First treatment of Taxotere

[MsHope]

I haven't posted in a long time. My husband is going to have his first chemo treatment of Taxotere in about a week. He has ben fighting metastatic stage 4 prostate cancer for five years. Thankfully it has stayed in the bones and not spread to any organs. For those who have had this treatment, can you tell me what to expect after the first treatment? I want to be prepared. Thank you in advance.

[tango65]

This links has some info about chemo by an expert,

grandroundsinurology.com/dr...

[MsHope in reply to tango65]

Thank you

[RoseDoc]

He will be on a steroid high for about 24-30 hours. Then fatigue. I had a lot of thigh pain 2days post infusion.

Get the mittens and socks to keep hands and feet cold that will lessen neuropathy.

Aside from the muscle pain, I had no symptoms after first dose. Symptoms increase with each subsequent infusion. I was wiped out for 2 weeks after the 5th one.

Pickle juice helps the muscle pain. Consider the Penguin cool cap to prevent hair loss.

It took me about 6-8 weeks to recover after last treatment. I worked throughout the entire treatment.

[dhccpa in reply to RoseDoc]

Good info! Did your clinic mind you bringing ice in? How easy is it to do all that before you begin? Do you bring an ice chest?

[swwags in reply to dhccpa]

no they don't mind and yes you can bring in your own ice chest. You should bring in enough pairs to rotate through the cycle.

[dhccpa in reply to swwags]

Thanks haven't had chemo yet but it's always looking.

[RoseDoc in reply to dhccpa]

Clinic had no issues with us bringing in the ice chest, mittens, etc.. They had seen it all before.

[dhccpa in reply to RoseDoc]

Thanks good to know

[MsHope in reply to RoseDoc]

Did Penguin cool cap work for you?

[RoseDoc in reply to MsHope]

Yes, it did. It is involved but worth it. You need about 70# of dry ice. They supply the cooler and all the caps. You need to continue for 5 hours post chemo treatment.

[MsHope in reply to RoseDoc]

Thanks so much for informaiton

[JD-guy]

Hello, I think everyone's experience is different with Taxotere. Keep hydrated, to keep the dead cells moving. Ask about Neulasta, I did not get it the first infusion and ended up in an ER because my white blood count went to about zero. (Got a fever). I got pretty weak, I worked when I could thru chemo, but some days I could not. My hemoglobin went down to 10.1 till my last infusion. It took me awhile to get back going again. More detail in my profile. I am not a Dr, this is just my experience for what it is worth. I am grateful that I made it through and God has been so good to me. Life is different since dx, but I have so much to be thankful for and I try to focus on that.

I hope things go well for your husband, I wish him the best.

Thanks

Keith

[Tinuriel in reply to JD-guy]

Ditto on Neulasta, my husband has received it for all but the first infusion and his white blood cell count had been fine since. Exercise covid-avoiding-style caution if he doesn't get it.

Now I better understand the phrase "on steroids"! Dexamethasone is definitely a happy pill for my husband, followed by a great crash of fatigue when it wears off.

[MsHope in reply to JD-guy]

Thank you so much

[MsHope in reply to JD-guy]

Thank you very much

[MsHope in reply to JD-guy]

Thank you so much for your info. I looked on your profile and you story is much like my husbands, except he is 81.

[MsHope in reply to JD-guy]

You said life is different since dx, I hope that means better

[pakb]

It looks like Tall Allen posted this last time you had asked but it's worth reposting- good info here. healthunlocked.com/advanced...

Taxotere was one if my husband's first treatments over 6 years ago when diagnosed. He tolerated it well. Lots of hydration, protein and working out helped him. He worked while going through those months of chemo treatments. Fatigue, watery eyes and fingernail issues were his worst side effects. All worsened towards last treatment but starting getting better a few months afterwards.

[EdBar]

First treatment for me wasn’t too bad in fact treatments 1-3 while I felt pretty lousy for a week or so afterwards weren’t as bad as 4-6, that was pretty rough, without a doubt the toughest form of treatment during my almost 10 battle. While the physical symptoms were bad enough there are mental challenges too. Loss of hair was a tough one initially and making the decision to run with the bald cancer warrior look. It was definitely a lesson in humility. I learned to embrace it and bought several hats, fortunately I already wear glasses so that helped cover the loss of eyebrows. My wife was always supportive and I’m forever grateful for that, after a while I learned to embrace the suck, and still worked the best I could from home and exercised daily to push the poison through my system. In the end it’s probably one of the reasons I’m still around. Good news is my hair grew back better than before, lol!

Ed

[OldWarrior]

The link pakb posted and the discussion with it is the best summary I’ve seen on here. I just finished 9 cycles. I am a big believer in the boots and mittens - no neuropathy after 9 cycles. Find out in advance how much support your center will provide regarding ice etc. I had good results with sucking ice chips but still had some taste effects. Fatigue was my worst side effect. For me once the steroid wore off I had 3-4 hard days. nap when you need to. Start walking as early as you can each cycle - when you start feeling better pick up the pace and exercise to get ready for the next cycle. Finally, hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

[Yzinger]

I just completed 4th cycle. I have tolerated well like a lot of others responding. I hope this is your experience also.

[larry_dammit]

very tired and sleepy for me. Taste buds were off. The only thing I could eat was potato and gravy. Shot of neupogen shot the next day kicked my butt.

[ron_bucher]

With the caveat that every body is different...

My most noticeable side effect was loss of energy. On a scale of 1-10, my energy was 11 on the day of the first infusion. 2-3 days after the infusion my energy fell off a cliff to 5. Each day it climbed back up until it was back to normal after about 7-10 days. The same thing happened after each of the 6 infusions.

[Shams_Vjean]

If he gets Neulasta along with the docetaxal then ask his MO about taking some Claritin the day before, day of, and day after infusion. Without it the bone pain from the Neulasta can be pretty rough on some guys. Best of luck!

[MsHope in reply to Shams_Vjean]

Thanks for your response. His bone pain in hip is already horrible. He is taking Oxycodone for pain

[Shams_Vjean in reply to MsHope]

Sorry to hear it. I was in a similar situation before I began Taxotere chemo. Eventually it cleared the active bone metastases pretty well and along with it most of the pain. Not everyone has the same response, but I hope his is as good as mine was.

The chemo side effects generally worsen for most patients as they progress thru all 6 rounds. My wife made fresh vegetable and fruit juice for me on the days when my side effects were worse (days 4-7 after infusion) and I believe it was a major help with keeping my blood numbers where they needed to be. I never needed Neulasta after my first chemo round.

Best of luck to both of you!

[MsHope in reply to Shams_Vjean]

Thank you so much for your response.