Breathless

[Ladyinred123]

Hi

Any tips welcome. Kept going to my doctor with this last autumn, one of the symptoms of 0C which was then diagnosed. Had stomach drained, better for a short time. Better for a bit after finishing chemo in March. Back for a few weeks now, hospital doctor prescribed antibiotics after finding infection in blood. Had pneumonia and sepsis when admitted last November.

Have waited all day for Cancer Centre to ring still waiting. I have a blue inhaler but does not work on this.

Thanks everyone!

Nicky xx

[Lyndy]

Hi Nicky

I don't have personal experience to share but you should def push for an answer from someone. You probably don't want to go to A n E but perhaps your GP needs to be more proactive to get oncology to respond or refer you to an expert in lung health? Sometimes you have to stamp your feet to get heard! Best wishes xx

[Ladyinred123 in reply to Lyndy]

Thanks Lyndy, my GP wrote to the cancer centre for me last week but still waiting to hear from them, my oncologist had a chest x Ray taken about 10 days ago as she thought I may have a blood clot there, I had one just before diagnosis last autumn and have since been taken blood thinners. Not sure that they are infallible though.

Nicky xxx

[chrissapam]

...contact your cancer nurse quickly you shouldn't have to put up with this....Cx

[Hidden]

Do you know what your blood test results show?

I get breathless if my haemoglobin is low. I understood it can also be a sign of low magnesium, which is a common after-effect of platinum based chemo. Worth checking out? Hope you make some progress with it soon. x

[Neona57 in reply to Hidden]

ooh that may explain my breathless problem-I had very low magnesium . The breathlessness started after the fourth dose of chemo. Eventually the onc put me on carbo only which made no difference. Oncologists should be more aware of this as I was never given a magnesium test until I went to my GP about restless leg syndrome. I was given iv magnesium followed by sachets to drink and am loads better now.

[Hidden in reply to Neona57]

Wonderful as they are in many respects, oncologists are very single minded and don't tend to pay enough attention to general blood results.

I now watch mine like a hawk and am supplementing permanently with magnesium but still only scraping along round about the bottom of normal. It's my hair which gives the game away... falls out with low magnesium...!

[Tesla_7US]

Have they checked to see if you have fluid in your lungs?

[Ladyinred123 in reply to Tesla_7US]

My doctor has tapped my lungs and said she cannot find fluid although I suspect there is.

[Tesla_7US in reply to Ladyinred123]

Ladyinred, I've had pneumonia twice. It took me two years to recover my strength. Battling sepsis is a big fight too. You're probably very run down and susceptible to opportunistic germs etc. Low magnesium causes myriad symptoms so keep trusting yourself and get a second opinion.