treatment for scc tonsil and lymph node

michdjp
michdjp Member Posts: 220
in Head and Neck Cancer #1
hi everyone

my dad was diagnosed on August 8, 2011 with scc left tonsil primary into lymp node HPV+
we started treatment August 22, 2011 with one round of 76 mg cisplatin and IMRT raditation.
September 2 was the 8th radiation treatment. Chemo was scheduled for Aug. 30 but was cancelled because the kidney function was not good. He was hydrated in the hospital for 2 1/2 days (until 9-2-11) but the kidney function was not down enough to receive the cisplatin. Dr. told us to come in this Wednesday 9-7-11 to try the chemo again either cisplatin or a different drug, carboplatin and Taxol. Has anyone else had this problem with cisplatin or tried carbo/taxol chemo to treat this?

thanks for your help

Comments

  • arndog64
    arndog64 Member Posts: 537
    #2
    Yes, my husband was
    Yes, my husband was hopitalized for a few days after his first treatment of Cisplatin, he had kidney problems as well. He could not receive Cispaltin after that episode and they moved him to carb/taxol once a week for three weeks. Still had a good punch to it. It took a few months to get his kidney levels back to normal. He did fine with carbo/yaxol and you dont have to worry about taking all those pills at certain times. Hope he gets better. Good luck with your next treatment.
  • michdjp
    michdjp Member Posts: 220
    #3
    arndog64 said:

    Yes, my husband was
    Yes, my husband was hopitalized for a few days after his first treatment of Cisplatin, he had kidney problems as well. He could not receive Cispaltin after that episode and they moved him to carb/taxol once a week for three weeks. Still had a good punch to it. It took a few months to get his kidney levels back to normal. He did fine with carbo/yaxol and you dont have to worry about taking all those pills at certain times. Hope he gets better. Good luck with your next treatment.

    scc tonsil
    thank you so much it is good to hear he did fine with the carbo/taxol. what pills do you mean, the nausea pills? is your husband cancer free?
    many many thanks for your response
  • Jimbo55
    Jimbo55 Member Posts: 590 Member
    #4
    Kidney Problems
    Hi,

    One of the main problems associated with the chemo drugs, in particular Cistplatin, is the potential damage to the kidneys. There are a number of folks on this site who have had to switch chemo drugs in mid stream because of this very problem.

    I had the Cistplatin and it was stressed repeatedly to us about drinking enough water (5-6 liters/quarts) every day after the chemo injection. The major concern is flushing the chemo out of the kidneys, which is where it tends to accumulate and causes problems with the kidney function. Additionally they kept me on an IV drip for 2-3 days after each chemo injection for this same reason. I drank so much water my tonsils were starting to float. Cheers.

    Jimbo
  • Skiffin16
    Skiffin16 Member Posts: 8,305 Member
    #5
    Exact Same
    "treatment for scc tonsil and lymph node"

    January 2009, finshed June 2009....

    Three cycles of Cisplatin, Taxotere and 5FU over nine weeks, then seven weeks of concurrent weekly Carboplatin and 35 daily rads sessions.

    Like mentioned sometimes they use Carboplatin when the Cisplatin causes problems. It hits the kidneys hard, as well as hearing problems at times.

    I was lucky in that I didn't have anything go on, other than minor sides like temporary hairloss.

    Welcome to the forum, great people here, many willing to share their experiences.

    Best,
    John
  • Bkanter72
    Bkanter72 Member Posts: 39
    #6
    arndog64 said:

    Yes, my husband was
    Yes, my husband was hopitalized for a few days after his first treatment of Cisplatin, he had kidney problems as well. He could not receive Cispaltin after that episode and they moved him to carb/taxol once a week for three weeks. Still had a good punch to it. It took a few months to get his kidney levels back to normal. He did fine with carbo/yaxol and you dont have to worry about taking all those pills at certain times. Hope he gets better. Good luck with your next treatment.

    Arndog64
    I believe your husband and I started and ended treatment about the same time. I was waiting to see how the three month scan went as I was hoping it was all clean. I go in for mine next week.

    Brian
  • michdjp
    michdjp Member Posts: 220
    #7
    Skiffin16 said:

    Exact Same
    "treatment for scc tonsil and lymph node"

    January 2009, finshed June 2009....

    Three cycles of Cisplatin, Taxotere and 5FU over nine weeks, then seven weeks of concurrent weekly Carboplatin and 35 daily rads sessions.

    Like mentioned sometimes they use Carboplatin when the Cisplatin causes problems. It hits the kidneys hard, as well as hearing problems at times.

    I was lucky in that I didn't have anything go on, other than minor sides like temporary hairloss.

    Welcome to the forum, great people here, many willing to share their experiences.

