Hi
I'm a newbie to the site after recently going through what I guess you are all so familiar with; a cancer diagnosis from the blue.
I was diagnosed 5 weeks ago, at second attempt, with large B cell NHL . It is aggressive and unusual in that the largest tumour lies within the pancreas which is why my initial diagnosis was pancreatic cancer. I also had lymph node masses in my neck (very large) and chest area. I have begun, very swiftly, the R-CHOP regime and can expect 6-8 cycles.
My second diagnosis was confirmed by a biopsy from the neck lump and what a week that was; started with pancreatic cancer stage IV terminal diagnosis, quickly followed by growing neck lump (visibly by the day), biopsy and then a change in diagnosis. The niggles remain around whether the neck lump tumour is the same as the pancreas lump but they say certain so I go with this.
On the day of the second diagnosis I was unexpectedly immediately admitted to hospital to prep for chemo/R-CHOP the very next morning. This was all a bit of a whirlwind and quite scary for my loved ones who just watched this unfold. I had my first cycle of R-CHOP - 6.5 hours (just over 3 weeks ago now) and seemed to tolerate it pretty well albeit the usual tiredness, constipation and mouth ulcers, most of which seem to be related to follow on meds rather than the chemo on the day. I also watched in amazement as the large neck lump visibly reduced, a 4 inch lump above the surface reduced to virtual flat within 24-48 hours..wow! This of course may not be the same for the large pancreas mass but it is certainly encouraging stuff.
I have now just completed cycle 2 after a 1 day delay due to my white blood cell count being borderline, however this cycle was shorter (3.5 hours) and went ok again apart from some initial light headiness. I am now recovering and feeling reasonably ok apart from sleep problems (think this is steroid tabs) and for the past 24 hours I am peeing a lot which of course does not help with sleep.
Hoping some of this story is helpful....I would like to know from others whether the going to the loo a lot is common following R-CHOP as I did not suffer following my first cycle ?
Finally, as per my profile, I'm a 50 yo male, fit as a fiddle (or pretty close) and healthy living, although as I've said to others this doesn't count for much at diagnosis time but will hopefully help me fight to recovery.
Thanks
