The Colon Club

Hi everyone,

My boyfriend and I are flying to the US next week and then to Mexico. He was on FOLFIRI for 6 months and it's been almost a month since his last infusion. I've heard that with cancer and/or following chemo, there are increased risk factors for e.g. blood clots. I don't want to worry unnecessarily (I worry enough as it is ) so I thought I'd check on here. Have any of you taken long flights close to chemo treatments or while undergoing treatment? Did you take any extra precautions? The reason I'm anxious is that a friend of our parents' died of a blood clot last year after a long flight (he had stage 4 cancer too). So a lot of our friends and associates are worried he'll "end up like the other guy". I think we should be ok, considering the fact that my bf is 28 years old and otherwise strong and healthy. Just wanted to hear if anyone had any experience/advice on the topic!

Thanks,
Alex

I flew from Chicago to Hong Kong during my first months of treatment. My onc wanted to do labs before I went to be sure my immune system was ok. Other than that, she told me to wear compression socks (I did) and walk on the flight every hour or so (thanks to diarrhea, I was up and walking regularly).

I did develop a clot after surgery, some months later, they picked it up on a CT scan. So I’ve been on blood thinners ever since. I travel regularly and no issues.

No personal experience here BUTT maybe check with the docs
to see if something like daily low dose aspirin ( 81 mg ASA ) would be safe for him ????

Also getting up and moving around a lot is important.
Stay well hydrated and avoid alcohol on the flights.
Be vigilant about "personal hygiene" i.e. using sani wipes and even a face mask may not be too over the top,
IF the docs think there is any issue with lowered immunity post chemo ???
( we have local travel expert here who saniwpies EVERYTHING around her plane seats when travelling )

Is he able to have a flu vaccine ? as you will be travelling into the start of the fall flu season.

Not trying to be alarmist here ... just thinking of things which could impact your travels adversely

Congrats on the good news of his responses so far !

Best wishes on your trip(s)
((p.s. how is that X Factor thing going !!!!! ))

Cheers and Harmony
CRguy on the Journey

I took several long flights during chemo treatment and one trip right after a major surgery (for a funeral, unfortunately). I recommend the following:

Compression socks: I wear Pro Compression brand because they come in funky colors/patterns, instead of an older person style.
https://procompression.com/collections/mens-over-the-calf

Hydration: Take an empty water bottle and fill it at the airport. Drinking a lot means peeing a lot, which means moving around a lot - that helps prevent blood clots. Walk up and down the aisles every hour.

Flu vaccination

Sanitary wipes for disinfecting everything.

A face mask in case someone on your flight is coughing or sneezing.

If he has a port or any implants (even titanium screws from an athletic injury), it might set off the alarms going through security clearance points. My port and my HAI pump both set them off. So I frequently got extra "pat downs" and they would even wipe my hands to check for explosives. If there is just a metal detector type of security setup, you can always say you want to use the "body scanner" instead since it doesn't set off alarms.

Be prepared to say he's a cancer patient on treatment if you catch flak from anyone about anything.

Safe travels!
Juliej

Good points JJ
I forgot about the scans and scanner issues ... AND ...
as I recall we even had folks who took flak and had issues for having an ostomy

I recall others who had their Docs write them cover letters about implants etc.
JUST to have on hand for security folks.

Cheers all
CRguy

Thanks so much guys!

I was planning to get compression socks and now I definitely will. Disinfecting the area around his seat is a good idea too! Honestly probably a good idea for anyone, I wonder if those seats EVER get properly cleaned...

I'll double check with the hospital too. His blood work was fine two weeks ago, two weeks after his last infusion. So it should still be good. Jesper feels GREAT, for the first time since he started chemo. He's gaining weight, his skin cleared up, he feels strong...so that's all positive and SO LOVELY for me to see! So I think he will be fine. I'll bring a mask too, good point Juliej! It would suck to be caught next to someone coughing without anything to protect him. Also, our friend who died was about 30 years older than Jesper and doing very badly at that point. So I shouldn't compare. But I'll definitely take all precautions!

X factor went great, CRguy! I had to sign an NDA so I'm scared of writing too much. But it was a great day and meeting the judges was a lot of fun. Looks like I'll have to drop out though, since we'll be out of town for all the important dates I'm supposed to keep free. But that's ok! Once Jesper is ok all that stuff will still be there.

We've been flying to Hungary about once a month for some oxygen treatment, and that's been totally fine. It's only the long flight from Paris to Atlanta that had me a little worried. Surprisingly, Jesper's port never sets off the metal detectors!

AlexandraZ wrote:..lI'll bring a mask too, good point Juliej! It would suck to be caught next to someone coughing without anything to protect him...

It is my impression that the N95 masks are the ones to get for protecting yourself from incoming dust and bacteria. There's an altogether different kind of mask for protecting other people from your own infectious outbound breath. Be sure you get the right kind.

https://www.amazon.com/n95-masks/s?k=n95+masks

I remembered asking my oncologist the same thing when I was undergoing chemo and he said it's not a problem at all for my case at all.

In fact, he mentioned he had lots international cancer patients (albeit mostly a 2-6 hours vicinity) who would fly into where we are based at on a weekly basis for various appointments and chemo infusion.

If you are flying from Europe to the US via KLM, please be advised that this week KLM Airlines sent out an alert to their passengers concerning possible listeria contamination in the food:

https://pointmetotheplane.boardingarea.com/klm-listeria/

My husband has been flying all over (within US but also between US to France) while on chemo and it's never been a problem

I avoided air travel during chemo but did take a long AmTrak trip (Boston to DC). You can easily walk to the bathrooms on trains which made it the more attractive option.

My medical oncologist is worried about clots if I fly but I have a mild clotting disorder as well.

He prescribed a blood thinner that I take before the flight.

Thanks everyone! We had a good flight and arrived safely in Florida. Jesper wore compression socks, walked up and down the stairs of the jumbo jet every hour, and I wiped down his seat and all the things around him.

He is gaining weight and is starting to look like himself again, which makes us both so happy! A week in Florida will be good.

I flew from Florida to Pittsburgh every other week for 8 months, 4 months after surgery, with no issues. I was on baby aspirin for cardiac arrest from chemo, but other than that no issues.