5FU Tips?

[saevans115]

My father just finished his first infusion of 5FU. He is now battling his 5th cancer. This is his second recurrence of Colon Cancer specifically. He has had 5FU before and did not handle it very well. He ended up hospitalized for almost a month and had to discontinue. At that time he had just had a heart attack and quite a bit of lung respected and was not nearly as healthy As he is now so hopefully the experience is different this time. I know side effects are inevitable but does anyone have any coping tips they are willing to share? He has struggled so much with his health, anything I can do to make this easier on him would be a blessing. Thanks so much in advance!

[zephyr]

I'll give you the answer I gave my own father when he was going through chemo for lung cancer.

See a naturopathic oncologist or an integrative medicine doctor to help control chemo side effects and strengthen your immune system. I think my naturopathic oncologist saved my life by leading me back off the edge two years ago when I was ready to quit chemo and take my chances because I was so wiped out.

Exercise as much as you can handle. Try to shoot for at least 5 days a week. Any exercise is better than none. If you can't get out of bed, find a bed exercise routine. I asked an exercise physiologist for band exercises I could do in bed. The research on this is pretty clear: exercise helps the body fight cancer in a number of ways.

Do some form of meditation every day, be it traditional meditation, guided imagery, or yoga nidra. Lots of research here too regarding the health benefits, not the least of which is that it supports the immune system and can help increase white blood cells and those natural killer cells that fight cancer.

Avoid outside stress at all costs. You may need to kick a few people to the curb. Among other things, stress releases cortisol which causes inflammation and inflammation is like candy to cancer.

What you eat matters. See a dietician if possible, preferably one certified in oncology. There's a lot of controversy on the role of processed sugar in cancer but the fact is that sugar is a known cause of inflammation and inflammation feeds cancer. Better choices would be stevia, monk fruit sugar, or agave nectar. White flour should be off your list too (or at least limited). There are better ways of keeping on weight without eating junk. In my experience, chemo is tough enough without sabotaging it by a bad diet.

Seriously consider medical marijuana for pain, nausea, sleep, and to slow down the system at night in cases of severe diarrhea. If there are lung problems, RSO might be a better choice than smoking.

A few weeks ago someone recommended that I read Anti Cancer: a New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, MD, PhD. It's written by a doctor and neuroscientist who was diagnosed with brain cancer and set about to figure out how to bolster his treatment and avoid a relapse. I'm very wary about health-related book recommendations because I find so many to be lacking in what I think of as legitimate research and common sense. When I saw the reviews, including one from a doctor at MD Anderson, I took notice. I wish someone had told me about the book 4 years ago when I started this journey.

[Rock_Robster]

It’s not highly likely but has he been tested for DPD deficiency? Being hospitalised for a month after one dose would definitely have me wondering about that.

Good luck,
Rob