Palliative Chemotherapy for my dad

Hello Poppydoodle.

A very warm welcome. My husband followed a similar path to your father in that he had hormone therapy first for his advanced prostate cancer but the cancer started to become resistant after 3 years. Our next step was 6 three weekly cycles of chemotherapy with docetaxel. He was dreading it but found it less onerous than he thought it was going to be. No it was not a pleasant experience for him but bearable. Others sail through it with little effort. During the 3 week cycle he found that he was pretty wiped out for days 3 - 5 with fatigue and muscle/ bone aches. Days 6 to 8 was better, then day 10 to 21 it was pretty much back to normal. He had very little nausea and any side effects were soon countered with medication. Adjusting to having small meals more often helped. There are guidelines for infection control during treatment as well as diet changes that help. Hair loss is pretty common but having a cold cap can reduce this if he is concerned about people knowing he is having treatment. 

My husband's treatment ended in October and he is now feeling better than he has felt since initial diagnosis. We know that this is a rollercoaster journey but have been assured that there are further treatments available beyond this if and when necessary.

Please come back with any questions no matter how small or silly you might think them as we have all asked them.

As far as supporting him he may need help with making meals during bad days and make sure he eats regularly. He is also going to need someone to ferry him to and from each session which can take up to 4 hours. He will need regular blood tests each cycle to make sure he is fit enough for the next one. There is a lot of organising to do which he might want help with.

Thank you so much! This is incredibly helpful  

He has a few appointments due next week where I am hoping he will be given more information. Sometimes the unknown is a far more difficult thing to deal with than the facts. Well fingers crossed anyway.

its so reassuring to read that your husband had long periods of time, during his treatment, where he felt well and that he felt better following it than before starting it

Hello and welcome. Please have a look at our profile by clicking on my name . You will see that my husband has just finished his chemo and things really weren't that bad

Thank you! I’ve just had a read though and that is so encouraging. I hope so much that we have a similar experience.

Hello Poppypoodle A warm welcome to the Prostate Cancer forum - I see you have received some great advice from two of our fantastic Community members Alwayshope and Shar . With my "Champs" hat on can I also point you in the direction of two other forums on the Community you may find of help Carers only forum and Chemotherapy forum . To join these just click on the links provided and you can join by clicking on the black banner at the bottom of the page when it opens up.

You didn't say if your dad lives alone or not - however if you need any extra support please feel free to contact our support line on 0808 808 00 00 (8am - 8pm 7 days a week) where you will find some great people who can provided this.

If I can do anything else for you please let me know.

Best wishes - Brian.