Taxol

pdv
pdv Member Posts: 56
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
Okay...had my first infusion of Taxol today. What are and when do symptom appear?

Thanks
Pat

Comments

  • chenheart
    chenheart Member Posts: 5,159
    #2
    Pat,I found this on the
    Pat,
    I found this on the Chemocare site~ it has really good information! I hope this helps~one step closer to you living your Life After Cancer! Hugs,
    Chen♥


    Taxol Side Effects:

    Important things to remember about Taxol side effects include:

    •Most people do not experience all of the Taxol side effects listed.
    •Taxol side effects are often predictable in terms of their onset and duration.
    •Taxol side effects are almost always reversible and will go away after treatment is complete.
    •There are many options to help minimize or prevent Taxol side effects.
    •There is no relationship between the presence or severity of Taxol side effects and the effectiveness of the medication.
    •The Taxol side effects and their severity vary depending on how much of the drug is given, and/or the schedule in which it is given.
    The following Taxol side effects are common (occurring in greater than 30%) for patients taking Taxol:

    •Low blood counts. Your white and red blood cells and platelets may temporarily decrease. This can put you at increased risk for infection, anemia and/or bleeding.
    •Hair loss
    •Arthralgias and myalgias, pain in the joints and muscles. Usually temporary occurring 2 to 3 days after Taxol, and resolve within a few days.
    •Peripheral neuropathy (numbness and tingling of the hands and feet)
    •Nausea and vomiting (usually mild)
    •Diarrhea
    •Mouth sores
    •Hypersensitivity reaction - fever, facial flushing, chills, shortness of breath, or hives after Taxol is given. The majority of these reactions occur within the first 10 minutes of an infusion. Notify your healthcare provider immediately (premedication regimen has significantly decreased the incidence of this reaction).
  • Kat11
    Kat11 Member Posts: 1,931 Member
    #3
    chenheart said:

    Pat,I found this on the
    Pat,
    I found this on the Chemocare site~ it has really good information! I hope this helps~one step closer to you living your Life After Cancer! Hugs,
    Chen♥


    Taxol Side Effects:

    Important things to remember about Taxol side effects include:

    •Most people do not experience all of the Taxol side effects listed.
    •Taxol side effects are often predictable in terms of their onset and duration.
    •Taxol side effects are almost always reversible and will go away after treatment is complete.
    •There are many options to help minimize or prevent Taxol side effects.
    •There is no relationship between the presence or severity of Taxol side effects and the effectiveness of the medication.
    •The Taxol side effects and their severity vary depending on how much of the drug is given, and/or the schedule in which it is given.
    The following Taxol side effects are common (occurring in greater than 30%) for patients taking Taxol:

    •Low blood counts. Your white and red blood cells and platelets may temporarily decrease. This can put you at increased risk for infection, anemia and/or bleeding.
    •Hair loss
    •Arthralgias and myalgias, pain in the joints and muscles. Usually temporary occurring 2 to 3 days after Taxol, and resolve within a few days.
    •Peripheral neuropathy (numbness and tingling of the hands and feet)
    •Nausea and vomiting (usually mild)
    •Diarrhea
    •Mouth sores
    •Hypersensitivity reaction - fever, facial flushing, chills, shortness of breath, or hives after Taxol is given. The majority of these reactions occur within the first 10 minutes of an infusion. Notify your healthcare provider immediately (premedication regimen has significantly decreased the incidence of this reaction).

    pat
    I did taxol. It was not as bad as ac. I had a few problems now and again,but doable.
  • mickeymom
    mickeymom Member Posts: 117
    #4
    Taxol wasn't as bad
    At least for me, Taxol wasn't as bad and the first four chemo treatments (Adriamycin and Cytoxan) I had four dose dense Taxol treatments and I had no nausea or flu like symptoms at all. However, I did get a lot of joint and muscle pain about two days after a treatment. It would only last for a day or so, but it could get pretty annoying. Advil and the like did help some, but mostly I just had to get through it. Stretching and massage relieved some of the muscle pain, epecially in my legs.

    I did have some neuropathy that started in my finger tips and toes - just a slight numbness or tingling sometimes. This got worse the closer I got to my second treatment. If you start to experience this, ask your oncologist if you can start on Vitamin B6. My nutritionist suggested and I started taking just before my second Taxol treatment. It didn't take it away, but it never got any worse after that. I also took Glutamine powder for a while, but I'm not sure it did much. It's also really expensive.

