another treatment held

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dn220
dn220 Member Posts: 79 Member
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
Well I went today for chemo and for the second time they held it for another week. I am still having terrible time with diarrhea and they said I am losing too much weight. I have a CT scan scheduled for tomorrow. My Gastroenterologist thinks I may have an ulcer. My stool has been black for the last week so she thinks I may be bleeding and my labs were low today. They ordered GI cocktail for the bleching,gas, nausea and ordered levsin for the diarrhea but when I took the prescription in the pharmacist said it had been discontinued so i dont know what they will do now. Lomotil and immodium are not touching the diarrhea. I am having pain in my upper belly mostly on the left side but occas on the right side and my stomach swells up just like it did before they found my second cancer. Anybody else have these symptoms? Starting to worry that it may be spreading. I have lost 31 pounds since my surgery on March 4,2008. I have a hard time finding anything that I can eat that doesnt make me sick. Definitely cant eat anything fried anymore, I just assumed that was because they took out my gallbladder but now I dont know. Wish me luck for tomorrow. I also get to see my grandbaby US tomorrow as well. It will be the first one so I am excited about that. Cant wait now to see if its a boy or girl but of course that wont be for a few more months.
Deb

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  • vinny3
    vinny3 Member Posts: 928 Member
    #2
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    Sorry you are having such a difficult time. The CT scan should help to find out the cause. Have they done any stool cultures to see if there could be an infection? Sometimes, especially if you had any antibiotics, certain bacteria, such as C. difficile grow. Ask them to check that out if they are not finding the cause. There is a bacteria that causes ulcers of course too (H. pylori). Keep after them until the problem is solved. We'll be praying for that.

    ****
  • moniquebar
    moniquebar Member Posts: 57
    #3
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    Deb,

    I'm forwarding some information that I posted on another forum, regarding how to prevent the ravages of diarrhea while undergoing chemo. I hope this helps.

    "...When I was undergoing treatment I found that I suffered from really intense diarrhea for the first week following my FOLFOX treatment, usually by week two things started to firm up, so to speak.

    I know that you said Immodium hasn't worked that well, so perhaps speak with your doctor regarding another medication? (Sorry, I don't have any suggestions). Try as hard as you can to stay hydrated and, as suggested by your doctor, consume a very bland diet. See the following link regarding the BRAT diet.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BRAT_diet

    Apparently the BRAT diet is only supposed to be used on a short term basis.

    Please read the following:

    TIPS: For Managing Diarrhea

    * Drink plenty of water. Water should be warm or at room temperature. Do not put ice in any beverage.

    * Avoid high-fat foods and milk products.

    * Try the BRAT diet—Bananas, Rice (white), Applesauce, and Toast (white bread). Note: The BRAT diet should be used as a short-term measure only. It does not have enough nutrients to be a regular diet. Be sure to let the doctor or nurse know if your loved one experiences diarrhea. The doctor or nurse will need to advise the continuation of the BRAT diet for more than 2 days.

    * Avoid nuts and seeds, raw/high-fiber vegetables (broccoli, corn, etc), and fruits with skin.

    * Avoid caffeine (coffee, tea) and alcohol-containing beverages, because they cause the body to lose fluids. Drink decaffeinated beverages instead.

    Hang in there,
    Monique
  • KierstenRx
    KierstenRx Member Posts: 249
    #4
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    I am sorry to hear you are having such a hard time. Yes, Levsin has been discontinued, but there are other types of hyoscyamine products availabe (that should do the same thing). They mainly are just different forms and strengths. Your pharmacist should be able to contact the doctor and get it changed to another type that is still available.

    Also I just posted this on another message, but Zofran (taken for nausea) worked wonders for diarrhea. I never experienced any diarrhea. Before taking Zofran the lomotil and Immodiun didn't do much. The Zofran had a side effect of constipation in about 30% of people. So that doesn't happen to everyone, but in my case it killed two birds with one stone.

    I hope you feel better and please keep us posted.

    Kiersten
  • pamness
    pamness Member Posts: 524 Member
    #5
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    Sorry to hear that you are having such a difficult time. I also found that Zolfran helped with nausea but really caused constipation which isn't always a bad thing. It might be worth a shot. I had a lot of trouble eating - bananas, apple sauce, chicken noole soup and toast, mashed potatoes were OK most of the time. I hope the find out what is going on.

    Pam
  • sandyjg
    sandyjg Member Posts: 71
    #6
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    HI Deb,
    I can share what worked for the diarrhea with my husband. All the meds did nothing when he started the campostar chemo. It was horrible horrible. Then the doctor prescribed a very strong narcotic drop, similar to paregoric, he would put 1 drop in a little water and drink it. He had no side effects, and had to use it rarely it worked so quickly. I can look up the name of the drop, but the doctor should know. It is one of those drugs you have to sign for and show identification, comes in a little bottle with a dropper. It was the only thing that worked. We ended up getting the dose cut by 40% and this dose is less toxic and is keeping liver tumors from growing, not shrinking but stage IV for almost 3 years, we take what we can get.
    Best of luck.

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