Kelly, I am currently undergoing Folfox and tried to go back to work full time as a 2nd grade teacher. I lasted 6 weeks. The nausea and the pain in my feet from the neuropathy in addition to fatigue lead me back to medical leave. My last treatment, if I stay on schedule, is November 30 with disconn...

Congrats! I remember the feeling very well! Great news!

Mine was laparoscopic (although more rectal). I went in for surgery Monday or Tuesday (I can't believe I've forgotten), was out on Friday. Believe it or not, somehow I was snow skiing 4 weeks later.

I think you'll find everyone is different. As others have said, walk, walk, walk.

First, any doctor that says "absolutely not work" should not be practicing, that's ludicrous. There are many people that work through chemo. It's no cakewalk, but side effects differ greatly between people and you never know how it's going to effect you. Also, it's frustrating that doctors...

I am very open about it. Originally, I didn't tell anyone outside of my family and a couple of friends. I didn't tell people at work (outside of my boss and a friend) until I was finished with radiation. And I can't even describe the shock, no one knew. Now, one of the main reasons I am open about i...

Hi WriterGirl, Thank You very much for sharing your experience with taking xeloda. You wrote: " Xeloda (oral) is just as effective as 5-FU (IV). In fact, some studies seem to imply the oral is more effective ... If you search for the previous posts that compare the two, they should have links ...

Just to add my 2 cents, I did Xeloda both during radiation and with Oxi. I had zero side effects with it. Either you'll get it or you won't, there's no way to tell. The pump has it's side effects too. Look at the pros and cons, and decide for yourself. There are many discussions on this board about ...

This is such a hard time, I had a similar experience, initially they thought it was early, only after the CT & MRI did they see that it wasn't. Going from "hey it's early" to "sorry, it's not" is really rough. Every part is a roller coaster. One thing I didn't see mentioned i...

Great news that you're through that fun! Gotta love the razor blade shits. One thing I might add, if you haven't been stretching, do it now. The radiation killed my gluts and all the surrounding muscles, I should have been stretching, but I didn't know. You might get on top of that and see a physica...

Kristi - so sorry you are having so much pain. I have nothing to offer, but to say I'm sorry and I know what it's like living with pain, although I think mine is less than yours and not the same. As a side note, I really want to say thank you to Karen for bringing up EXACTLY what I'm feeling every d...

Mine crept in and got worse after I was done - probably spiked about 2 months after I was finished. At the worst point, I was falling. I take Gabapentin and it works wonders for me. I don't notice any side effects (I initially thought it made me hungry/gain weight - but I'm pretty sure that's post-m...

Omg yes. And radiation blew them up big time. The best thing for pain and burning for me is Calmoseptine. For itching I have a lidocaine/hydrocortizone cream.

I didn't have the temp ileo, so I'm not sure that my situation was the same, but I can tell you the first year sucked after the resection sucked. I have pretty damn good bowel quality now and Metamucil saved my life. Here are some things that helped me: Metamucil - enormous, overflowing teaspoon, pl...

I've done suprep twice and I thought it was pretty easy and not foul tasting. It tastes like cherry cough syrup, but it's not much and I could just chug it in one sitting. Then I had a spoonful of lemon sorbet just to get that cherry taste out of my mouth. It works really fast for me. I know others ...

Welcome 4pack - I don't think I have much to add as others have already said it. The waiting is the worst. Don't be afraid to ask for something to help you cope like Xanax or Ativan. I know you'll find a lot of support here. Hi all. I recently found out that I'm a member of the club as well. Went to...