Peripheral Neuropathy from Chemo - EC and Paclitaxel? Also, Driving To and From Chemo Session?

Hi FlowerN, I’ve had EC and am now on docetaxel with Phesgo injections for targeted treatment. On EC I found I was very spaced out but the end of each chemo and wouldn’t have felt safe to drive. That’s just my experience on EC others may not have felt like this as everyone manages things differently. Chemo is accumulative so you may find after another session you would feel more comfortable having someone bring and take you home. As I’m on Phesgo I have to have piriton and this makes me sleepy so I have to have hubby to take me and bring me home. I have heard on Paclitaxel the meds they give you may make you sleepy but that’s just what I have heard from others. Hopefully someone will be along soon who has Paclitaxel and can they you know their experiences. 
I used the scalp cooling cap but didn’t use the mittens or feet cooling. When I went on to docetaxel I asked about them and my chemo nurses said I should have used them from the start. So far I have been ok. I’m guessing if you are worried use them from the the start. I use polybalm for my nails. This has great reviews for people on chemo. You get 2 tubes in a pack one for fingers and one for toes to avoid any cross contamination should you get any infections. I got mine through Amazon and it was £37. It’s pricy but i think it’s worth it. 
Wishing you all the best for your journey.

Hugs from cuffcake x x x x x

Hi FlowerN,  I had EC followed by Paclitaxel & I kept a diary that you might find useful: 

https://community.macmillan.org.uk/cancer-blogs/b/ec_pac_chemo_diary

I didn’t wear mittens as my cycles were every 2 weeks & the pac lasted about 3 hours so didn’t think I would be able for this! I got peripheral neuropathy after first pac & they reduced the dose for the next cycles.   This worked and thankfully I don’t have any problems with pn post chemo 

I didn’t drive but the dr said that I could drive if I felt up to it. I felt relatively ok between cycles but did feel really woozy immediately after so didn’t feel I could drive safely.  

Good luck with your treatment xx 

Hi FlowerN I had 3 EC and 9 Paclitaxel I couldn’t drive although the chemo nurses said you could with Paclitaxel as they gave me Piriton and that made me very sleepy . But it does not affect everyone the same way . They did not recommend driving with the EC . Good luck let us know how you get on. 
Lots of love Belinda xxx

I didn't drive to and from chemo and wouldn't have been able to. EC in particular made me feel a bit sparkly!

Docetaxel was better, but I didn't want to risk something making me feel off (each cycle can be a bit different), so didn't drive to chemo at all.

Certainly for your first chemo session of each drug, I would get someone to take you there and pick you up. Our hospital was about a 25 min drive and the EC chemo took about 2.5/3 hours, so enough time for someone to leave and come back.

Ladies ,

Thank you all so much for responding ️ 

It sounds unanimous- driving straight after chemo doesn't sound feasible at all! It's my wishful thinking again as always! Just didn't want to burden anyone with it, although hubby's already put the dates in his work diary, we also have 2 children's drop offs and pick ups at different schools to think about ( 1 about to sit GCSEs too!) and I just didn't want to add this additional pressure too!  

We'll make it work I know, it's just never easy ,is it?!

I'll also start the ice mitts and socks from the beginning then together with the cold cap and hope for the best! 

 cuffcake2000 

I've had the Polybalm arrive a couple of weeks ago so I'm ready!  It's great to hear its working for you too  Good luck with the rest of your chemo and any follow on treatments xx

 Meanegg 

Thank you so much for your chemo diary link - have now read through it, very useful and positive   It's already helped me feel  less anxious about what's to come! 

Good luck to all of you with whatever lies ahead on your respective journeys xx

Hi FlowerN. I had 12 weekly Paclitaxel and was able to drive to and from the hospital on my own. It is a 40 minute journey each way…… I cold capped and saved my hair but not my eyelashes or eyebrows sadly……. Obviously everyone is different but this was my experience. Good luck with your treatments. It will be over before you know it ! Xx

Peripheral neuropathy is a possible complication of Paclitaxel but not EC. If you start to get symptoms they will likely reduce your dose. I started to have symptoms after 7 or 8 doses, and they reduced my dose for the final block of 3. I found it got a bit worse in the weeks following chemo, but then improved. It hasn’t completely gone away but isn’t too bad. 

They do give you an antihistamine with Paclitaxel, it also has some alcohol in it. Personally I did not feel I would be safe driving. 

You may be able to ask the hospita to be flexible with chemo times, so that it fits better with school pick ups and drop offs

I’m glad you found the blog useful.  Just thought I’d throw in my experience with my nails.  I moisturised with nail oil ( I see you have already got Polybalm so hopefully that will do the job) and kept them varnished with black nail polish - they came through really well! Only one of my big toenails got slightly discoloured after chemo finished but the rest of them weathered the storm admirably 

Good luck with treatment & good luck with GCSEs too! I also have a child doing these so fingers crossed all goes smoothly - can’t wait for the exams to be over to be honest!! xxx 

Wow, well done Sassy68 

So encouraging to read and know that someone has managed to drive safely to and from on their own, and also that you've kept your hair!  I'm sorry to hear you lost your eyelashes and eyebrows, but that is usually the case from what I've read xx Have they now started to grow back? For the eyelashes I've bought UKLash serum as I've read can help with re-growth and am planning to start using it as soon as I start chemo to see if it makes any difference at all. Also, am using pure 100%organic unrefined argan and jojoba oil on both my eyelashes and eyebrows ( whilst cleansing my face twice a day) to see if the power of natural organic ingredients with anti inflammatory and antioxidant properties can help at least to some extent with hair loss.

Take care and take you so much for responding xxx