Help Needed - Vomitting

Tawanda this can be very problematic for some people while others have no issues. During my first cancer experience, I talked with a woman in the cancer center waiting room and she said every time she got chemotherapy it made her sick as a dog for a couple of days. On the other hand, I had extended chemotherapy, and the antinausea drugs I was given controlled it very well. I am sorry your husband is having trouble with this but continue doing the best you can and have him eat small amounts often of things he can tolerate. He is at a very difficult time I know where the treatments really start affecting you but it is extremely important to finish the regimen his team has laid out for him so whatever you do hang in there and under no circumstances give up. Just concentrate on one day at a time, one thing at a time and you will get him through this. This is also a tough time for caregivers watching and helping their loved one get through this but you will make it and prevail. Check with your cancer team also and ask about hydration as I have read a little bit and that seems to be highlighted. If they think he is low on fluids they are probably capable of giving him infusions of liquid I have had several during treatments. I did a search and there is loads of help on the internet from reliable sources. I will post several links below that should be a help hopefully. The website here will not allow search links to be posted so if you need more information just search "chemo and radiation can't keep food down".

Links below

MD Anderson Cancer Center--

University of California San Francisco--

American Cancer Society--Understanding nausea and vomiting--

American Cancer Society--Managing nausea and vomiting at home--

Wishing You the Best

Take care, God Bless-Russ

Tawanda,

Hope things are easier this week. I have been in the same situation with tracking calories, fluids, and protein for my husband. The sites that Russ attached are really helpful. My husband and I had to figure out day by day what he tolerated. The Vitamix was a life saver. Some of the juices he enjoyed were cucumber juice ! (peeled, seeded cucumbers pureed with honey and water) and canned peaches or pears in juice, pureed; all were on the cold side. Small servings of preferred foods (mashed potatoes were a big hit for a while), sometimes a few spoons at a time worked for him. We did scheduled meals and snacks, as long as he wasn't vomiting or too nauseous. My daughter gave us a clear quart water container to have a visual of how much water he drank. I have had the feeling of being overbearing too; I try to remind myself that we -my husband and I- are a team and that we are each doing the best we can to beat the cancer.

Best to you both

Man I'm so tired of hearing about this very easy to cure issue. No offense to you, I'm furious at your cancer docs for not recommending a magical little lab created drug called Dronabinol. It's also called Marinol and it's just like MARIJUANA! Take it, tell yourself and your inner voice that it's the right thing to do as it's from God's garden. I took it week one and never looked back. I was only nauseous once and that's when I stopped taking it thinking I could outsmart the new round of carboplatin after I took the cisplatin. Don't stop it until you are done with chemo and you'll have an appetite and feel better than you did plus you won't be constipated from that devil drug Zofran.

Tawanda just to let you know I had 35 radiation treatments and 3 chemos, the same as your husband plus previous to that treatment starting I spent 2 alternated weeks in the hospital on 24-hour chemo to shrink my tumor in the throat area.

With that said I know he is at a point in his treatment where he probably is fatigued and feeling pretty lousy, maybe really lousy. No doubt about it this is brutal treatment. Thank God that he is on his last week of treatment coming up and his final chemo. I am glad he is still swallowing and eating even though his taste is gone. This is a common effect of this treatment. And another thing that adds to the misery of this treatment and adds to make you feel bad. I went through it and it is tough but you have to get as many calories in as small a quantity as possible to maintain your weight and force eat it through. There is no enjoyment, no taste, you are forcing food through for now to survive. I remember this it's really strange not having any taste and you really don't feel like eating. I forget does he have a feeding tube to fall back on if necessary? Either way, I have recipes and products on a list I keep to post occasionally of products you can purchase and people's personal recipes for smoothies and weight gain foods. I will post it at the bottom. Boost VHC (Very High Calorie) is a good one you can buy online.

So you are concentrating on nutrition, hydration, and swallowing exercises, fantastic, all the basics and that is probably all he needs to get through these treatments. Definitely nutrition and hydration, and the swallowing exercises are extremely important and I am glad you are staying on them, very good. The only other thing I can think of is pain control, if he has any pain stay ahead of it, don't wait for severe pain, and take meds, take them ahead on a schedule for now if he has pain, you don't mention it so hopefully not something that needs to be addressed.

Tawanda your husband is at or getting to the worst point in his treatment. I am sure he is feeling really beat up at this point so the goal now is to go day by day and do the final push and get through this final week of treatment and chemo. This may be his toughest point and maybe not. Some say they managed to push through the final week doing OK but the following several weeks were bad. But the main goal and what he has been working for and the whole endgame of this is finishing treatment. So no matter what you do go day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute if you have to, and complete this. Then no more appointments for a while and he can rest and breathe a sigh of relief and be glad he is finished.

