Neuropathy- how long?

[Alessandria]

Hi all, I finished chemo last month & my 12th lot of Oxaliplatin was cut due to a very small amoumt of 'permanent' numbness in my toes on one foot. Over the past few weeks the neuropathy has got a lot worse, both feet & hands. It's not causing me problems really except for being highly irritating & uncomfortable & stopping me from doing as much exercise as I'd like to do. Hoping it''ll start getting better soon but have no idea if this is likely.

For those of you who had 'permanent' neuropathy after treatmeht, how long did your neuropathy last after chemo & when did it start to lessen?

Thanks!

[VodKanockers]

I am coming up on a year in October since I finished FOLFOX. I started getting minor neuropathy mainly in my feet around rounds 6/7. I noticed it get significantly worse in the weeks after chemo ended. My feet were numb and felt like they buzzed, especially at night.

Fortunately it seems to have improved slightly these days. Some pain I would occasionally experience early on is now pretty rare. Sleeping is not a problem and I seem to have more feeling back in my feet when I am walking, driving. The buzzing in my feet at night and the sensation of not feeling the gas pedal and brake pedal was the worst, so I am pretty happy about the improvement. Of course, some of this is probably due to me just getting used to it as well. I can easily live with it at this point. My onc said improvement can take up to a couple of years, so maybe it will continue to improve for me.

Hopefully your neuropathy will improve quickly and completely.

[Monique]

Hi Alessandria

I finished my Folfox almost ten years ago and had fairly pronounced neuropathy in my hands and feet; I also experienced a 'zinging' sensation in my legs. If memory serves, I think I started experiencing the neuropathy around my sixth infusion and it increased thereafter. It was probably at its worst one to four months after I finished treatment. The neuropathy was never painful, more so weird and annoying.

Frankly, there were times when I thought the neuropathy would never ease and so I made up my mind to live with it. Thankfully, after about two years I had almost completely recovered. That said, as Vodkanockers has pointed out, I noted that my recovery was very, very gradual.

Hang in there.

Monique

[sadysue]

Sorry to say I am over four years out from ending chemo and still have neuropathy in my hands and feet. My hands have improved over the years but my finger tips are still occasionally numb. My feet are still the same - awful - as when it all started. My oxaliplatin started being cut back by my third infusion; by the end of chemo, I wasn't getting any oxali at all. We are all different, though, and your neuropathy just might leave you completely at some point. I sure hope so. Good luck.