INFUSION/SLEEP PROBLEMS

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CB

INFUSION/SLEEP PROBLEMS

Postby CB » Sun Nov 19, 2006 9:43 am

My husband has trouble sleeping the first night of his 5fu infusion. Does this happen to anyone else? He also experiences pain in his back occasionally. His doctor lowered his 5fu dose but it still happens. Just wondering if anyone else is going through this too and what they did to make their 1st night of treatment more restful.

Holly
Posts: 537
Joined: Thu Sep 08, 2005 11:06 pm

Wow

Postby Holly » Sun Nov 19, 2006 11:57 am

CB,

Welcome to the Colon Club!

Note: The sleeplessness could be caused by a myriad of possibilities. Any chance your husband is recieving steroids in his protocol? Decadron? I recieved them in my chemo protocol and the first night, no sleep because I was ramped on them. The next day, I would crash and sleep like a baby. I would encourage you and your husband to talk to the physician and see what provisions can be made.

I hope this helps and wishing you both sweet dreams!

Holly

Lifes2short
Posts: 549
Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2006 10:54 pm
Location: Salt Lake City, UT

Postby Lifes2short » Sun Nov 19, 2006 1:11 pm

I agree with Holly, steriods may be the reason. I get steriods on day one and don't have any sleep problems - the chemo wipes me out hard for the first several days. But the docs warned me that the 'roids may cause me to have difficulty sleeping.

It might be worth looking into mild sleep aids. I find that I can sleep almost non-stop for the first four or five days after chemo. After that I frequently have trouble sleeping. A mild dose of ambien helps me sleep without introducing any other side effects.

Good luck.

Hannah
Posts: 287
Joined: Tue Nov 15, 2005 3:59 pm
Location: Little Rock, AR

Postby Hannah » Sun Nov 19, 2006 2:02 pm

Hi CB,

Lower back/side pain is one of the side effects of infusional 5FU - it is on the list of "less common" rather than "more common" effects, but happens to enough people that it is listed. Strangely, in oral 5FU (Xeloda) it is actually one of the more common effects for patients being treated for metastatic disease.

Talk to your husband's doc about what he can take if he needs something for the pain - the drugs are there for a reason, and he shouldn't be in pain!

:)Hannah
Hannah K. Vogler
Co-Founder, The Colon Club
cousin of Amanda Sherwood Roberts
dx 1/99 Stage III at age 24
died January 1, 2002 at age 27

Magnolia
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Joined: Fri Jul 14, 2006 2:38 pm
Location: Virginia

Postby Magnolia » Sun Nov 19, 2006 7:30 pm

Decadron kept me awake and made me eat like crazy. Sometimes just the chemo can make people restless. I did well on Ambien. There are other mild sleep aids that can be helpful. I also liked lavender oil as aromatherapy. Very relaxing. And, of course, ease off the caffiene late in the day. Be careful not to get a caffiene withdrawal headache, though.

Becca
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Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2005 10:08 am
Location: Mechanicsburg, PA
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Postby Becca » Mon Nov 20, 2006 11:17 am

The decadron did me in too! I was climbing the walls for almost 30 hours post-chemo, so they lowered me to a 1/2 dose & eventually to a 1/4 dose. The mild nausea was better than the alternative for me! I did not have any issues with back pain, but I understand that is a side effect. I agree with Holly... talk with the Dr.


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