I had a whipples in april last year and had 6 months of folfirinox chemo from may to November
people will react in different ways to chemo and I am sure the doctors/nurses will run through possible side effects. you will also be given loads of information but I cannot stress too much that during the chemo if there is anything you are not happy about ring the triage number , I can assure you nothing will be too much trouble
Hope all goes well and please get in touch if you need to.
Ask away whenever you like. That is what this forum is all about
the whole chemo experience was less of a trial than I imagined. the oncology team were absolutely brilliant and going along every 2 weeks felt like being a part of a family. in a funny sort of way I miss them
towards the end of the chemo I got 2 infections which were easily dealt with by antibiotics. the doctors were not alarmed as by the end of the whole cycle your natural resistance can be low.
what has been a pleasant surprise is how quickly I have got back to 'normal' in as much as my appetite is excellent and I have begun to put on some of the weight I lost when my taste for food was poor. all in all I am feeling pretty good although it will take time to get back to full strength
when I saw my consultant in December she said she didn't want to see me for a year so for me the chemo appears to have done its job
I've had folfirinox and folfox over the past 4 years. As already said we all react differently. For me the fatigue around days 4-6 after chemo day were the worst. Otherwise just annoying things like food not tasting good, no problem with nausea; theres something available to mitigate most side effects and I've mostly kept working full time. Steroid give me a few sleepless nights. And sensitivity to cold in hands, feet and throat- Top tip to take a flask of hot drink with you for when you're awake! Wishing you the very best of luck with the chemo and keep positive. Its really not that bad xxx
