Arthritis after Chemo

Oh my goodness - terrible pain in my thumb joint
I'm only 51 and experienced terrible pain. But it didn't start until about 2 months ago. My last treatment was Oct 2010 - I had no previous arthritis problems before chemo. But 2 weeks after my last treatment I had neuropathy in my fingers bad - I would wake me up in the night crying it hurt so bad. It pain would shoot all the way up my arm to my albow almost like I had carpool tunnel. Each joint in my fingers hurt so bad, I couldn't even hold hands with my husband it hurt too much. Slowly and I mean ssssllloooowwwwlyyy did it go way but now that pain is gone the joint in my left thumbs severely hurts. I can barely hold a glass of water in that hand. And if I move it wrong the pain is undescribable. when I can't tolerate it anymore I take Naproxen and It feels sooo much better. My Dr. suggest I try sesame oil and message it in. I can't tell a difference but I've only have been doing this for 1 week - he told me to try it for 2 weeks then let him know. He says not everything works for everyone and we have to find what works for me. Ugh !!! I'm praying this too goes away like the neuropathy. It seems like when one pain goes away another springs up. Also for me, it's hard to go from sitting on the ground to standing up. Wow !! and I use to be a powerwalker and jogger !!!
Hopefully someone else will post with something else that I can try too.

Rague said:

I too had A/C and then
I too had A/C and then Taxol. I've had arthritis in my back for many years but it never bothered me (showed on x-rays) until after Chemo and rads. It got worse (at least I started feeling it) after Chemo and rads but I just put it to getting older (I'm 64 - til next month) and not being as active as usual while going through 'everything'. None of my Drs have suggested that Chemo had anything to do with it.

Susan

Ha this is funny...
I personally haven't had issues regarding arthritis but when I googled it for you girls it brought me to an old CSN thread...

Copy and paste this in your browser and you can read what past warriors have said... sorry I don't know how to make this a link.


http://csn.cancer.org/node/168158


Lorrie

mollyz said:

I have it
I feel pain all the time now,my last chemo was January 28,2011 and I hurt all over legs back and in the groin area it's really disabling and before all this i was very active did arobics everyday now i just feel like a old lady. MOLLYZ

I also had AC and taxol last
I also had AC and taxol last treatment was sept 2010 and i didnt have arthritis in my thumbs until a few months ago its so bad the my knuckles cracked everytime I bend them. I went to orthopedic dr, he said arthritis and I have to wear a brace on both my hands while working and he gave me anti inflamatory meds to take which doesnt help. I also still have nueropathy in my feet from Taxol. Now the gland under my tounge is sweiing when I eat, my ONC always hear me complain about something and this last visit he just brushed me off so I cant wait to see what he will say about this new symptom.

sal314 said:

I'm Convinced the Chemo Gave Me Arthritis!
It's been 9 years since my chemo. Before Chemo, yeah, I was a lot younger, BUT I'm not THAT old now (45) and I have arthritis in my back, hips, knees wrists and just about every other joint you can think of! I HATE it. But guess I should be thankful I'm still here, right?!

I've asked my oncologist about it many times. He keeps saying that it probably didn't have anything to do with getting chemo, but that it's age related. I'm sorry, but I just don't buy that! No one in my family has any arthritic conditions. And I find it hard to believe that at 45 it would just appear for no rhyme or reason! So...I'm a 45 year old woman who feels like she's now stuck in a 85 year old body! Ugh!!!

Best,
Sally

arthritis
I feel the same as Sally I am convinced the chemo and joint pain is related! I didn't have these symptoms until after treatment! The only relief I get is sitting in a tub of epsom salt and really hot water! But then that makes the night sweats and hot flashes worse! Got to love it!

linpsu said:

arthritis
My oncologist told me that chemo can make arthritis worse; also that chemo will age you 10 years. I found her to be correct on both counts. I had arthritis in my back and now it is much worse. I had been keeping a journal during chemo and I did notice that I didn't need the medication I was taking for arthritis pain during the A/C regimen, but did use it when I was on Taxol. I thought that was really weird. I am 59. So my experience is similar to yours, in that my arthritis was better temporarily during chemo, but got worse afterwards. Hugs, Linda

...
I finished chemo about June 2010. Nobody, and I mean nobody in my immediate family, or my extended family has arthritis. Except me. Now. (was dx about less than 2 yrs ago @ 44)

I absolutely did not have any hint whatsoever of any kind of any pains before the chemo and now I have arthritis in my hip and neck. The pain is so bad in my hip that I sometimes can't sit or stand and even lying down doesn't help much.

I refuse to believe it "couldn't possibly be from the chemo"...if my oncologist could conceivably get away with it he'd love for me to think that losing my hair couldn't be related to the chemo either.

I sometimes have evil fantasies where I'm wishing he and his minions get to have a few rounds of chemo themselves while I stand idly by and occasionally, maniacally (<--not a real word?), insist he/they are only imagining any perceived side effects.

