Thank you so much for sharing your experiences. Mom is doing really well, starting to ease back into her old social routines, but she still takes a nap during the day. She usually comes to visit in August and we've been discussing how to make her travel easier. This whole experience has been a real ...

Mom decided to stop chemo after 9 treatments. Her platelets and WBC took a beating every time and she was having other issues. She's comfortable with the decision and I completely support her. So now what? She has a follow up appt with the onc next week and then she'll start getting the various scre...

Thanks, everybody, for your comments. This is very helpful.

From what I've read on here many times, is that they say 8 is the number you really need to get to. I hope that whoever has researched that posts where they found in from. I have a question though that you can ask your onc. Did he change her to 3 weeks and keep her at the same dose, raise the dose ...

As I've mentioned in other posts, my mom has had challenges all through chemo. Her dr. took her off 5-FU, put her on Xeloda, went from treatment every two weeks to every three weeks and she is continuing to have problems with low white blood cell and platelet counts, diarrhea and now issues with her...

Thanks for all your comments, it's really helpful to hear others have had this problem. Mom has two more rounds and then she's done. We are counting the days!

In recent weeks, Mom has developed an occasional pain in her stomach, radiating from her navel. Last month,the onc switched out the 5-FU to Xeloda because of white blood cell and platelet issues, along with chronic diarrhea. The dr. is talking about doing a CT scan if the pain doesn't go away in the...

What a great poem! Having been born in the Year of the Wood Dragon, the phrase "Bitter dragon tears" resonated with me. Thank you for sharing!

I think that those of us who experience "melancholia" (the name I have given to my moderate depressive bouts to distinguish them from the severe, brain chemistry illness that can cripple people) can learn from it. The last time I had melancholia, I really studied it and learned a tremendou...

I agree with all the other posters in that we can only share our own experiences. Now that Mom is down to 2 more treatments, I can share a few lessons learned you might find helpful. Scary as the news is, take a bit of time to breathe, process and help Mom with her research before deciding how to pr...

Because of the blood issues (low WBC and platelets) Mom's onc changed her treatment from FOLFOX to Oxiplatin, Leucovorin and Xeloda. Her 9th treatment got delayed a week beyond the three week cycle she had switched to due to the blood issues. So this week she has her first dose of Xeloda, with three...

Thanks for all your replies, this is really helpful. This is the third time this has happened and it was good to hear other people have had that issue come up. Now that it's happened three times, Mom is ready to deal with it the next time it happens, she keeps the Tylenol by her bed.

Mom had her eighth treatment on Wednesday. Everything went well, but Thursday afternoon she awoke from a nap with a 103* fever. We got the fever down in a few hours with Tylenol and cool compresses and she's been fine ever since. When she went for the pump disconnect, the nurses gave her antibiotics...

Mom had her eighth treatment on Wednesday. Everything went well, but Thursday afternoon she awoke from a nap with a 103* fever. We got the fever down in a few hours with Tylenol and cool compresses and she's been fine ever since. When she went for the pump disconnect, the nurses gave her antibiotics...

Mom has been having issues with blood counts being low, so she is going on every three weeks i/o every two weeks, with a Neulasta shot on the day she has her pump disconnected. It seems to be working better, her energy levels also have a chance to rebound and she doesn't have the emotional rollercoa...