Weight loss during chemo?

JGrim said:

It could also be that your
It could also be that your friend reacts differently to steroids. I know of two people that gained while on steroids and one was seeing a nutritionist and training for a marathon (she was running thirty miles a week minimum) and the other was barely managing to eat sugar-free popsicles. I'm not saying that people shouldn't try to eat healthier - they totally should and this will help them to maintain a healthy weight after they're done with treatment. I just don't want people to get the idea that when they gain weight on steroids it's just because of what they eat, because some steroids in some people do change the way that you process food enough to cause weight gain no matter what. Because society tells us that our weight gain is our fault no matter what these women are knocking themselves out to lose weight at a time when they really need to be focused on getting enough nutrition and being happy, you know?

When someone loses their hair to chemo, everyone acknowledges it, says it sucks, and reinforces the knowledge that it's a temporary evil on the path to recovery. Nobody says "you're not bald" and there are even organizations devoted to providing people with wigs and hats to get through this phase of treatment. It is just as inevitable (with some drugs) that women will gain weight, but they don't admit it, their friends don't acknowledge it ("You're not fat! You can't have gained weight!"), and nobody helps you buy new pants to get through until yours fit again. Society has trained us for so long that our weight is something that we can absolutely control that we're afraid to admit to gaining any even though it's just an unpleasant, temporary side effect the same as hair loss. That's why I'm working on that guide on my site on how to make new clothes for free or cheap and that journal piece on weight gain... I want people to realize they can get through this the same way they get through being bald. It sucks, but it's not forever.

Amen, sister!
You're so right, JGrim, about people's reactions. And both my primary care physician and my oncologist told me at the beginning the very same thing you're saying: You should not be worried about weight loss during chemo.

For me, I really *want* something about my treatment that I can control (and -- as my grandmother would say -- people in hell want ice water, too :-). Everything feels so passive to me: I just lie there while they take biopsies, I just lie there while they wheel me into surgery, I just sit there while they pump chemo into me.

Working to eat healthy and keep up an exercise program is at least *something* I can do that can't hurt, and will probably help me recover from chemo better, even if it doesn't affect my weight.

I think another thing that contributes to people's reactions is that many people have old ideas about chemo. They expect everyone going through chemo to be sick and emaciated. I find that co-workers and casual acquaintances don't really believe that I feel like cr*p all the time, because "you look so good"! Honestly, it's like I've made up this whole chemo thing, and shaved my head just as a fashion statement -- NOT!

Traci

I didnt loose a pound. My
I didnt loose a pound. My eating habits did not change. You'll be just fine! My prayers are with you.

xxxxooooo,
Babe

TraciInLA said:

Amen, sister!
You're so right, JGrim, about people's reactions. And both my primary care physician and my oncologist told me at the beginning the very same thing you're saying: You should not be worried about weight loss during chemo.

For me, I really *want* something about my treatment that I can control (and -- as my grandmother would say -- people in hell want ice water, too :-). Everything feels so passive to me: I just lie there while they take biopsies, I just lie there while they wheel me into surgery, I just sit there while they pump chemo into me.

Working to eat healthy and keep up an exercise program is at least *something* I can do that can't hurt, and will probably help me recover from chemo better, even if it doesn't affect my weight.

I think another thing that contributes to people's reactions is that many people have old ideas about chemo. They expect everyone going through chemo to be sick and emaciated. I find that co-workers and casual acquaintances don't really believe that I feel like cr*p all the time, because "you look so good"! Honestly, it's like I've made up this whole chemo thing, and shaved my head just as a fashion statement -- NOT!

Traci

I totally relate Traci! Same
I totally relate Traci! Same here! Everyone tells me how good I look even when its a bad week. I gained 17 pounds over the course of 7 months, from diagnosis through surgery, chemo & starting radiation monday. I had weird reactions to drinks, foods & smells with the a/c. one month during treatment week, I could only drink choc milk, the next I was done with choc milk forever then would drink tea, the next month, lemonade. Every month it was something new because I did'nt like certain smells or tastes any more. Alot of times during a/c I ate chips & dip. whatever sounded good. Then on taxotere, like now 8 days out, everything including drinks taste extremely salty. I force fluids and eat fast!

Staying about the same
I go up and down, but overall I have stayed about the same. The anti-nausea drugs they give you are so effective that the skeletal cancer patient is a thing of the past, at least for breast cancer patients on conventional chemo drugs. I did notice that I can confuse mild nausea with hunger -- probably the steroids -- so instead of eating, I try to remember to take a pill for nausea and see if it takes care of the munchies. If you are sick and weak during low-white-count periods you will lose weight, but you might put it back on the next week when you feel better; if losing or gaining becomes a problem start tracking what you eat so you can adjust if necessary.