    Best,
    John

    thanks john i have read so
    thanks john i have read so many of your posts and have gotten so much information from them as well as hope. it seems so overwhelming trying to make sure you are getting the right treatment, medicines dealing with side effects and how to treat them but as i said this forum has been sooo helpful. we go to radiation #9 tom. and are starting to have the sores on the sides of the tongue and the back of the throat is burning..still nausa from time to time..wed is chemo.. we'll see what the dr. says about cisplatin again or the carbo/taxol.. dr. said she might add in another hydration at the end of chemo i think i may insist as the hydration seems sooo important..

    thanks again and look forward to the insight
  • michdjp
    michdjp Member Posts: 220
    #8
    Jimbo55 said:

    Kidney Problems
    Hi,

    One of the main problems associated with the chemo drugs, in particular Cistplatin, is the potential damage to the kidneys. There are a number of folks on this site who have had to switch chemo drugs in mid stream because of this very problem.

    I had the Cistplatin and it was stressed repeatedly to us about drinking enough water (5-6 liters/quarts) every day after the chemo injection. The major concern is flushing the chemo out of the kidneys, which is where it tends to accumulate and causes problems with the kidney function. Additionally they kept me on an IV drip for 2-3 days after each chemo injection for this same reason. I drank so much water my tonsils were starting to float. Cheers.

    Jimbo

    thanks
    hi jimbo

    they probably did stress the importance of the water to us, just did not get it. we go to chemo on wednesday and we will find out if they give cisplatin another try or carbo/taxol. dr. said she would add another hydration at the end of the chemo i think i will insist now and may ask to go in every other day for hydration as this seems sooo important.. were you able to tolerate the cisplatin for the whole treatment? how are you doing since?
    many thanks for the information
  • robinleigh
    robinleigh Member Posts: 297
    #9
    michdjp said:

    thanks john i have read so
    thanks john i have read so many of your posts and have gotten so much information from them as well as hope. it seems so overwhelming trying to make sure you are getting the right treatment, medicines dealing with side effects and how to treat them but as i said this forum has been sooo helpful. we go to radiation #9 tom. and are starting to have the sores on the sides of the tongue and the back of the throat is burning..still nausa from time to time..wed is chemo.. we'll see what the dr. says about cisplatin again or the carbo/taxol.. dr. said she might add in another hydration at the end of chemo i think i may insist as the hydration seems sooo important..

    thanks again and look forward to the insight

    Kidney function
    My husband started on cisplatin and watched his kidney function carefully. They decided to reduce the dosage by 25 percent and then he tolerated it just fine. They did have him scheduled for fluids for three days straight after each treatment to make sure his kidneys got flushed..
  • Jimbo55
    Jimbo55 Member Posts: 590 Member
    #10
    Cistplatin
    Yeah that's the way it is, you're inundated with some much new info at the onset of treatment that some things are going to slide by you. I tolerated the cistplatin for each of the chemo treatments (3). I seem to recall the last treatment was reduced a bit in strength. I am 13 months out and had a clean PET scan result last month. For the most part, I don't have any lingering issues from the treatment other than a bit of dry mouth, though nothing too severe. Cheers.

    Jimbo
  • Skiffin16
    Skiffin16 Member Posts: 8,305 Member
    #11
    michdjp said:

    thanks john i have read so
    thanks john i have read so many of your posts and have gotten so much information from them as well as hope. it seems so overwhelming trying to make sure you are getting the right treatment, medicines dealing with side effects and how to treat them but as i said this forum has been sooo helpful. we go to radiation #9 tom. and are starting to have the sores on the sides of the tongue and the back of the throat is burning..still nausa from time to time..wed is chemo.. we'll see what the dr. says about cisplatin again or the carbo/taxol.. dr. said she might add in another hydration at the end of chemo i think i may insist as the hydration seems sooo important..

    thanks again and look forward to the insight

    Hydration
    Hydration is very important, during the chemo session and after. If I remember correctly, I had my chemo sessions on Monday and Friday would come in to have the 5FU pump removed and port flushed.

    They would also give me hydration that day. They also stressed for me to come in anytime that I felt bad for additional hydration. Which I did a few times in between the cycles.

    Getting under hydrated is a bad thing. I let myself become slightly de-hydrated just after the second cycle. I felt really bad, all I wanted to do was sleep. The moe I slept, the worse felt, the less I drank...spiraling effect.

    Anyways, best to you and looking forward to you hitting the finish line soon.

    Best,
    John
  • michdjp
    michdjp Member Posts: 220
    #12
    robinleigh said:

    Kidney function
    My husband started on cisplatin and watched his kidney function carefully. They decided to reduce the dosage by 25 percent and then he tolerated it just fine. They did have him scheduled for fluids for three days straight after each treatment to make sure his kidneys got flushed..

    dosage for chemo
    what was his original dosage for the chemo..(my dads was 76 mg) thank you.. i wish they had stressed the hydration to us like what i am reading ie.. come in any time for hydration and add on extra like yourself.. that is why i really feel this forum is soooo much more informative!!!!!
  • michdjp
    michdjp Member Posts: 220
    #13
    Skiffin16 said:

    Hydration
    Hydration is very important, during the chemo session and after. If I remember correctly, I had my chemo sessions on Monday and Friday would come in to have the 5FU pump removed and port flushed.

