Ascites problems

Hello Fatcats,

Sorry I can't really answer your question about how long the chemo takes to work on ascites because I have a type of cancer which doesn't respond well to chemo. I think there was a small difference in the first two to three weeks of weekly chemo, but then the fluid started to build up again, and chemo was stopped after 7 weeks because it wasn't making any difference to the cancer. Hopefully things will be different for you.

Are you taking anti-sickness tablets? I have metoclopramide tablets on prescription. I'm honestly not sure how much difference they make but worth a try perhaps. The thing that stops me from actually vomiting is crystallised ginger. I nibble on a piece when I really feel as if I'm going to throw up and I have never actually vomited yet. Ginger is a natural remedy for nausea. You may also find ginger tea helpful.

Sarah

Thank you for your reply.  I was given cyclizine but it is no help.  I took iv metoclopramide after surgery so will ask my consultant or GP.

Ginger us an excellent idea, I had forgotten that. 

I am sorry your cancer did not respond, I hope that all the care you receive makes you very comfortable. It is kind of you to help others. 

Hi, I also find Ginger very good for nausea….stem Ginger cookies and Ginger & Lemon tea are a favourite, and ginger cordial in water is also worth a try.

My cancer hasn’t really caused me to suffer with ascites like yours, but for the general bloating and feeling full I found cutting down on dairy and gluten really helped, and eating little but often. I’ve been told that a low salt diet is also good for reducing ascites.

Wishing you all the best, and hoping that the chemo acts quickly for you.

love Bx

Hi Sarah,

Just read your reply to Fatcats, and wanted to say how sorry I was to hear that your cancer didn’t respond to the chemo. I hope your medical team are able to offer you other alternatives to manage your symptoms and keep it at bay?

My cancer too has been able to survive 2 chemo regimes already (first Carboplatin/Paclitaxel, then Abraxane), and I’ve just this week started on a 3rd option - Cisplatin and Etoposide. Ive tolerated the other chemos quite well so far but, as this one is much stronger, I’m not sure yet what challenges it will bring - it’s early days yet. 

Sadly, for those of us with OC that isn’t curable, all we can hope for is a treatment that holds it back for a while longer and allows us the chance to continuing doing the things we love, and being with those we love, for as long as we can.

Very best wishes, and lots of love to you,

Bxx

Thank you, ginger it is then.   I too have discovered eating little and often is the only way.  Wish you all the best too and I appreciate your time to reply to me. 

Morning before chemo started I had 4.5ltrs drained and of course it started to come back, but once I started chemo the ascites went, came back a little after the first but not after the second. Hope this is the same for you, I found the ascites very depilitating. 

Good luck. 

Good luck with the ginger, Fatcats. I really hope it helps and that the chemo helps to reduce the ascites and the cancer when you start it.

Hi B.positive,

Thank you for your kind words. I think I have been spectacularly unlucky with my cancer. I have a clear cell cancer, which apparently often has symptoms earlier than other types of ovarian cancer, but I didn't have any until it had already spread too much for surgery, and it turned out to be resistant to chemotherapy. There is nothing that the NHS can do for me in terms of stopping or slowing the growth or spread of the cancer. They are only providing pain relief and fluid drainage for the ascites. I'm lucky to have a great local cancer charity which provides all kinds of support and activities for cancer patients and their families, including counselling and swimming once a week at a private gym. When I read stories about people dying from cancer in their thirties or forties, or dying within two months of their diagnosis, I try to be grateful that I made it over half way through my fifties, that I have actually had a pretty great life, and that I am still alive six months since my diagnosis.

I hope that your third round of chemo does a good job in fighting the cancer without too many awful side effects.

Sending love and hugs to you.

Sarah

Hi Sarah,

I truly admire how you’re coming to terms with your diagnosis. It’s something we all have to do, in our own different ways, once we pass the point where there’s any hope of being cured. My husband often says I’m “brave” - but the way I see it is, we make a choice to either live out whatever time we have left, being as much “ourselves” as we can be, or we give up on life and waste our last precious months.

I too, having just recently celebrated my 60th birthday, am grateful for the good  life I’ve had, and for the 14 months I’ve had so far since diagnosis. In that time I’ve come to better appreciate the little things in life, and have made many new and happy memories with my family and friends.

I’m hoping that the chemo I’ve just started will buy me more time yet, but I’m not taking anything for granted.

Sending love and positive vibes your way   Barbara xx

Love and positives vibes to you too Barbara and very best wishes for your treatment. xx