Another lymphoma diagnosis

PBL

mossback99,

Prednisone does both: it helps sustain your stamina and appetite (watch your sugar and salt intake on those days), curb nausea, alleviate pain, reduce inflamation etc. and it also contributes to killing off cancer cells.

Keep up the good work. Looking forward to your next update.

mossback99

Thank you, PBL.

mossback99

I had my second R-CHOP cycle a few days ago. It went well and quite a bit faster since they knew I could tolerate the Rituximab.

The doctor said the first treatment was very effective. The lump is totally gone at this point. I still feel some activity in the vicinity- hopefully the chemo further eradicating residual cancer there.

The two largest side effects I have noticed thus far are some moderate fatigue, especially in the evening, and a subtle but noticeable peripheral neuropathy in my hands. Based on the first cycle both seem to slowly subside day by day.

I feel pretty good overall. Eating okay, maintaining weight so far, no nausea or sickness. Drinking a lot of water and green tea. Trying to go for walks everyday and do some light weight training as well as work around the house.

I have noticed that the Prednisone does cause some insomnia for me. But I didn't have too bad of a 'crash' once I finished the course.

At this point I'm just very thankful the treatment seems to be effective and hopefully that trend will continue.

My best wishes to all in this journey.

PBL

Hello mossback99,

This all sounds like excellent news and bodes well for the interim PET (assume you will have one before your fourth infusion…).

You seem to be tolerating it well at this point; just a reminder, though, that side effects are cumulative, meaning that you will likely feel more fatigued as you progress to the end of your treatment. Keep moving, but do allow yourself to take some rest as needed, for example in the late morning and/or early afternoon.

The prednisone-induced insomnia can be limited by taking your pills as early as possible in the morning, to give it as much time as possible to wear off before bedtime. Our body's natural cortisol level is at its peak around 8:00 a.m.

Keep the good news coming.

PBL

mossback99

The cumulative aspect of all this makes sense. I hope I can continue to handle it without too many problems. I don't think I'm pushing myself too much yet but I will absolutely be mindful of resting as needed.

And the plan as of now is to have a PET scan just before the 4th cycle to see how things are doing.

Good to know our natural cortisol peak is around 8am. I have been taking the prednisone in the mornings with breakfast but will aim to take it even a bit earlier and see if that helps. The insomnia is noticeable but not too bad in the scheme of things.

As always, thanks for your insights and support.

tom1953

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/comment/1724093#Comment_1724093

Just a note on the hand neuropathy. If you make use of a hand grip strengthener, that will speed up recovery. Just do not overdo it. Before doing that, I had trouble buttoning my shirts.

mossback99

Tom, I appreciate that advice- thank you!