Neuropathy and continued cancer treatment

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  1. I was diagnosed with secondary bone cancer 10 years ago. Have treatment every three weeks and  bone cancer stable but have had a number of brain tumours treated sucessfully with stereotacic treatment. Had chemo back in 2013 which resulted in peripheral nerve damage to my feet which has progressed over the years.  Now have to walk with a stick my arms and hands are very weak and sytems getting worse every couple months !!!  Ironically this almost frightens me more than my cancer. Its my moblity and is affecting my way of life. There are so many things l can no longer do. I am so frightened of not being able to walk at all and losing the use of my arms and hands. I am so depressed and my poor husband doesnt know what to do or say. Been attending the pain clinic but no one can tell me why it is getting worse or what l can do to stop it gettng worse. Coping with living with cancer is a big enough strain but dealing with the neuropathy as well is so hard. Wondered if anyone else is suffering from same after effect of cancer treatment. Feel so alone. 
  • Hi  and a very warm welcome to the online community which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.

    I'm sorry to read that you are suffering with peripheral nerve damage to your feet and I can understand why you're scared that this might result in you losing your mobility.

    I had two different types of chemotherapy for the breast cancer I was diagnosed with last year and the second one came with a warning about peripheral neuropathy. As I am a keen walker and also use my hands a lot with various hobbies I have on my laptop, that side effect was the one I was most scared about. Thankfully it didn't occur, although I occasionally get a 'fuzzy' feeling in the soles of my feet but it only lasts for a few seconds.

    As you know, the online community is divided up into different support groups so I hope you don't mind me recommending that you also join and post in the secondary bone cancer group as you'll then connect directly with others who may have had the same treatment which has resulted in peripheral nerve damage.

    If this is something that you'd like to do, just click on the link I've created and, once you've joined, you can start a new post in the same way as you did here, and join in with existing conversations by clicking on reply.

    You might also like to join the group for the type of primary cancer that you had, as these groups tend to be 'busier'. You can find the relevant one by looking through this list or by dropping me a reply telling me what type of primary cancer you had and I'll then provide you with a direct link.

    It would be great if you could pop something about your diagnosis and treatment so far into your profile as it really helps others when replying to you and also when looking for someone on a similar pathway. It also means that you don't have to keep repeating yourself. To do this click on your username and then select 'Profile'. You can amend it at any time and if you're not sure what to write you can take a look at mine by clicking on my username.

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