Please help..Going for Avastin/taxol once a month chemo

sham30096
sham30096 Member Posts: 24
in Ovarian Cancer #1
I'm a 7 years cancer survivor.I went through lots of diffrent chemo in the past.This time My doctor decide to gave me Avastin with taxol once a month.Is anyone having or had this chemo before?What are the side effect I'm expecting ..any advice will be appreciated.
Thanks,
sham

Comments

  • mom2greatkids
    mom2greatkids Member Posts: 528
    #2
    Hi Sham,
    Sorry you're facing
    Hi Sham,

    Sorry you're facing more chemo. I will take my final treatment of taxol/carbo/avaistan in three weeks. I know that Avaistan can cause elevated blood pressure and nose bleeds. My Dr. told me yesterday that he will give me avaistan for 2 yrs. every two weeks. I think that Taxol is the drug that causes hair loss (unfortunately) but I could be wrong. I just know that the chemo nurses told me that my hair will begin to grow back after this last treatment. If I am wrong about this, someone please correct me. I wish you the best!

    Carla
  • Mwee
    Mwee Member Posts: 1,338
    #3
    Also wish you the best!
    I haven't had Avastin, but congrats on being a seven year ( and counting!) survivor'
    (((HUGS))) Maria
  • sham30096
    sham30096 Member Posts: 24
    #4
    mom2greatkids said:

    Hi Sham,
    Sorry you're facing
    Hi Sham,

    Sorry you're facing more chemo. I will take my final treatment of taxol/carbo/avaistan in three weeks. I know that Avaistan can cause elevated blood pressure and nose bleeds. My Dr. told me yesterday that he will give me avaistan for 2 yrs. every two weeks. I think that Taxol is the drug that causes hair loss (unfortunately) but I could be wrong. I just know that the chemo nurses told me that my hair will begin to grow back after this last treatment. If I am wrong about this, someone please correct me. I wish you the best!

    Carla

    So,your doctor decide to
    So,your doctor decide to give you just Avastin by itself?How you handled avastin/taxol combo and how about ca 125?Yes hair will grow back once you stop chemo..I experienced that before..
  • sham30096
    sham30096 Member Posts: 24
    #5
    Mwee said:

    Also wish you the best!
    I haven't had Avastin, but congrats on being a seven year ( and counting!) survivor'
    (((HUGS))) Maria

    Thanks a lot..Wish you all
    Thanks a lot..Wish you all the best too!!
  • Tethys41
    Tethys41 Member Posts: 1,382 Member
    #6
    Taxol/Avastin
    Like Carla, I was on carboplatin/taxol/avastin and was then on maintenance Avastin. Avastin is a targeted therapy, so has fewer side effects. Your blood pressure is very likely to go up and you may need to go on blood pressure medicaiton. The doctor will be monitoring your kidney function by doing a urine test before each treatment. There are other potential side effects, like bowel perforation or damage to some organs, but it appears that the percentages of these side effects are very low. Avastin is a relatively new drug, so the very long term effects aren't known.
    Taxol is the one you are more likely to hate. Potential side effects include: low blood counts, hair loss, bone and joint pain, neuropathy, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and mouth sores. They will give you IV Benaryl and various other medications to help avoid reactions to and nausea related to Taxol. When I was having chemo, I would have a vitamin B6 and B12 injection the day before chemo to help avoid neuropathy. During the infusion of Taxol, I would put an ice pack on my head and on my fingers and toes as well as suck on ice chips. This was aimed at reducing the circulation in those areas while the Taxol was at its strongest. I didn't start this practice until after my first infusion, so my hair was gone, but by the end of my treatments, I had about a half inch of hair, and I never sufferred from neuropathy or mouth sores.

    Best of luck to you. I hope the treatment goes well.
  • mom2greatkids
    mom2greatkids Member Posts: 528
    #7
    sham30096 said:

    So,your doctor decide to
    So,your doctor decide to give you just Avastin by itself?How you handled avastin/taxol combo and how about ca 125?Yes hair will grow back once you stop chemo..I experienced that before..

    My last CA-125 (yesterday)
    My last CA-125 (yesterday) was 14. Down from 106 when I began chemo in late June. For maintenance he told me yesterday that it would be 24 months of Avaistan, every other week. I have handled all the chemo very well overall. I'm not sure which of the drugs caused hair loss, I just know it's not avaistan :) I think your long remission is just fantastic! Have you been very careful about your diet? Please share all you have done with us!
  • mom2greatkids
    mom2greatkids Member Posts: 528
    #8
    Tethys41 said:

    Taxol/Avastin
    Like Carla, I was on carboplatin/taxol/avastin and was then on maintenance Avastin. Avastin is a targeted therapy, so has fewer side effects. Your blood pressure is very likely to go up and you may need to go on blood pressure medicaiton. The doctor will be monitoring your kidney function by doing a urine test before each treatment. There are other potential side effects, like bowel perforation or damage to some organs, but it appears that the percentages of these side effects are very low. Avastin is a relatively new drug, so the very long term effects aren't known.
    Taxol is the one you are more likely to hate. Potential side effects include: low blood counts, hair loss, bone and joint pain, neuropathy, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and mouth sores. They will give you IV Benaryl and various other medications to help avoid reactions to and nausea related to Taxol. When I was having chemo, I would have a vitamin B6 and B12 injection the day before chemo to help avoid neuropathy. During the infusion of Taxol, I would put an ice pack on my head and on my fingers and toes as well as suck on ice chips. This was aimed at reducing the circulation in those areas while the Taxol was at its strongest. I didn't start this practice until after my first infusion, so my hair was gone, but by the end of my treatments, I had about a half inch of hair, and I never sufferred from neuropathy or mouth sores.

