Chemo and body temperature

[gvpinchuk]

Dear friends, I need your advice.

After my surgeries back in December and January, I had episodes of fever. It turned out that I had lung infection, and they gave me antibiotics. By the time I was discharged, my body temperature came back to normal. Now, as I started my intravenous chemotherapy, I display sudden and short (1 hour or so) jumps of my temperature to subfebrile levels (99-99.5 degrees Fahrenheit, or 37.2-37.5 Celsius). It looks like I do not need any medicines to make the temperature go down to normal. Personally, I believe that those are simply fluctuations of the body temperature, which is basically normal. However, my wife worries. She was scared back then, in December and January, when my temperature went up to ~100 degrees F. She says, what if this is the beginning of a new infection, given that the chemo suppresses your immunity?

What should I tell her, in your expert opinion? Thanks!

George

[dianetavegia]

HI George, 98.6 is the AVERAGE temperature. Mine is seldom over 97.4!

Normal Body Temperature is Highly Variable Keep in mind, this number, whether it’s 98.6 or 98.2 degrees F, is just an average. The human body has a wide range that is considered normal and each individual may have their own normal range. Any temperature between 97.0ºF to 99.0ºF (36.1ºC to 37.2ºC) is considered perfectly normal and not a cause for concern by itself. Even temperatures from 96.0 to 97.0ºF are not unusual, especially upon waking in the morning. In that same study that revised Dr. Wunderlich’s normal body temperature, the range of temperatures record for study participants was 96.0ºF to 100.8ºF.

Read more at: http://saidsupport.org/normal-body-temp ... syndromes/

[Lee]

HI George, 98.6 is the AVERAGE temperature. Mine is seldom over 97.4!

[/quote]

Mine moves around from 97.6 to 98.0. Actually sometimes when I am 98.6 I'm on the verge of getting a fever.

For what it's worth, about 3 days following my surgery, I got a temp of 101. Dr and nurses were concerned, butt I remember this one nurse telling me, they think my gut was waking up from surgery. Yep, temp went away a few hrs later and guess my gut was gurgling. Gas followed 24 hrs later.

It's not uncommon for body temp to be higher in the evening. Butt if your temp does go up to 101 without a reason, an ER visit may be a good idea especially if you are on chemo.

Lee