Next is recovery from the treatment now that cancer has been eradicated. Once the last chemo is in hopefully he has no ill effects from the last one. But I am sure you folks can deal with it and it helps knowing it is the last one. As far as radiation, a term used on here many times is once getting radiation we are still cooking when it's finished. I think what they mean is it is a cumulative treatment that builds up and then dissipates over time when radiation is stopped. Here is a link to a page from the American Cancer Society that may help--

It seems for most of us some of the most difficult weeks are those several weeks following treatment. Just to let you know people who have gone through this tend to feel the worst for 2 to 4 weeks right after treatment but could be longer, and then a gradual improving trend that is very slow and sometimes unnoticeable because the improvements are a slow process from this treatment spanning weeks and months. But he will eventually notice improvements in how he feels and eventually a return of his taste a little bit at a time. It is exciting to taste again for the first time after treatment. But keep in mind everyone's case is different and every person is different so these guidelines vary. After the treatment finished for a period of time if I had something to do like say vacuum I had to get up and get it done because I was so exhausted from the treatment that when my rear end hit a chair I was sleeping. Once treatment is done get enough calories and hydration in and if he is tired let him sleep. Nourishment is needed to replace damaged and missing cells and rest to help the body recover. Your body still has a lot of work to do recovering now. My radiation nurse stressed how hard this treatment is to prepare me for it and also told me till this treatment and recovery is done that I might as well figure a year of my life doing it. I believe she meant from start to finish and feeling good again. I must say once I was done and looked back I would say this was the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life. I don't know if your husband has experienced the thick saliva and has been using the salt and baking soda rinse but if you have any more questions we can cover it later. Once again I have Blabbed long enough but I hope something I said helped.

Recipes for calories are below with a little preamble story, not long.

Wishing You the Best

Take care, God Bless-Russ

Towanda Welcome

To the forum glad to have you. I too ended having a small nodule on my lung and liver but they are just being watched for now and I believe unless they start growing nothing will be done. My sister had one for years they were watching and it finally started increasing in size and I believe they used a cyberknife on it and it is gone. I would imagine your case is similar with a watch and see approach.

The 2 times I had substantial treatment for cancer I had a feeding tube and both times when it was finished it took a while to gain the weight back. I think now I am pushing to be a bit overweight but I found through my experience it is good to have a little reserve. To gain weight, for now, don't worry about any certain I recommend eating food that has a substantial amount of calories and or fat also. Like bacon and eggs, or sausage and eggs and or pancakes, waffles, etc. with lots of butter and syrup. Cheeses are good to add also such as cheese topping on a bowl of chili. Also after my last bout out of the hospital, I had lost a good bit of weight also and had a bit of trouble putting it back on so I purchased Boost VHC (Very High Calorie) and was drinking one in the morning with breakfast including trying to eat at least 3 meals a day of some size. This boost is 530 calories per 8 ounces serving and you can drink more than one a day till your weight picks up. This is a quick easy drink to pack in 530 calories. Usually, the Boost VHC is mostly available online unless you can find it locally mostly regular boost is in the stores. Here is a link showing the product made by Nestle https://www.nestlenutritionstore.com/boost-very-high-calorie.html I bought it by the case on eBay but you can buy it online in many places like Walmart online etc.

Also eat a bunch of snacks like candy, cupcakes, peanut butter crackers, etc. you can fit one in anytime your sittin around. Also, nuts like peanuts, cashews, almonds, etc. have a lot of calories and are even good for ya.

Also here is a weight gain recipe that 2 ladies shared that I found a long time ago related to cancer and gaining weight afterward--

Deb,

So sorry I’ve taken so long to get that receipe for your dad! I checked with our nurses and here it is:

1 box (3.4oz) of instant pudding

3/4 cup half & half cream

1/2 cup of water

1 cup of carnation evaporated milk (use canned not powdered etc.)

Mix together in a bowl then mix with a mixer for one minute until it begins to thicken. This receipe makes 4 servings. We use it to help individual’s we serve who are under weight to assist in gaining weight. As you can see…it is very rich and full of calories etc. Let us know how your dad is doing!

Karen

These Recipes and Tips Are From Debbiel0 on CSN H&N Section

And here is another communication shared recently with me by a lady on this forum concerning weight gain after cancer treatment and I am sure she would be glad if I would share it--

• Coffee cream ( 18%) 1 cup 480 calories
• Coconut milk 1/3 cup 150 calories
• Greek style yogurt 1 cup 270 cal
• 2 tbsp Ground Flax seed 100 cal
• 3 tbsp Hemp Hearts 170 cal
• 1 tsp nut butter 100 cal
• 1 tsp honey 100 cal
• banana 80 cal.

I would mix all of the above into a shake for my husband. It makes about 3 - 3 1/2 cups and 1300 calories.. he would sip on it all day. Then we would make him soft eggs or oatmeal to top off the calories for the day. Jello or pudding and ice cream are also another easy foods to slide down.

