A New Round of Chemo

I started a new round of Xeloda last week, and had my first round of Oxaliplatin.

Last week I started my second round of Xeloda. As part of it, i have been taking Compazine as an anti nausea drug. So far the only side effect has been fatigue, which could be caused by the compazine, or also by a lower than normal blood count. I had my blood tested today and the white and red blood cell count was low, but not too low as to require medication. I will have my blood tested again next week after I finish this round of Xeloda.

I also started my first round of Oxaliplatin. This has certainly been rougher than the Xeloda. The treatment started by getting a blood test (see above), then meeting with the doctor. I told him that we will be meeting with Dr. Sugarbaker next Monday and they suggested chemo, but said it was up to him as to how long before the surgery. Dr. Ratner (the oncologist) said that I should get the surgery done as soon as possible, so we will cap the Oxaliplatin to two rounds. This means that the next one will be given on Jan 19th. This means that if Dr. Sugarbaker is able, I might have the surgery at the end of Jan or beginning of Feb. That would be great as it means I could be up and around by April.

Back to the chemo... After meeting with the doctor, I went back to the treatment room where they have about 5 large easy chairs. I was definitely the youngest person in there with others being in their 60s, 70s or 80s. The nurse put the IV in the back of my left hand and taped it to a board to keep it from moving around.

I then had some anti-nausea medicine, then the Oxaliplatin. The whole thing took about 2.5 hours. I brought my laptop and watched a move (Terminator 3) to kill the time. The side effects has been more prominent with this chemo than with the Xeloda. After the nurse took the IV out, my left forearm feels like small currents of electricity are going through it. Like pins and needles. Also, when I drink something, even at room temperature, my throat starts to feel like it is sore. I have to be careful not to drink or touch anything cold as it will increase these side effects. The nurse said they should last about 3 days.

Roni stayed with me during most of it, just to make sure I was OK. We then went home, and after eating lunch, I slept for about 2 hours.

So, all in all, it wasn't horrible, but it certainly wasn't pleasant. The good news was the doctor saying I would only need it one more time. Hopefully we'll have more good news after meeting with Dr. Sugarbaker next week.