What are people's experiences regarding recovery after chemotherapy?I had the last of 6 cycles of treatment in March of this year and the last of 2 cycles of prophylactic Methotrexate in May and recovery is very slow with very little progress the fatigue is much the same and my legs in particular are very weak.
Hi again JohnT2 ...... oh the the recovery timeline - this is a big question.
If you remember I had/have 2 different types of rare T-Cell Lymphoma and a different treatment journey so for me my recovery was about 2 years to say I was back to my pre-treatment self.
My Consultant told me that going through the treatment process is like doing a boxing match and a marathon every day over the months of treatments and this was done without any training.
Think doing the London Marathon without any training and you had to finish it as your life depended on it……. this is the journey you have been on so it most likely will take much longer than you would think to get back to some normality.
At 3 months post the end of my last treatment (Oct 2015 aged 60) I was having physiotherapy and just out of my wheelchair and able to do a few steps with my walking sticks….. at about 6 months I was walking without my sticks and this was when my great CNS took me across to our local Maggie's Centre and enrolled me in a weekly men's circuits group..... the fitness instructor set exercises for each person that helped to rebuild the muscle loss and at the same time helped overcome the fatigue.
Recovery is a vicious circle - the less you do the longer the recovery.
Lymphoma Action run the very good Lymphoma Focused Live your Life Course (online and in person) that is a peer-led post treatment self-management course.
Hi JohnT2,
I was diagnosed with DLBCL in March 2022, had 6 cycles of R-CHOP then 12 zaps of radiotherapy, and it seems to have done the trick, no sign of any active disease. I have check ups every 4 months, next one due in February, I think.
Recovery from the chemo has been much tougher than I thought, I was extremely weak, tired all the time, and had quite fierce pains in my muscles, especially my legs. It took a long time to improve, a good 18 months to two years to get back to what I now consider 'normal', it seemed like there wasn't ever any noticeable improvement. But there was...
I now feel I've turned the corner, the only lasting effect has been slight neuropathic pain in my left hand and right thumb, plus poor circulation in my feet, I certainly feel the cold now...thank God for hot water bottles, it takes forever for my feet to warm up in bed.
So, in a nut-shell I would say its taken 18 months to two years from the last chemo session to get back to my pre-treatment self. Best of luck, John, just keep plugging away.
Top Tip: I highly recommend getting out and about and going for walks, even if you feel tired and sore. I've got two dogs so I'm out every day with them, and I feel it's definitely helped .
Steve
Very much like Steve I was diagnosed with DLBCL in March though 2020 rather than 22
I was also about two years to get back to "normal". It was a gradual proses
You need to remember your body has had a hard bashing. Try doing a small bit extra every week. A bit longer on an exercise bike or a bit further walking.
I still try to get outside every day though sometimes it's just to potter in the greenhouse at this time of year.
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