I know some of you will want to know about what it's like to get chemo in a hospital now that Covid-19 is happening. Our community hospital is a satellite of Mass General. They currently have about four CV patients in ICU. The chemo center is in an attached separate wing. Here's how my husband's #8 Docetaxel infusion went down this AM--a delay of a week since the hospital cancelled last week's appt. as the hospital organized for CV-19.
--He arrived wearing a paper-type mask we'd had from a couple months ago when I thought I had a cold and bought a box. He also wore rubber gloves. The hospital does have masks, gloves, and protective gear.
--Partners, spouses, and I assume most personal aides cannot accompany the patient.
--A masked person greeted my husband at the front door and checked him in. Then another masked person in front of the chemo waiting room took his temp.
--Only two other patients were in the waiting room compared with the usual half dozen. (One patient had left his used mask lying on the table with the magazines!!!)
--Got blood drawn and was kept back there instead of returning to waiting room.
--Met with his oncologist, also masked, to discuss his case (see profile). (Prior to #7 three weeks ago, he had scans showing Docetaxel had kept mets "reasonably stable." ) He has developed some neuropathy, which MO's monitoring and had discussed with him earlier on the phone this week and this AM. She's lowered the Docetaxel to 75% of the full dose, which he received. Everyone inside the chemo suite administering the chem was fully covered per usual.
--MO will see him in three weeks to see how neuropathy is and decide that day whether to give him #9 at 75% dose. She'd like to keep him going, depending on how he does. He's willing to try more chemo provided neuropathy doesn't worsen or other side effects get worse--extreme fatigue. He asked about some liver "cysts," which had shrunken during Docetaxel, so assumption is he perhaps has liver mets--something MO is tracking.
His bloodwork is totally normal. From the get go, he was Gleason 9 with low PSA. He had low PSA throughtout four months on Zytiga only to learn he had a lot of mets, and Zytiga hadn't worked at all. So scans are the only way to track his tumors. He'll get complete scans again in June--another long day in a CV19 setting.
He thought the precautions seemed adequate. Who knows what the Covid-19 situation will be like in three weeks if he does proceed with #9.
I hope this is helpful to those of you who are wrestling with whether to continue chemo in a hospital setting. My guy decided to keep going--#7 and now #8 were up to him beyond the standard of care of 6 infusions. Everyone makes different calls.
Good luck to all of you. It's a pretty crazy time.
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Docetaxel/Taxotere. 2nd time in 3 years. It's a no go this time. No benefit after 3 infusions.
