How poorly does chemo make you?

[Pumpkin20]

DH is about to undergo a course of chemo. How poorly does it make you feel? How does it compare to, say, weeks 7, 8 and 9 of pregnancy (my only benchmark) in terms if nausea and fatigue?

I ask because I'm trying to work out how capable he might or might not feel and whether I am likely to need to take time off work for childcare or, indeed, to look after him.

Thanks.

I wasn't too bad tbh but I was only in my twenties so had age in my side.
I think it depends on how you react to it and how effective your side effect meds are. I tried a few anti sickness tabs before one worked but then it worked well.
I'd say the day after is hellish then feel better.
It got worse for me over the 9 treatments but it was never as bad as I'd imagined.
Wish him good luck from me.

I drove there and back btw.
I had my dc with me on all the days other than the day after.
They were 10,8 and 3

Sorry that you and your dh are facing this. It really does depend on the person and how they react to the chemo. But I would say as the levels of toxins build up in the body you tend to feel worse at each cycle.

It does vary a lot, depending on the drugs and dosage, and general underlying health. I've known one person who was pretty much fine, and another who couldn't function well at all during chemo.

Sorry that's not much help - the nurses at the hospital may be able to give you a steer on what's likely for your DH.

It completely depends on the type of chemo and the person having it

I know someone who worked all the way through

I also know someone who spent days in bed each time being violently ill

My mum was ok the first 2 doses, said she felt like she was coming down with a cold -the 3rd dose then took her by surprise and she felt like she had bad flu for a few days

Have you spoken to Macmillan? They will be able to give you some more specific advice relating to the chemo your OH will be having

Good luck

IV chemo?
My dh was going through chemo this time last year.
He'd have the chemo on Monday and be feeling ill by the Friday/w.end.
I didn't have to take time off work but I only work p/t.
It's such a worry though.
sorry you're going through this

Thank you. He's only having one or possibly two cycles of BEP chemo. He's in good health so it sounds like he'll cope. I'll phone Macmillan.

Thank you for all of your support.

Also depends on the type of chemo as there are many different types for each speific type of cancer. Some are very aggressive and others not.

For my DH's lung cancer he was not sick at all. He was taking tablets daily for a week and then 3 weeks off.
He did get an odd taste in his mouth which made everything he ate taste the same so couldn't enjoy his food.
The other side effect was a lazy bowel and he didn't go for days, which worried him.
We were given a leaflet about his possible side effects.
He also lost 2 stone and his hair.

Good luck for your DH's recovery.

specific

Sorry you are going through this.

I agree with the previous posters who have said it affects everybody differently. My friend and neighbour who is in her forties recently had 4 rounds of quite non-aggressive 'mop-up' chemo. She reacted very badly to it, the anti-sickness meds made no difference. The 2nd and 3rd time she was in bed for 7-10 days. She also had a problem with painful constipation. Her DS spent quite a lot of time with us during holidays.
On the other hand she said there were quite elderly people receiving the same treatment as her who said they felt a bit poorly the day after and that was it.
How does he normally react to drugs/anaesthetics etc? My neighbour always reacts badly to things like this so it wasn't that much of a surprise to her with the chemo.

1 or 2 cycles of chemo is probably by injection once a month. That is a 'mild' type of chemo and not at all aggressive. He should be fine.
My nephew had that.

Depends on the type of chemo. It wasn't too bad for my dh, he couldn't work because he was too tired, but he didn't need me to look after him. Good luck with it all op.

Not sure how old your dc are, but it would be useful to think of a childcare back up plan just in case.

Sorry to hear that OP.

I had chemo (plus radio) for breast cancer back in 1992. I felt fine on it, except I had to drink lots of water to flush out my system which could be difficult. I didn't lose my har, so kept on working throughout - I wasn't going to be beaten by cancer, oh no.

Thing is, I overdid it and ended up being ill, including depression, for 2 yaers afterwards. Eventually one doctor said ' you do realise chemo's the equivalent of a series of major operations' - which I hadn't. So my message is, even if he feels OK, bear that in mind, and ensure he rests a lot. And look after yourself too.

I had injected (mild) chemo - and it wiped me out. I had 4 injections every other day then 6 days off by which time I was feeling a bit better - but still worse than I had been at the start of the previous lot - so each course wore me down further. Someone on exactly the same drug and doseage was going straight from the hospital back to work. I had 6 months off. So even the same stuff can affect people very differently.

I've just undergone six rounds of chemo for breast cancer. I've found that it is progressively more tiring although I had some side effects during the first cycle that I didn't have in later cycles.
Does your DH look after your DC? If so, he may well need some help for part of each cycle. He may well be tired and not feel like eating much.
I didn't need DH to look after me, though I didn't drive in the early part of the cycle and my appetite wasn't great ... so I didn't feel much like cooking (or housework!)

Like everyone else has said a lot depends on the drugs. When I had my first round of chemo 2 years ago, I was really ill afterwards with the side effects ( really bad sensitivity to cold) and nausea.

I have just started chemo for a secondary occurrence of my bowel cancer and the drugs are completely different and I drove myself there and back, which I couldn't have done after the first one. The nausea is less as well.

Your DH oncologist or Macmillan nurse should be able to give you some fact sheets and information about the type of drugs and the side effects so you can plan how it will effect your family.

Is it for testicular cancer? If so the P is platinum based eg cisplatin and it can make you by very very sick. Much worse than pregnancy. But it works and there is an excellent cure rate

I'm very sorry you both are going through this.

I have breast cancer, and had first chemo only three weeks ago. I felt 'fine', but had lovely neighbor drop my DDs into/from school for first two weeks on my chemo cycle. REALLY made a difference.!

I felt Ok during week one,but was taking steroids for first 4 days. It took until evening of that 4th day for the chemical haze on my brain to lift. However, during this time I had loads of energy and pushed myself to get certain (most housework) things done. I do feel this was steroids induced.

Looking back, I have now decided not to drive until I feel that chemical haze lift for future treatment. (Was evening of day 4 for chemo #1)

I can also say that while I felt OK most of the day, by 8pm-10pm most days I was whacked.

Finally, I will add that I think cancer is a scary disease. And you should give your BF as much as support as possible. And make sure he is aware of this support.

Good Luck!

Echoing what some of the posters have said it really varies depending on the drugs and the individual.

Some chemotherapy regimens are stronger than others ( ie more likely to cause side effects and suppress the immune system). BEP is actually a fairly strong regimen and quite tough going but on the plus side he is presumably fairly young and fit and it is not a long course of treatment (some cancers require six months plus of chemo).

The main side effects are likely to be fatigue and sickness particularly in the first few days of the cycle. He will be given strong anti sickness medication with the chemo and to take home after. He might find that he needs to nap during the day but I know some people continue to work throughout.

If he feels unwell at any time he must contact his chemo unit (even in the middle of night) - particularly if he has a high temperature or feels shivery and flu like.

Macmillan are a great source of advice.

Macmillan have a support forum which is very good for meeting other people in a similar situation.