Zackattack wrote:MeAndMine wrote: Sounds weird to say but I just want to know how it feels, make sure I don't have a terrible adverse reaction physically etc.
horizon wrote:Zackattack wrote:MeAndMine wrote: Sounds weird to say but I just want to know how it feels, make sure I don't have a terrible adverse reaction physically etc.
That doesn't sound weird at all to me. I was terrified before my first infusion because I had no idea what it would be like. Once I got one under my belt it was so much better to prepare mentally.
Happy to see you are progressing too, how's the radiation/etc treatment going thus far? How are you feeling?
Jannine wrote:I never smelled anything weird, fortunately. I got cold sensitivity with every infusion, so I could not have done the ice chips thing. I had to ask the nurses not to put ice in my water and even then it was sometimes too cold. So I eventually started to microwave water to heat it up a bit, and take that with me.
On FOLFOX they gave me enough liquids in my infusion that I would have to get up and go to the bathroom several times during the infusion. If I was there at lunchtime they would give me a box lunch; otherwise they give you snacks. I would send my husband off to get food for me once I got into my chair because I got tired of the box lunch. I could eat at the start of the infusion and it was only after the infusion ended that I would start to feel meh about eating (it usually didn't get bad until a day or two after the infusions, and lasted 3-4 days). If you end up not having problems with nausea during the infusion, taking a lunch with you might be a good idea.
For me, getting the infusion with FOLFOX was a long process. Get there, wait maybe 30 minutes to get blood drawn, wait 30-60 minutes for bloodwork to come back, maybe wait another 30 minutes to see the oncologist (every other infusion, so once a month), usually only waited about 15 minutes before I got in an infusion room, wait another 45+ minutes for the chemo drugs to finish being mixed and delivered, then the 2-hour infusion. Knock an hour off of all that if you're not seeing the oncologist that day. Also there were a bunch of other delays depending on the week: monthly staff meetings; at one point the chemo pharmacy was being renovated and all chemo was being mixed in the main pharmacy so there were huge delays; etc. If you have expectations for how long things will take, you're likely to get frustrated.
I always took more stuff with me than I needed, but a book or anything else that you enjoy and can concentrate on (to keep your mind off the chemo) should be enough. Just bring some warm clothes in case you need them on the way home, if you won't be in charge of climate control. My hospital would bring me heated blankets while I was in the chair, which was AWESOME.
NHMike wrote:I decided to get the bloodwork drawn the afternoon before the infusion to decrease the elapsed time that I was at the infusion. So I'd go there the afternoon before, get blood drawn on the way home from work, and just go home so it saved the hour waiting for the bloodwork results.
Zackattack wrote:Having the port was a savior, had to have blood drawn twice to check those weird liver enzymes and the oxaliplatin went in smooth, like a fine cognac.
Liver enzymes have me concerned but I wrote my Oncologist after we met to request an ultrasound on the liver which I haven't yet, of course, rec'd a response. Probably quite a bit premature but what do you all think? Would you push for it or wait 3 weeks for the next blood test?
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