UPCOMING 2ND BOUT OF CHEMO

Hi Angie green eyes,

I had FOLFOX with pump and PICC line – the pump infused for 46 hours after my outpatient infusion and was then disconnected. I had to go to the local hospital to have it disconnected by the district nurse but some people can have a district nurse come to their house to do it (I didn’t get that option).

The pump is a little bottle about 100mm long by 50mm diameter and you get a little bum bag for it. It’s a continuous pressure pump (it looks like a little balloon in the bottle which gradually shrinks over the infusion period) . I used to have the bottle in the bag in the middle of the bed next to me and sleeping wasn’t really a problem. You shouldn’t put it on the floor as this can stop it working and you need to make sure you don’t kink the line.

They usually give you a plastic/rubber sleeve for the Picc line for showering which is relatively easy to use once the pump is disconnected. I didn’t shower while the pump was on, it is possible to shower but the pump and line has to stay completely dry, so you’d have to out the bottle in a plastic bag and keep it out of the shower cubicle and cover the PICC entry point with the waterproof sleeve and just use a handheld shower. To me it was more bother than it was worth and I showered on the Friday before the infusion then on the Sunday after disconnect.

As you can see I had different chemotherapy to what you’ll be having so the following might not be relevant. I have a stoma and the output was more watery during the days I was having the chemotherapy but manageable without using Loperamide (which I was given in case I needed to use it). I occasionally felt only slightly nauseous but didn’t vomit however, I was extremely tired and weary. Luckily, I could rest when I needed to and used to have an afternoon nap.

Hope that helps a little. Ask anything else.

Best Wishes,
Net77x

Thank you so much Net that has helped me a lot..