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dn220
dn220 Member Posts: 79 Member
edited March 2014 in Colorectal Cancer #1
Well i ended up in Er last night, they said i was dehydrated and gave me a liter of fluids and sent me home. I still feel weak today but not as bad. I am worried though cuz I dont know what kind of damage this is doing to my only kidney. I am going in the morning to oncologist and let them recheck my labs and do a check on my kidney. I sure dont need trouble there too. Has anyone else had so much trouble with the folfox 6 treatment or is it just me?
Deb

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  • JMARIE66
    JMARIE66 Member Posts: 55
    #2
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    My husband is doing his 12th Folfox as I write. He will be disconnected tomorrow. He seemed to have allot of the side effects-but the worst was his potassium levels. It caused diareha and dehydration. He actually was at an airport in TX and they thought he was having a heart attack. Ended up being the potassium levels in his body extremely low. He started taking the potassium pills @ treatment 5 or 6 and doubles up on chemo days.
  • claud1951
    claud1951 Member Posts: 424 Member
    #3
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    Are you drinking plenty of water, fluids? that is so important to flush the kidneys of the chemo.

    Hope things get better. I know it's not fun

    Claudia
  • PGLGreg
    PGLGreg Member Posts: 731
    #4
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    Dehydration and low sodium or potassium can have surprisingly serious consequences. My mother was in excellent health up to two years ago, when she had a seizure diagnosed as due to dehydration and low sodium. She's been in the hospital off and on ever since. Moral: drink Gatorade, eat bananas.
    -Greg
  • pamness
    pamness Member Posts: 524 Member
    #5
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    As I posted before, I had a horrible time with folfox. The oxaliplatin caused me huge problems, my potassium was always low and I was often dehydrated. I choose to act proactively and went in for IV fluids 1 to 2 times a week. I drank liquids as best I could, but I was sick most of the time and had trouble eating and drinking. I made 5 out of 8 rounds with the oxaliplatin (I had severe neuropathy in my hands and feet) but finished the 5FU. I lost some in the vicinity of 45 pounds during all my treatment. You might try a proactive approach to fluids, it really helped me. I felt better in my later rounds than in the beginning. I also had to manage the potassium - I had 2 infusions but made point of trying to eat bananas, potatoes, oj and believe it or not avacados (the highest source). Sometimes I managed sometimes not. If you drink gatorade, don't forget to water it down. My chemo nurse was a great source of information and signed to my for the preventative fluids.

    Pam
  • kristasplace
    kristasplace Member Posts: 957 Member
    #6
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    Hi Deb, i replied to one of your earlier posts, and forgot to mention what i do to try and hydrate. I get terrible neuropathy for about three to five days after my folfox treatments. Each time, i could not drink anything unless it was really hot, and so i was barely drinking anything, and was constantly thirsty. I discovered that i am able to get mineral water down relatively easy even with the neuropathy. So now i stock up on perrier, or my favorite lime flavored mineral water from Trader Joe's in anticipation of the neuropathy. I drink anywhere from 1 to 3 liters per day, and it has helped my dehydration problem. Of course the mineral water is room temperature, but very satisfying. Walmart also has a brand of mineral water with other flavors for those who don't like water much.

    I hope this helps you.
    Many hugs,
    Krista
  • Madre
    Madre Member Posts: 123
    #7
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    I was diagnosed with dehydration while I was in the hospital for surgey (how does that happen) the nurse told me I was drinking enough water but that just dilluted all the other chemistry in my system, so she told me to include more salt to balance. My friend told me about country time lemonade because water just doesn't go down good it taste better and I can increase my fluids. I just had #6 yesterday. I use benefiber too to try to control the bowel issue. I drink flavored teas too.
  • Limey
    Limey Member Posts: 446 Member
    #8
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    Deb, i had quite a bit of trouble with folfox also and i only have one kidney for practical purposes. My left kidney is about the size of a kiwi. I pushed for extra fluids and went in a couple of times during my off time for fluids. I also ask for extra fluids when ever they access my port.
    Hang in there. Right now get up walk over to a mirror and just thank your body for letting the chemo kill the tumors. then tell them you are doing this so you can live. Look yourself in the eye and say it often.
    you will survive this Deb
    Mark

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