OLAPARIB & Avastin

[White_Tara]

Hi all- I’ve started on OLAPARIB just a week ago. Soon I will be starting avastin aka Bev drip.

I’d like to support my body deal with side effects.

Has anybody successfully combined complimentary medicine like salvestrols and medicinal mushrooms with these allopathic medicines, long term, without side effects? Or worst interrupting the effectiveness of the drugs to encourage cancer cell growth recurrence?

Have they different pathways in the body?

BRCA1 - stage 4

Chemo and surgery successful

My symptoms from chemo:

•tinnitus , poor balance, chemo brain, fatigue on steroids 😵‍💫, joint pain, neuropathy, weak legs

• HBP, clots in lung, tachycardia and God knows what else

Staying positive a day at a time

With gratitude 💖

[Schnauzer19]

Hi, sorry you’re in “the club”. I take turkey tail supplements, I’ve been taking them on and off for the last year whilst taking Niraparib. I did check with the oncology pharmacist who said it was safe to take, the only thing I was warned off was turmeric. Hope this helps 😊

[White_Tara in reply to Schnauzer19]

Thanks  Schnauzer19 ! I had several turmeric lattes in between chemo sessions…oops! However, I d say the difference lies in concentration of curcuminoids. So tea should be safe!I’ve tinctured turkey tail off an old apple tree in the garden but I don’t trust to take that particular one!(due to viability ).I don’t have an oncology pharmacist. Is that a hospital pharmacy?? 🩵 Best wishes

[Schnauzer19 in reply to White_Tara]

Hi! Regarding turmeric, he said we don’t exactly know why it can interact but best to avoid it. Yes it’s the hospital pharmacist that told me, I’m sure my oncologist mentioned about turmeric too. I take clean turkey tail in capsule form. Let’s hope it helps us! Best wishes xx

[SopSinger]

Don't EVER take supplements or other medication without discussing it with your oncologist. Some are OK with it, some very definitely not, and some supplements are riskier than others.

[White_Tara in reply to SopSinger]

Thanks. I understand that and supplements as it’s my line of work.

[OvacomeSupport Partner My Ovacome Team]

Hi White_Tara,

Thank you for your post, it's positive to see that you want to help your body to deal with any potential side effects of treatment and you can read about complementary therapies here: ovacome.org.uk/about-ovaria...

We would always recommend speaking with your medical team before adding any supplements to your medication regime as there can sometimes be contra-indications.

You can read more about herbs here: mskcc.org/cancer-care/diagn... though again we would recommend you have a discussion with your medical team before introducing something new.

Best wishes, Dolores - Ovacome Support

[White_Tara in reply to OvacomeSupport]

Thanks for those links. I shall look into them. I am a community herbalist but have limited understanding of interactions with the meds I am and will be taking. I will definitely be in touch with mskcc .Fantastic!

[Katmal-UK]

Have you joined the Lynparza/Olaparib fb group. You may find a lot of info there. I trialled Avastin in 2007/8 and am currently trialling Olaparib (11 years, 4 months so far).

[White_Tara in reply to Katmal-UK]

Wow! Impressive. I’ve deleted social media im afraid to say. You’re on OLAPARIB 11 years??? Congrats! So encouraging to hear 🙏

[delia2]

Hi. One side comment: your symptoms from chemo will mostly go away if you can do some mild exercise like daily walks. It will be hard because PARPs can cause fatigue and Avastin can make your joints ache. But try to move your body and strengthen your legs. I have gotten muscle wasting all three times with chemo. I think it’s the carboplatin. The PARP side effects tend to decrease after a few months however. So good luck and I hope the meds work for you!!

[White_Tara in reply to delia2]

🙏 thanks! Sounds like I’ll keep up the walking then! Also starting swimming next week (in a pool) 🐓 sea s too cold 🥶 for me. Best wishes

[wendydee]

Wishing you all the best with your treatment,mi know that combination can have very good results. I haven’t got an answer to your question but it may be worth getting in touch with The Penny Brohn Centre in Bristol. They have many years experience of supporting people undergoing conventional cancer treatment with using complementary therapies. They also do residential courses and have a useful website and Instagram feed (I think!)

All the best to you xx

[White_Tara in reply to wendydee]

Thank you so much 😊