Hair loss, nausea, neuropathy, arthritis, edema, chemo-brain, and, and, too many to list --Why, of course, these things are all idiopathic!!! More like idiotic.

But, I digress.

Does Tamoxifen add to this?
Do any of you who are also on Tamoxifen think it has anything to do with the joint pain or making your arthritis worse?

I finished chemo in Sept. 2009 and I never had joint pain or arthritis issues before chemo. I didn't really notice any difference during the A/C part of my chemo but the taxol gave me terrible muscle and joint pain which mostly went away after chemo.

After chemo I started having trouble with one hip and knee but is was managable until I started taking Tamoxifen. I started taking Tamoxifen a year and half ago and my hips, back, knees, ankles, etc. have progressively gotten more and more painful. My oncologist says that muscle and bone pain are side effects of tamoxifen but not joint pain. I disagree completely and I'm anxious to test it. This summer I'm having reconstrucive surgery and my surgeon told me I'll have to be off Tamoxifen for about three weeks before and after the surgery so I'm hoping I will be able to see if it makes a difference.

I also had thumb joint pain for a while after chemo but the physical therapist thought it might be concected to the neuropathy that occured as a side effect to Taxol. I think she may have been right because that issue has nearly vanished now.

my arthritis started durring treatment
I also have arthritis pain in my hands, toes, knees and hips (if I sit too long like at a movie). I am only 36. I took carboplatin, abraxane and herceptin. I finished the abraxane and carbo a couple months ago and I still have the pain (not as bad but it is still there). My Dr said that it "can't be the chemo" but she gave me the Ra marker and arthritis marker tests and they both came back negative!! So that leads me to believe that it IS the chemo.

sunshine0406 said:

my arthritis started durring treatment
I also have arthritis pain in my hands, toes, knees and hips (if I sit too long like at a movie). I am only 36. I took carboplatin, abraxane and herceptin. I finished the abraxane and carbo a couple months ago and I still have the pain (not as bad but it is still there). My Dr said that it "can't be the chemo" but she gave me the Ra marker and arthritis marker tests and they both came back negative!! So that leads me to believe that it IS the chemo.

same as Sunshine0406
SAME here Sunshine!! I had Andriamycin, Cytoxan, and Taxotere. I was also on tamoxifen for 3 months but then taken off of it. I was also given the RA test and a bone scan & both came back normal. When I was having chemo, i literally did nothing but lay around. I never got sick but the fatigue just wiped me out. I lost alot of muscle mass and strength. Im in physical therapy for 6 weeks to work on building up my leg and core muscles, and im still working with my doctors on narrowing down what's causing me so much pain.
*hugs*
Heather

Heatherbelle said:

I was told the EXACT same
I was told the EXACT same thing by my former oncologist. I didn't have arthritis when I was diagnosed though (i was 34), but after chemo stopped I started having joint pain and stiffness which got progressively worse. Once it was long past time for me to get feeling better & the pain was still terrible he sent me to a pain management specialist. So far I've had a bone scan which came back normal, and an EMG to test for neuropathy in my hands and feet. The pain I have is mostly in my hands, wrists, knees and hips. I'm in physical therapy twice a week to build up my muscles in my legs, which will hopefully help with my knee/hip pain. According to the EMG i do not have neuropathy in my hands, so we have to figure out what's causing that, or if I do have arthritis in them now. All I know is, I did NOT have these pains before I was diagnosed, and now after treatment, I'm in considerable pain. It's been quite a struggle for me the past few months with it but now I have a new team of doctors who are helping me find out the causes of the pain & helping me fix it! Best of luck to you!
*hugs*
Heather

I didn't ask about
I didn't ask about arthritis, I knew I had it in my knee, ankles back & small joints, some fingers & knuckles were all already affected before chemo. I haven't had any joint pain since being on chemo....dreading arthritis coming back! I am able to walk & run where as It was stiff & painful to do so before! I was hoping that I was given an exchange....Almost crippling arthritis for cancer....But after reading your posts see that its only a matter of time........

I've had
arthritis for 12 years. I take Arthrotec for it. I'm 62yo. I was never told while getting chemo it would be better. However, after chemo I had horrible leg/foot and hand cramping. I had Taxotere/Cytoxan 6 rounds. I finished chemo Dec 7, 2010 and rads Feb 15, 2011. I've been on Arimidex since Jan 7th. I have severe pain in both knees (bone on bone) and have degenerative disc disease in spine. I had torn meniscus repaired in 2008 as well as 3 disc fusion in my cervical spine. I saw a neurosurgeon 3 weeks ago and he said my lumbar is in bad shape. I have moderate scoliosis and may some day need back surgery. I was having pain radiating to both hips and down my left leg all the way to my foot. My rheumatologist gave me 4 nerve blocks 2 weeks ago and it has helped. The cramping in my hands is better as is leg/foot cramps. My challenge now is to relose the weight I gained while getting chemo. 30 lbs is a lot on someone 5' tall!
Char