Prednisone with R chop

Hello Dmoore4683,

When I was treated for a very agressive and rare NHL and was given RCHOP, I refused to take 100 mg of the prednesone.  I did not and stll do not understand the dosage of this drug.  Every other drug in the cocktail is weight /BMI so my doctor adjusted the dosage.  I believe I took 75 or 80 mg daily.  Our conversation went like this:  (me) are there any other  protocals where the dosage of preds is less  (Dr)  yes,  (me) and what was that?  (Dr)  either 75 or 80 mgs  (me)  okay that is what I will take.  I completed treatment in March 2010 and am still disease free.  Funny thing is that my doctor didn't remember this conversation.  When I asked for my chemo records chart it showed 100 mg.  I told him per our conversation I only took 80.  He didn't appear too happy abouth that but said that was still a strong dose.  I don't recommend anything but yes it can be done.  Todate I don't get the 100 mg for everyone.  I don't see how a 120 lb women needs the same dosage as a 210 lb man.  If there ever is a recurrance we will never know if it was due to a reduced prednesone.  BTW, after my second round my doctor removed the drug vincristine because of neuropathy, and on the 6th round after 2 days on the preds he had me stop that too as it was causing stomach issues.  After two rounds of chemo I had a pet scan which came back showing I was in remission.

I want to wish you the very best in what ever you decide to do.  Let us know what you decide.

Leslie

I take the full dosage and am about to complete round 4 of 6. I was just wondering why you were wanting to not take it. Let me say I never took any medication before the diagnosis other than an Aleve  or Tylenol on any kind of regular basis. The prednisone causes me more problems than  chemo. Constipation being the easiest one to control. I know it keeps a lot of people from sleeeping. I find if I stay awake all day which I do most of the time I can sleep pretty well at night. I do take a Zyrtec my Dr prescribed for some of the chemo side effects right before bed and maybe this helps. The prednisone does throw my blood sugar all out of control. So almost no carbs or sugars for the day of treatment and about 7 days following treatment. Then I can ease into a normal diet. I am a little nervous that after it is all over my blood sugar will still have some issues.

Anyway back to my question of why you do not want to take a full dose? 

Sandy Ray

yesyes2,

thanks for the response. Hope you did not think I was questioning your decision. I think we all have to know what we feel comfortable with. I have been concerned about the prednisone because of how it affects my sugar. I have been able to regulate it with my diet at this point. It does mean almost  no sugar or carbs for about 9 days before my body starts handling things again on it's own. I was so blessed before diagnosis. I had really almost no health issues. A couple of kidney stones that were pesty but  adult life has been pretty easy. I am trying to navigate all this now. It has definitely changed my life. Hopefully the glucose problem will go away after the next 2 treatments.

Glad you are doing well. I am convinced we have come a long way with medicine in my lifetime. I also am convinced we are still practicing medicine learning new things everyday. Sometimes they learn new things that are working much better. Sometimes we are finding out that some things we have done for years was actual no help or harmful. We do the best we can! Also knowing all people are different and respond differently to meds.

Again I was not second guessing your decision just curious.

Wishing you the best! You have had a much tougher ride than mine! I admire people much more now that I know how much health affects our lives.

Sandy Ray

I recently finished the 2.5 year protocol for pediatric-ALL for my diagnosis of stage III lymphoblastic lymphoma. Partway through delayed-intensification, I was complsfely removed from prednisone due to avascular necrosis. They were awful for me too. I gained weight, got acne, and couldn't sleep. Coming off of them was the worst though. I have a high pain tolerance, but the leg pain they would cause was excruciating. I also would get nose bleeds coming off. I'm in remission, but I do worry about the affects of changing my protocol. Nice to read such nice things in this thread!