Hubby about to start chemo

Good morning MrsG14 

Thank you for the update on your Hubby - I wish him well with his treatment - I am sure others will be along soon with the advice you have asked for (I have avoided Chemotherapy - so farso can't give you that advice!!).

We do have a special forum you may wish to join and here's the link

Chemotherapy forum 

There is also our booklet and here's the link to that:

Understanding Chemotherapy

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

Best wishes - Brian.

Thanks so much Millibob

Hi MrsG14 , sorry to hear that your OH has PCa but there are a lot of us around.  I was diagnosed back in 2017 as T3b N1 M0  Gleason 4+5.  PSA 74.  It was before the triplet therapy was around so I went onto HT Zoladex (which I have had every 3 months from then) and had chemo (Docetaxel) but only managed 4 sessions before stopping then RT for 37 sessions.  Most guys get through the chemo without too much of a problem.  I had my infusion on Mondays and from Thursday to Saturday my head was all over the place then recovered ready for the next session.  I suggest you keep a diary so that you know what to expect as each cycle does tend to repeat itself.  Other than keeping fit and having a good diet it is fairly plain sailing, but others will no doubt add their comments.  If you have any questions, feel free to ask away.  David

Hello MrsG14 . My husband had 6 sessions of Docetaxel in 2023 and will be starting on another round fairly soon. Here are some of the things we learnt.

Have a thermometer and find out your husband's baseline figures before starting treatment then take his temperature twice a day to monitor for any infection.

A good blood pressure machine can also be useful as an early warning of how the body is dealing with the treatment. Again establish a baseline and then monitor daily.

An oximeter is an optional extra for early indication that bloods are ok.

Each cycle followed a similar pattern so keep a diary. Hubby was fine until day 3 of the cycle, then had flu like symptoms until day 5 and was back to normal by day 9.

Your husband will be in the chemotherapy unit for between 2 and 4 hours so take something in with him to eat and drink, as well as something to do. Wear comfortable clothes.

The chemotherapy drug contains alcohol and, depending on the dose, it can mean that he will be over the legal limit for driving - make sure he has transport organised.

The chemo can affect any cells which multiply fast in the body such a hair, guts and mouth. To minimise the effect he can ask for a cold cap for the head if he is worried about losing his hair. Also sucking on ice cubes during the infusion and for 30 minutes after can reduce the taste issues.

If your husband doesn't use the cold cap then he will probably start losing hair fairly quickly from his whole body. In anticipation my husband had his hair cut short before hand. He also put a towel over his pillow which made it easier to shake out in the morning rather than having to hoover the bed.

Your husband will excrete the chemotherapy drug out of every orifice and sweat for 2/3 days after each infusion. For your safety use a condom if you make love and avoid open mouth kissing. If you have more than one loo then dedicate a separate one to him and double flush it, plus ask him to wipe up any splashes with paper towels and flush it. Make sure he has a dedicated towel and wash cloth which the rest of the family don't use.

I took the precaution of washing our bedlinen and his clothes and towels separately after each 3rd day of the cycle.

He must report any side effects to the team. If he has a poor experience then they can give supportive drugs for future cycles or adjust the dose.

Food wise you might need to adjust his diet to cope with what he can eat and drink. Avoid anything with undercooked eggs and unpasteurised products. Salads etc must be washed very well but generally I only served up cooked food and gave it to him little and often as this was more palatable for him. Even water, tea and coffee tasted foul but he found he could drink diluted fruit juice and things like lemon barley water. I also had a stock of home made oat/nut bars which he could browse on as this helped keep the nausea at bay.

The experts will monitor him like a hawk for the first session but he must tell them if he feels at all unwell. Also if there is any discomfort where they put the catheter in ( usually the back of the hand) then speak up as it can damage the vein.

He will be immunocompromised whilst on chemotherapy and for up to 6 months afterwards so be sensible and avoid anyone with bugs and we used COVID like precautions when in crowded places.

The whole family should be immunised against flu and COVID before starting treatment if possible, plus avoid children if they have recently had the nasal flu vaccine as it is live.

Generally carry on doing what you enjoy.

Alwayshope, I could hug you for this - such amazing advice, things i would never have known, thank you SO much.