Postby Magnolia » Tue Jul 18, 2006 3:36 pm
Hey all!
I was having some problems with neuropathy, and wasn't too worried about it. I'd rather stay alive than eat popcicles, if ya know what I mean. I had some tingling in my hands when I got cold, couldn't make salads or get anything out of the freeer, even with gloves on, and couldn't eat or drink anything cold. I was three months into treatment, and my doc was thinking about holding a dose, but my ANC dropped and he had to delay a treatment because of that. Now I'm on a reduced dose of 5-FU and oxaliplatin to keep my ANC up. That will, we hope, keep the neuropathy at bay as well. I'm feeling it a bit today, one day after my infusion, but it doesn't seem as bad as before. It always goes away into the second week. (my off week) My doc says almost everyone requires some reduction in dose at some point for one reason or another. They just like to get as much in as possible before the side effects get too bad.
Oxaliplatin is a wonder drug. It boosted survival rates HUGELY from where they were when I was an oncology nurse 20 years ago. And I think Avastin is going to do the same. Colon cancer may be another cancer success story in a short time. Long term survivorship is becoming the norm, except in Stage IV, and even then it's not as rare as it used to be. Look at all the Stage IV survivors on this board. Great strides are being made. And prevention is certianly more effective than it used to be. Early detection is as well. Colonoscopy rocks!