Xeloda and nausea, please help!

kblairj

My husband, recently diagnosed with Stage IV colon cancer, has been put on the Xelox regimen with 1 oxipalatin infusion every three weeks (he has only had 1 so far and it was well tolerated) and 2000mg of Xeloda AM/1500mg PM 5 days on/2 days off. He is only on his 3rd week of the Xeloda and he is having terrible stomach pains and so much gas every time he tries to eat. He has zofran and compazine and neither is giving much relief, but it's not so much nausea as pain and no appetite. Only suggestion from his doctor was to take prilosec. He needs to be able to eat. Anyone else experience this? Any suggestions? Thank you for your input.

SandiaBuddy

I never would have made it through chemo without baking soda. I took a teaspoon dissolved in a third glass of water. I took it very liberally and it helped enormously. There are other OTC meds like Gaviscon, Famotidine and Cimetidine that you might try as well. Alginate before food is another option. Also, a glass of water before eating helped me. Everyone is different, but the suffering is real. Best of luck with these issues.

kblairj

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1704489#Comment_1704489

Thank you. I don’t know how to help him. He is only on his 3rd week and he is sick, vomiting every night (before the evening dose) and hardly gets any nutrition throughout the day. I’m so concerned with how he will be able to stick it out until through June.

SandiaBuddy

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1704491#Comment_1704491

Food is essential. I chucked any thought of healthy food and ate whatever I could tolerate, including ice cream and these crazy-sweet 50 cent mini-pies from Walmart. I also drank beer, which seemed to help. He might want to consider eating whatever he can whenever he can. If he cannot eat at all, talk to your doctor about reducing the dose, or simply reduce the capecitabine yourself. The standard dosages do not work for everyone, and I could never tolerate a full dose of capecitabine, but I have survived so far. Survival is essential, and one needs food and sleep to survive. Good luck with these tough issues.

SnapDragon2

Folic acid is toxic, watch out for that.

Probiotics are very good. The microbiome is very sensitive to chemo and can be unbalanced.

There are others I might post later as I think of them.

I have been on xeloda for almost 4 years (3 1/2 as maintenance protocol and have not had those side effects.)

I feel for him, my goodness!

Emmanuel89

I hope this is not flagged but the only thing that helped my son with all the different chemos he's gotten is THC. Either smoking it, wax, gummies or tinctures. He has a doctor's card.

kblairj

Update: After 1 cycle of the Xelox, my husband ended up with 20 lb weightloss, severe stabbing abdominal pain, severe ongoing diarrhea, and a trip to the ER after the oncologist said it was just some gastritis. A CT diagnosed ileitis. Xelox halted so he could heal, and after two weeks, Folfox started. He has done 2 cycles so far of the Folfox plus Avastin with little to no side effects and has gained weight. We are so thankful and, hopefully now on the right track!

SandiaBuddy

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1705424#Comment_1705424

Thanks for the update. It is good to hear that he is doing better.

Emmanuel89

Anybody has issues with neuropathy and hand foot syndrome with Xeloda?

Capox Dude

I took Xeloda for three months and have some nerve damage in my left and right feet. Not so bad, no pain at all, but more of a numbness and tingling. My right foot always feels like I have some large twig in my shoe unless I have a gel insert . A bartender at a place I used to frequent said it took him seven years before his feet felt normal after his chemo. Granted, he took six months of the stuff as opposed to three. Everyone is different and experiences very widely.

SandiaBuddy

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1705433#Comment_1705433

Some neuropathy in both hands and feet. Seemed to mostly pass after stopping chemo. Nothing major a few years on, sometimes some mild tingling. Always used Eucerin on hands and feet, seemed to help.