Evening all,
I hope everyone is well.
I just wondered how members that have been through chemotherapy changed in appearance? If any changes at all.
My Dad has Stage 4 SCLC and had his first chemotherapy treatment last Tuesday (Carboplatin and Etoposide) also with immunotherapy (Atezolizumab). Previous to this he had been in hospital for 5 days as his sodium levels were abnormal. And a further 8 days after his treatment.
He is now home, he seems to have some colour back in his face, compared to the weekend as he looked white but obviously has lost weight. He was very distressed in hospital, he had to go in immediately, he had his first cycle of treatment but his Liver took a knock and they thought treatment would have to be stopped. Thankfully his liver is now stable enough to continue with treatment, so it has been a very very stressful couple of weeks for him. He doesn’t have a good body clock at the moment either so he’s not sleeping through the night and his brain is ticking over constantly, it’s really given his mental health a knock. He is up and about but obviously a little weak.
He has an appetite, which is good, he is eating at home but he just looks thinner now.
I just wondered what image effects/mental effects treatment and the journey had on others?
Thank you
Lucie x
Hi Lucie, I am glad to see that your Dad is now home. He has been through so much these last couple of weeks, I am not surprised he is struggling with sleep.
When I was first diagnosed I lost weight through the shock and stress of it all. Then after my radiotherapy eating was very difficult due to the oesophagus burn. Once I started on my hormone treatment, the weight piled on, very quickly, and when I look back at photos of the old me, I no longer resemble who I was.
As for chemo, people react differently. My mum for instance lost weight and she was tiny already so that was a worry. My sister on the other hand gained weight, the steroids she was taking didn’t help.
If your dad is struggling mentally with everything that he is going through at the moment, I would suggest he talks to his GP about counselling. Or do you have a Macmillan or Maggie’s centre near you? My local Macmillan centre is based at my hospital, and they were very good in the early days for me. I could just drop in back then, but of course with covid you may need to make an appointment.
You can look on the In your area part of the website, where you can search for local information centres and support groups. You just put in your postcode and it will bring up groups that are available in your area. Hope this helps x
