Chemo sickness..?

Hi PEB . Sorry to hear you are feeling the effects of your chemo. Just checking, have you been taking your meds as directed. They are designed to help prevent nausea rather than stopping it if it happens?. Also chemo can make you dehydrated so it is important to keep the fluids up. I had Gem/Cis without too much trouble and it shrunk my tumour so it may be worth trying to keep it up. You should have been given a chemo record book with a contact number inside to call  if things don't improve. I hope you feel better soon. Best wishes. 

Hi PEB,

I had 8 sessions of Gem/Cis followed by cystectomy. 2 ×weeks on 1 off. I had no sickness at all, though felt slightly  nauseous a couple of times. We did have to adjust the dosage after getting a serious rash (originally the second one of the 2 sessions in each cycle  had less of one of the drugs but after equalling the 2 amounts it was OK. But I managed to cope  after taking a course of steroids to get rid of the rash). I did feel quite weak by the end of chemo but I kept focusing on the end goal and grotted my teeth. 

In fact I eventually refused to take the anti-sickness pills the nurses handed out before the infusion as well as the stuff they give you to take home etc as they gave me very unpleasant constipation (and I still didn't vomit - even outside of chemo I rarely vomit but often suffer loose stools if I have a stomach upset).

At the end of the 4 cycles, the oncologist said that the chemo had killed off half the cancer cells but hadn't been so effective on the squamous cells. However when they took away the bladder they all went too. I have been clear for over 3.5 years 

So yes I'd say the chemo was definitely worth it. It has a variety of side effects, that's true, but it worked for me and others. 

One thing that occurs to me is that in this heat you may also have a  stomach bug. Could that be causing or increasing the nausea and  vomiting?

Also it is important to drink a lot of water during treatment and even more so in this heat.

I'm sure the telephone number on the chemo card will give you some more information about all this. The oncologist's CNS will also help I'm sure if you contact them in the morning.

I hope things calm down soon and that you can complete the course.

All the best,

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