You can receive convenient home delivery if your specific medication is part of this service, often in supply amounts larger than 30 days. A few words about pill sorters: Many people use a pill sorter available for purchase at drug stores and online to sort all or some of the pills they take. Before doing so, ask a member of your health care team if there is any concern with your cancer medication being taken out of its original bottle or packaging.
Also ask if it poses any problems for your cancer medication to be stored in the same pill sorter as your other pills. Early reporting can help improve your quality of life and allow you to stick with your treatment plan. This section provides tips and guidance on how to manage certain common side effects should they occur. Drink plenty of water. Ask your doctor about using drinks such as Gatorade, which provide electrolytes. Electrolytes are body salts that must stay in balance for cells to work properly.
If the diarrhea is bad enough that you need medicine, contact a member of your health care team. Choose foods that contain soluble fiber, like whole grain products, oat cereals and flaxseed, and high-pectin foods such as peaches, apples, oranges, bananas and apricots. Avoid food high in refined sugar and those sweetened with sugar alcohols such as sorbitol and mannitol.
Eating small meals throughout the day is an easy way to take in more protein and calories, which will help maintain your weight. Try to include protein in every meal. Nutrition shakes or protein drinks are a way to add calories to your daily diet. To keep from feeling full early, avoid liquids with meals or take only small sips unless you need liquids to help swallow. Drink most of your liquids between meals. Keep high-calorie, high-protein snacks on hand such as hard-boiled eggs, peanut butter, cheese, ice cream, granola bars, liquid nutritional supplements, puddings, nuts, canned tuna and trail mix.
If you are struggling to maintain your appetite or weight, talk to your health care team about a referral to a dietician or nutritionist who has specialist-level oncology knowledge. You can also ask your doctor whether appetite-building medication could be right for you. There are a number of options for pain relief, including prescription and over-the-counter medications. Many pain medications can lead to constipation. Your doctor can recommend over-the-counter or prescription medications that help to avoid or manage constipation.
Physical therapy, acupuncture, progressive muscle relaxation exercises and massage may also be of help in managing your pain. Consult with a member of your health care team before beginning any of these activities. Fatigue extreme tiredness not helped by sleep is one of the most common side effects of cancer and many cancer treatments.
If you are very fatigued while on treatment, your doctor may change the dose or schedule of the drug s you are taking, as long as that does not make the treatment less effective. If you are experiencing fatigue, talk to your doctor about whether a dose change is right for you. Ask your family or friends to help you with tasks you find difficult or tiring.
There are also prescription medications that may help. Your health care team can provide guidance on whether medication is the right approach for your individual circumstances. A: Here are a few tips that might help if you have difficulty swallowing pills. One or more of these tips might work well for you. Check with a member of your health care team before trying any of these techniques.
They may also have additional suggestions. If your difficulty swallowing pills is caused by a high gag reflex, try spraying the back of your throat with a numbing spray before you take your pill.
This might help keep your throat from tightening. I am also interested in this, my husband has been told he will have 8 cycles 6 months EOX, but has had to pause middle of round 2, due to extreme side effects continued bad stomach I am not sure 8 rounds is wise especially back to back, it seems barbaric! Of course I am now worrying his tumours are growing while he is not getting the chemo meds. Oh to be worrying about just not going on holiday like I was last year!
I am sorry about your husband. My mum's doctor wants her to have 8 cycles. She has done 4 so far and as scans showed some improvement her oncologist agreed to give her week breather as her haemoglobin and platelets were quite low. I think if the gap between chemo cycles is around weeks hopefully it would not make much difference.
Hope your husband gets better soon x. Thank you, and good to hear your mum is doing well. I think a small break is so needed, for mental as well as physical health. Skip to main content. Post to forum. Search Search forum. Do you have a cancer chat password? Yes, I have a password. Remember me. Sign in. I would be happy to receive news and updates from Cancer Chat. Create new account.
For example, you may want to find out: what the aim of treatment is, for example, is it being used to cure the cancer, relieve your symptoms or make other treatments more effective about possible side effects and what can be done to prevent or relieve them how effective chemotherapy is likely to be whether any other treatments could be tried instead If you agree with your care team's recommendation, they'll start to plan your treatment once you've given your consent to treatment.
Tests and checks Before chemotherapy begins, you'll have tests to check your general health and make sure the treatment is suitable for you. The tests you'll have may include: blood tests to check things such as how well your liver and kidneys are working, and how many blood cells you have X-rays and scans to check the size of your cancer measurements of your height and weight to help your team work out the correct dose During treatment you'll also have tests to monitor your progress.
Your treatment plan Chemotherapy involves several treatment sessions, typically spread over a few months. Before treatment starts, your care team will make a plan that outlines: the type of chemotherapy you'll have how many treatment sessions you'll need how often you'll need treatment — after each treatment you'll have a break before the next session, to allow your body to recover Your treatment plan will depend on things such as the type of cancer you have and what the aim of treatment is.
Further information Cancer Research UK: planning chemotherapy Macmillan: planning your chemotherapy treatment How chemotherapy is given Into a vein intravenous chemotherapy In most cases, chemotherapy is given directly into a vein. This can be done using: a cannula — a small tube that's placed into a vein in the back of your hand or lower arm for a short time a peripherally inserted central catheter PICC line — a small tube inserted into a vein in your arm that usually stays in place for several weeks or months a central line — similar to a PICC, but inserted into your chest and connected to one of the veins near your heart an implanted port — a small device inserted under your skin that's kept in place until your treatment course finishes; medicine is given using a needle inserted into the device through the skin The time it takes to get a dose of intravenous chemotherapy can range from several hours to several days.
You usually go into hospital for the treatment and go home when it's finished. Tablets oral chemotherapy Sometimes chemotherapy is given as tablets. This is known as oral chemotherapy. Other types of chemotherapy Less commonly, chemotherapy may be given as: injections under the skin, known as subcutaneous chemotherapy injections into a muscle, known as intramuscular chemotherapy injections into the spine, known as intrathecal chemotherapy a skin cream Further information Cancer Research UK: ways of having chemotherapy Macmillan: how chemotherapy can be given Issues during treatment During chemotherapy treatment, there are some important things to be aware of.
Pregnancy and contraception Women should avoid becoming pregnant while having chemotherapy, as many chemotherapy medicines can cause birth defects. Taking other medicines While you're having chemotherapy, check with your care team before you take any other medicine — including over-the-counter medicines and herbal remedies. Side effects Chemotherapy can cause a range of unpleasant side effects.
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