    I finished Taxol in September and I still experience a little numbness in three fingers now and then, but otherwise it's gone. Good luck with chemo. It's still no fun. Hang in there!
  • Rague
    Rague Member Posts: 3,653 Member
    #5
    For me, Taxol was much worse than A/C. With A/C, I was tired 2 days out of 2 weeks for the 4 doses. With Taxol, I was completely exhausted for 5 days, tired for 2 days out of every week for 12 weekly doses. Also became anemic on Taxol and had problems keeping K levels up.
  • gajor4
    gajor4 Member Posts: 2
    #6
    Pat,
    The side effects for
    Pat,

    The side effects for taxol were completely different than AC. I recieved Taxol every 2 weeks on a Monday. My bones ached on Wednesday night and all day Thursday. By Friday I was MUCH better and then I was feeling fine until the next treatment. I found that the more active I was on these days, the better I felt. It was like if I sat and watched TV, my bones ached, but I could go shopping no problem. I took pain pills on those two nights in order to sleep. To me the side effects of taxol were SO MUCH BETTER than AC, at least my energy levels were increasing!! Good luck, you will do fine!!

    Sally
  • Mama G
    Mama G Member Posts: 762
    #7
    gajor4 said:

    Pat,
    The side effects for
    Pat,

    The side effects for taxol were completely different than AC. I recieved Taxol every 2 weeks on a Monday. My bones ached on Wednesday night and all day Thursday. By Friday I was MUCH better and then I was feeling fine until the next treatment. I found that the more active I was on these days, the better I felt. It was like if I sat and watched TV, my bones ached, but I could go shopping no problem. I took pain pills on those two nights in order to sleep. To me the side effects of taxol were SO MUCH BETTER than AC, at least my energy levels were increasing!! Good luck, you will do fine!!

    Sally

    Once again, we're all different. But Taxol was easy for me.
    I had no problems at all. A little numbness on the bottom of my feet. That's it! Hope you have my luck!
  • pdv
    pdv Member Posts: 56
    #8
    Mama G said:

    Once again, we're all different. But Taxol was easy for me.
    I had no problems at all. A little numbness on the bottom of my feet. That's it! Hope you have my luck!

    Today is day two of Taxol
    Today is day two of Taxol and I am finding it so much better than the AC I took three weeks before. The AC had me down for more than two weeks with day three being the worst. I was actually praying to die.

    Right now I am on half doses of Taxol once a week for 12 weeks since my body is so sensitive to the chemo. If I find I can tolerate it better then I will continue.

    Thank you all for your inputs. I will know to expect muscle pain tomorrow or whenever. I think I can tolerate that. So far not much tingling in my hands or feet but I know that can come. I've already lost my hair from my first chemo treatment. Last night I experience just a little a nausea and woke up drenched in sweat from head to toe. I was able to eat breakfast this morning and the food tasted like it was suppose to. So far this has been a walk in the park compared to the other chemo.

    Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with me on the side effects you have experience. I am hoping and praying we all get better and beat this thing. I wear a "I Will Survive" shirt to every one of my onco appts. I hope it will inspire others to think the same way.

    Pat
  • natly15
    natly15 Member Posts: 1,941
    #9
    pdv said:

    Today is day two of Taxol
    Today is day two of Taxol and I am finding it so much better than the AC I took three weeks before. The AC had me down for more than two weeks with day three being the worst. I was actually praying to die.

    Right now I am on half doses of Taxol once a week for 12 weeks since my body is so sensitive to the chemo. If I find I can tolerate it better then I will continue.

    Thank you all for your inputs. I will know to expect muscle pain tomorrow or whenever. I think I can tolerate that. So far not much tingling in my hands or feet but I know that can come. I've already lost my hair from my first chemo treatment. Last night I experience just a little a nausea and woke up drenched in sweat from head to toe. I was able to eat breakfast this morning and the food tasted like it was suppose to. So far this has been a walk in the park compared to the other chemo.

    Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with me on the side effects you have experience. I am hoping and praying we all get better and beat this thing. I wear a "I Will Survive" shirt to every one of my onco appts. I hope it will inspire others to think the same way.

    Pat

    Taxol and me didnt agree.
    Taxol and me didnt agree. A/C was easier for me as difficult as it was, but taxol put me totally on my butt. At the 2nd taxol infusion I got a severe reaction about 7 minutes in and it had to be stopped. I then went on taxotere which was much more managable for me. I was terribly fatigued but nothing affected me as adversely as taxol. Fortuneately we are all so different, and it sounds to me like you will be just fine with taxol. Hang in there Pat, it does get better.

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