Using coffee cream when making soups, or sauces, cooking oatmeal in it, using it for puddings. Is an easy way to boost calorie intake. The Hemp Hearts and ground Flax can be expensive. If you have access to Costco, they are reasonably priced there. ( at least in canada that is the way it is)

Use honey as much as you can in tea or coffee, or just in warm water.

I think the best advice I got from our nutritionist was to think outside the box and add cream or greek yogurt to what ever you can think of. Throw in a couple of tbsps of flax or hemp seeds to soups, your boost, hot cereal cooked in heavy cream. Mashed potatoes with heavy cream and lots of gooey gravy is always good too.

Hope some of these ideas help. Another well balanced change from boost is Soylent. I cant remember the calorie count, but it is a very good meal replacement.

I know I am kind of rambling... but hope some of these ideas help, or at least give you a variety. It is hard to get excited for a meal that is same as the last one!

Split pea soup and baked beans with honey are great for calories..

The flaxseed and hemo hearts dont change the taste all that much..just a way to sneak another 100 calories in. I had never ventured into that type of food either. My daughter in law is super healthy, and introduced me ( young ones, ya know!)

Almond butter or cashew butter is just another alternative to peanut butter. Change up the taste a bit.

I have a long list if food allergies, no dairy, no cheese, no chocolate, so finding calories was really tough for me. Example, geek yogurt can be up to 270 cal, my non dairy yogurt is 60 calories. So, when my husband was going thru his treatment it was actually fun for me to keep finding new things to make for him. Cheese is another good source of calories, melt it and add it to soup, potatoes.

Take care Russ. Maybe sit down and try to enjoy a slice of pumpkin pie with whipped cream!

Also Here Are A Few More Postings For Weight Gain From The Forum

Flyinhigh says:

High calorie

I use a powdered mix from GNC called 1340. If you followed their mixing instructions and used 4 large scoops with water and you supposedly get 1340 calories. I mix it half or third strength with 12 oz. of milk and figure I get 500-600 calories, plus a lot of protein. You can try this and if you don't like it or can't tolerate it GNC will take it back and refund your money. It comes in vanilla, chocolate or strawberry(my favorite).

Grandmax4 says:

calorie

I used a drink called Scandishake, bought it through Amazon. It's really good, can't remember the calorie and protein, I made it with crushed ice and milk in a blender, delicious

Drivingdaisy says:

Drinks

Only drank Orgain, organic and small amount of natural sugar. Decided no more chemicals in My body. I just poured it in My feeding tube. I still drink it but the plant based. Became lactose intolerant. Good stuff. I'm more of a naturalists but to each their own. Going on 4 yrs NED, so did something right.

Suzj says:

if you want to mix it up..

If you get the urge to mix it up, go with a high Protein Boost, mixed with a carnation instant breakfast, and a few scoops of Ice Cream - that'll up your calories

In Closing:

I too and most folks on here had trouble swallowing and getting some foods down but it will come just be patient but for now eat what goes down easiest with a high calorie count. You may have to add liquid as you eat whatever you prefer. Try donuts and coffee. Eat in small bites and be patient. With my 2 cancers and 2 radiations to this day, I am thankful I can still eat but it is just a slower process. but in your case, it will probably come back completely. get with your speech therapist and do your swallowing exercises. I assume you have had contact with a speech therapist on this journey because most of us have it is standard procedure in this Head & Neck cancer game. if not contact your doc and get one assigned to you.

Lastly I highly recommend that you Do Not have your PEG removed until you can have a stable weight or have some slight gain in weight going on but it is your choice. I know after my first cancer they would not remove my PEG tube until I could maintain a stable weight for 2 weeks.

Be patient and Eat, Eat, Eat.

I hope some of this rambling helps you in some way-Wishing You The Best-Take Care-God Bless-Russ

I was under the same sort of restrictions at work but I told my workplace that I needed it because it would keep me from throwing up and it would increase my appetite and they had no problem with it. They made an exception. It is ridiculous that this stuff is banned. I helped to pass a bill in Texas that would allow psychedelics to be used to treat veterans for depression. All of the white-haired old Christians were in opposition to it. It offended me to no end. Nevertheless, we passed it overwhelmingly and then I went back and spoke to Governor Abbott here in Texas and I said why did you not favor this?and he said "I just didn't know enough about it". Now he knows a ton about it. I got former Governor Rick Perry to talk to him as well and we changed his mind. The change is coming.

One more thing I forgot to mention is his saliva may get really thick after a while from the treatment and last for a week or two or three, I can't remember how long it lasted with me. But he can rinse with the baking soda salt rinse as often as necessary.

Also, the thick saliva when you sleep can gag and choke you if you are in a bed laying down. Many folks on the forum found the best way to sleep was in a recliner if you have one available so you can adjust your posture from sitting up to being reclined in a position that is comfortable for you. Even with a recliner I woke up choking and had a heck of a time getting it cleared a couple of times but generally sleeping in the recliner helped alleviate the situation greatly.

So he is still working through all this, he must be quite a guy.

Take Care God Bless-Russ