    They would also give me hydration that day. They also stressed for me to come in anytime that I felt bad for additional hydration. Which I did a few times in between the cycles.

    Getting under hydrated is a bad thing. I let myself become slightly de-hydrated just after the second cycle. I felt really bad, all I wanted to do was sleep. The moe I slept, the worse felt, the less I drank...spiraling effect.

    Anyways, best to you and looking forward to you hitting the finish line soon.

    Best,
    John

    hydration after chemo
    thanks for the info. and i just wish that the drs. would have stressed the dydration to us like you are saying.. ( come in anytime for hydration) when my dads kidney function was not right to get the cisplatin last week they actually said they were backed up and could not give him hydration that day..we ended up getting admitted to the hospital that day and stayed for 2/12 days (which still did not correct his kidney function to take the cisplatin) we go wed 9-7 to try chemo again (cisplatin or carbo/taxol) we find out today around 3pm if the kidney function is normal..i am going to request more hydration days added in (you would think they would automatically suggest this!) anyway i will let you know what the kidney function is when i find out today.. thanks for everything!!!
    p.s. what is the 5FU pump?
  • Skiffin16
    Skiffin16 Member Posts: 8,305 Member
    #14
    michdjp said:

    hydration after chemo
    thanks for the info. and i just wish that the drs. would have stressed the dydration to us like you are saying.. ( come in anytime for hydration) when my dads kidney function was not right to get the cisplatin last week they actually said they were backed up and could not give him hydration that day..we ended up getting admitted to the hospital that day and stayed for 2/12 days (which still did not correct his kidney function to take the cisplatin) we go wed 9-7 to try chemo again (cisplatin or carbo/taxol) we find out today around 3pm if the kidney function is normal..i am going to request more hydration days added in (you would think they would automatically suggest this!) anyway i will let you know what the kidney function is when i find out today.. thanks for everything!!!
    p.s. what is the 5FU pump?

    GFR
    Are they looking at GFR on his blood tests, and the other indicators for Kidney Function?

    The pump was for the chemo drug 5FU (florororacil - or something like that)... Anyways when I had Cisplatin and Taxotere on the three cycles (Mondays). At the end of the day the hooked up a pump that was filled with 5FU. It would pump about every 30 seconds or so. I'd have to wear a fanny pack (LOL) with the pump in it and that stayed on until the 5FU ran out Thursday night.

    It was kind of annoying because I felt in limbo with the pump strapped on. But it was just one of those things you learn to deal with.

    One thing the nurses taught my wife to check for hydration was called "Tenting", or at least they called it that LOL...

    They taught her to slightly pinch and lift the skin on the backs of my hands. If it returned fairly fast to it's original shape, I was hydrated (like your skin should). But if it tented up, staying in the pinched state, I need more fluids....

    It drove me nuts, I'd be resting and all of a sudden my wife would pinch the backs of my hands, LOL... It's not a pinch that hurts, just a gentle lift of the skin using your index finger and thumb.

    JG
  • Goalie
    Goalie Member Posts: 184
    #15
    Jimbo55 said:

    Cistplatin
    Yeah that's the way it is, you're inundated with some much new info at the onset of treatment that some things are going to slide by you. I tolerated the cistplatin for each of the chemo treatments (3). I seem to recall the last treatment was reduced a bit in strength. I am 13 months out and had a clean PET scan result last month. For the most part, I don't have any lingering issues from the treatment other than a bit of dry mouth, though nothing too severe. Cheers.

    Jimbo

    One of the more recent
    I was also HPV+ SCC tonsil and then lymph node with cisplatin and nine weeks of rads. I also got a tonsillectomy at the start and a neck dissection at the end. And, yes, we had to delay the second cisplatin because I was just not up to it and cancelled the last for the same reason. We have heard that, in fact, the standard treatment may eventually be just two because they have not seen differences in outcome for the third for HPV+ and they don't do treatments for which there is no reason.

    If you are in your early weeks of treatment you have a hard road ahead, whether this includes one or more chemos and whatever number of weeks of rads to go. You are going to go through at least a month or so after your treatment ends when you will wonder if it is getting any better. But it is. Yes, we did hydration three days a week no matter how I felt and even continued this after treatments ended. I was hospitalized one time for dehydration and that was enough to convince me that this was necessary.

    You may not be as lucky as I was. I was playing hockey less than two months after treatment and, if not for the neck dissection, would have been almost normal not that much later. By six months from the end of treatment I just had the same funny taste, dry mouth, etc that everyone else has. And even these, now nine months from the end of rads, are no longer a real impediment to living. And I've gained back 35 pounds. When I did a scan a couple of weeks ago the doc just said that if I didn't hear anything from him, I should make an appointment in six months. Adios.

    Just remember, this is very survivable; we are all proof. And we're here to help. Doug

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