so cold I can barely tolerate them longer than about five minutes. I'm sure it's too early to tell if they are going to help. I'm going to tell my cancer team about them.

    I hope wish you the best and hope the neuropathy subsides.

    Ann

  • Sunny5
    Sunny5 Member Posts: 147 Member
    #14
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    I asked my oncologist about the frozen gloves and he said they don't work. He said if patients want to try them during chemo, they could make that happen, but he said there is really no evidence that they help. And since I'm already finished with chemo, I just sent them back.

  • kimbakb
    kimbakb Member Posts: 1 *
    #15
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    Hi, I used Cryomax ice packs. Bought 4 from Amazon. They have straps so you can tighten them on your hands and feet. They claim to last 8 hours. I still lost nails, but did not have lasting neuropathy. I refused to stop using gel /acrylic on my nails, and when they started ripping off, I didn't reapply. I wish I would have listened to that piece of advice. I finished treatment in 21. I just started back up doing my own nails, and they still rip in half if I get them caught or bend while the stuff is lifting.

  • HollowBunny
    HollowBunny Member Posts: 5 Member
    #16
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1697254#Comment_1697254

    Ouch! Glad the Cryomax worked for the neuropathy. Hopefully, your nails keep getting stronger. ☺️

  • HollowBunny
    HollowBunny Member Posts: 5 Member
    edited June 2022 #17
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    I finished chemo and just wanted to share what products worked for me. I didn't develop any neuropathy. I spent time researching options and reading reviews - and of course spending money to find what worked best. Hoping this info might help someone else.

    HANDS: Healthy Hands. I bought one set and a set of extra gel packs. Just to be safe, I changed out the gel packs on the palm side of the glove halfway through. This might not have been necessary but I wanted to keep my hands cold throughout the infusion.

    FEET: I tried Relief Genius Cold Therapy Socks but they didn't really stay cold since the packs are kind of small. After the first treatment, I bought 2 Relief Expert Ankle/Foot Ice Pack Wraps. They have velcro closures and are easy to apply.

    Wishing you all an abundance of health and good news.😘

  • citra393
    citra393 Member Posts: 2 Member
    #18
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/324826/frozen-gloves-and-socks

    Hi, not sure if anyone is interested . . . but I purchased "NatraCure Cold Therapy Socks" with extra reusable gel ice packs. Did not wind up using them as my infusion center had ones they provided. The socks and gel packs are brand new, I am would love to pass them along to someone (free) who can see if they can help make treatment more bearable. Will take care of shipping, etc. Just hate to waste them and hopeful it can help prevent neuropathy symptoms.

  • jalmasy131
    jalmasy131 Member Posts: 1 *
    #19
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    I started using the cold mittens and socks on my first chemo treatment, per my Dr.'s suggestion. I got mine from Amazon. I am on treatment #8 out 16 and haven't had any tingling as a side affect yet. Not sure if it is yet to come, but so far so good. I also used the cold cap in hopes of not losing my hair and spent $2200 on the cap, but that didn't work and my hair is gone. I'm up for trying anything to help with the following symptoms of chemo. So far no tingling but the cold cap didn't work.

  • Sunny5
    Sunny5 Member Posts: 147 Member
    #20
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/324826/frozen-gloves-and-socks

    My doctor said these do not work. But some people say they do. It probably can't hurt. I have neuropathy in my thumbs and first two fingers on both hands. It will be a year in April since my last chemo, so I don't figure it's going away. Best wishes to you!

  • shantisavage
    shantisavage Member Posts: 1 Member
    #21
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    https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/324826/frozen-gloves-and-socks

    My husband ordered ice gloves from Amazon. We have 4 pairs and we switch them every 20 minutes. The oncology center won’t manage any of it because they don’t prescribe the treatment but they are kind enough to let us bring in a cooler and let me stay with my husband to help manage. We have 2 ice blocks and a piece of dry ice in the cooler. He is given 2 chemotherapy drugs, which means he has the gloves on for 4 hours and 15 minutes. When we switch gloves, I put the used pair back in the cooler, close to the dry ice. Then as it moves up in the rotation I move it away from the dry ice so his hands aren’t burnt. We have been through 2 treatment cycles and he so far has no symptoms in his hands. I am still nervous that we are leaving them on too long though and can’t find any information about how long is too long. I don’t want him getting frostbite.

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