In a quandary re. Capox Treatment

Hi there, i fully understand your concern.

I had chemo capox for 8 sessions. I had stage 3 bowel cancer in June 2019. Finished chemo in feb 20. CT scan showed all clear thank god.

The OXY IVF is supposedly liquid gold in tackling them cancer, however the side effects are rough.

I still have cold feet and hands. My nails hurt on my hands and feet. The oncologist is vey good at making sure that by week 3 of treatment your hands and feet return to normal. After the 7th chemo treatment my hands and feet remained cold, my fingertips numb and my toes. I have been told these will recover. 

Personally i would do the treatment - your best hope of clearing the cancer. IF you don’t want the OXY IVF speak to the Oncologist and he/she will help you.

A pic line will stop the aching in the arm you have IVF. 

Be prepared once the IVF is over to be very cold. Take a hat, warm jumper etc with you.

i used hand warmers during treatment, and covered my arm i had IV in with a warm towel. You will feel the cold.

Good luck - if you want any further help please just ask me.

kind regards

paula 

Hi Marianne26. I had capox/xelox after my surgery and oxaliplatin is the most unpleasant of the 2. I think you need to discuss your concerns with the oncologist and see how much difference there would be between just the capecitabine or the combination of both.

During treatment the oxaliplatin causes you to become over sensitive to anything below room temperature - you would need to wear gloves for getting things out of the fridge for example. Initial doseage tends to be at the maximum for your weight and height so you must tell the nurses if you are struggling with any side effects as sometimes just lowering the doseage can make a huge difference.

My oxaliplatin was stopped after 6 sessions when my tongue kept feeling numb and I managed another 2 with capecitabine on its own before they decided my feet were too red to carry on. In hindsight I wish I’d mentioned my feet earlier as they still feel like they’re permanently hot and swollen nearly 3 years down the line. My hands are fine but unfortunately there’s no guarantees that you would be the same.

Its a tough call so maybe another chat with your oncologist?

Karen x

Thanks Karen. Oh dear, 3 years after & you are still suffering repercussions from this treatment sounds horrendous.Yep, they took my weight & height pre. treatment. I am very little, so, just hoping that the dose will be appropriate. I read all the Gumph. today...before I sign the form in 2 weeks....Feels like signing my death warrant. The so many side affects sound horrendous! 

It’s like anything medical - they tell you absolutely everything! You will probably get some side effects but not all and there are lots of things like anti-sickness tablets, immodium if you have diarrhoea, creams to keep your hands and feet moisturised etc. I worked part-time in an office (26 hours a week) and only missed 1 day and that’s because my arm was sore from the iv - once I had a picc line fitted I was fine. On the other hand there are people who struggle with fatigue and sickness - it’s so different from person to person.

Sorry - I know that’s not much help but just wanted you to know that it is doable. At the end of the day it is your decision and one that you have to be happy with. Also if you want to start chemo then decide after a couple of sessions that it is too much and you want to stop then that is your perogative.

Please let us know how you get on or if we can be any help to you

Take care

Karen x

Hi there,

i had the same treatment for 8 sessions. I didn’t get my antisickness drugs right on the first cycle and was very poorly. I rectified this going forward.

I wanted to give up after every session i had - but i didn’t. Week 3 of cycle (if you are on a 3 week cycle) is when you feel much better.  I kept going because i wanted to live. There is light at the end of the tunnel.

I applied for a disabled badge and got one - this helped so much when i wanted to go out and couldn’t walk too far. 

I couldn’t work during my treatment and am still not working so i applied for PIP payment which helps greatly with the bills. Don’t be too proud to receive this.

good luck

paula