    Best of luck to you. I hope the treatment goes well.

    How long were you on
    How long were you on maintenance avistan?
  • sham30096
    sham30096 Member Posts: 24
    #9
    mom2greatkids said:

    My last CA-125 (yesterday)
    My last CA-125 (yesterday) was 14. Down from 106 when I began chemo in late June. For maintenance he told me yesterday that it would be 24 months of Avaistan, every other week. I have handled all the chemo very well overall. I'm not sure which of the drugs caused hair loss, I just know it's not avaistan :) I think your long remission is just fantastic! Have you been very careful about your diet? Please share all you have done with us!

    Carla
    I was on and off to chemo for last 7 years.I do take multivitamin and mushroom blend like shitake,rishi and cq10 and fish oil.I eat lots of vegetables including bok choy which I heard really good for cacer patient.Is there any supplements you are taking or helped you during the chemo?
  • sham30096
    sham30096 Member Posts: 24
    #10
    Tethys41 said:

    Taxol/Avastin
    Like Carla, I was on carboplatin/taxol/avastin and was then on maintenance Avastin. Avastin is a targeted therapy, so has fewer side effects. Your blood pressure is very likely to go up and you may need to go on blood pressure medicaiton. The doctor will be monitoring your kidney function by doing a urine test before each treatment. There are other potential side effects, like bowel perforation or damage to some organs, but it appears that the percentages of these side effects are very low. Avastin is a relatively new drug, so the very long term effects aren't known.
    Taxol is the one you are more likely to hate. Potential side effects include: low blood counts, hair loss, bone and joint pain, neuropathy, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and mouth sores. They will give you IV Benaryl and various other medications to help avoid reactions to and nausea related to Taxol. When I was having chemo, I would have a vitamin B6 and B12 injection the day before chemo to help avoid neuropathy. During the infusion of Taxol, I would put an ice pack on my head and on my fingers and toes as well as suck on ice chips. This was aimed at reducing the circulation in those areas while the Taxol was at its strongest. I didn't start this practice until after my first infusion, so my hair was gone, but by the end of my treatments, I had about a half inch of hair, and I never sufferred from neuropathy or mouth sores.

    Best of luck to you. I hope the treatment goes well.

    Thanks a lot for the
    Thanks a lot for the information.To get B6 and B12 injection do I need to ask my doctor or I can just take supplement..which is better?
  • Tethys41
    Tethys41 Member Posts: 1,382 Member
    #11
    mom2greatkids said:

    How long were you on
    How long were you on maintenance avistan?

    Maintenance
    I was supposed to have 15 rounds of maintenance Avastin, once every 3 weeks, so 45 weeks total. I only completed 11 rounds because at that point, my blood pressure started to rise. It was still normal, but high normal, and I figured it would continue to rise. So, I opted out of the last 4 rounds of Avastin to avoid having to take blood pressure meds.
  • Tethys41
    Tethys41 Member Posts: 1,382 Member
    #12
    sham30096 said:

    Thanks a lot for the
    Thanks a lot for the information.To get B6 and B12 injection do I need to ask my doctor or I can just take supplement..which is better?

    B vitamins
    I don't know whether oral vitamins would have the same protective effects as the injection. I had mine administered by a naturopath.
  • sham30096
    sham30096 Member Posts: 24
    #13
    Tethys41 said:

    B vitamins
    I don't know whether oral vitamins would have the same protective effects as the injection. I had mine administered by a naturopath.

    I dont think in my area
    I dont think in my area naturopath is covered by health insurance.
  • Tethys41
    Tethys41 Member Posts: 1,382 Member
    #14
    sham30096 said:

    I dont think in my area
    I dont think in my area naturopath is covered by health insurance.

    Probably not
    services by naturpaths are frequently not covered by insurance. The injection itself is reasonable, maybe $25. You would probably need to have an initial visit, likely $100. But you would also get a lot of helpful information about dealing with chemo as well.
  • sham30096
    sham30096 Member Posts: 24
    #15
    Tethys41 said:

    Probably not
    services by naturpaths are frequently not covered by insurance. The injection itself is reasonable, maybe $25. You would probably need to have an initial visit, likely $100. But you would also get a lot of helpful information about dealing with chemo as well.

    Lots of Heartburn
    Today is the 2nd day after chemo and I'm having lots heartburn.Not sure is it from Taxol or not.Can anyone had this symptom or any advice please..

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