Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

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kal74
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Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby kal74 » Wed Aug 02, 2017 12:41 pm

I'm 42 and was dx with rectal cancer 6 weeks ago, it's a low tumor Stage 1 T2. I had three options from surgeons and decided we would go with the chemo/radiation route to avoid a possible reoccurrence and perm bag.
I'm starting next week, I'll be taking XELODA oral pills (500mg) and the radiation will be IMRT (5 days per week for 6 weeks). Any experience with side effects or experience from either?? Thanks!

NHMike
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby NHMike » Wed Aug 02, 2017 3:37 pm

I started three days ago at a dosage of 3,400 mg/day. Side effects from the Xeloda so far: some small loss of sensation such as aches and pains being less sharp, some loss of the ability to taste foods as sharply, tiredness, less anxiety, sometimes the feeling that there's something in your mind creating a bit of a fog.
6/17: ER rectal bleeding; Colonoscopy
7/17: 3B rectal. T3N1bM0. 5.2 4.5 4.3 cm. Lymphs: 6 x 4 mm, 8 x 6, 5 x 5
7/17-9/17: Xeloda radiation
7/5: CEA 2.7; 8/16: 1.9; 11/30: 0.6; 12/20 1.4; 1/10 1.8; 1/31 2.2; 2/28 2.6; 4/10 2.8; 5/1 2.8; 5/29 3.2; 7/13 4.5; 8/9 2.8, 2/12 1.2
MSS, KRAS G12D
10/17: 2.7 2.2 1.6 cm (-90%). Lymphs: 3 x 3 mm (-62.5%), 4 x 3 (-75%), 5 x 3 (-40%). 5.1 CM from AV
10/17: LAR, Temp Ileostomy, Path Complete Response
CapeOx (8) 12/17-6/18
7/18: Reversal, Port Removal
2/19: Clean CT

mozart13
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Location: Toronto

Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby mozart13 » Wed Aug 02, 2017 5:57 pm

I finished chemo/rad back in januarry, hardlly any symptoms, no pain, tired and weak at the end of week, by Sunday recovered, protein rich diet is must, my skin on the feet started to crack, they gave me some cream, that took care of that, walked twice a day, rain or shine, studies showed that people that are active have 40% more chance of survival.
Took xeloda 1750 twice a day, always after meal, avoided anti oxidants, vitamins, stayed away from sick people, good hand hygiene is must, thats how we pick up infections, avoided large crowds.
Used backing soda as mouth wash, to avoid sores, it worked.
Some people reported diarhea, I was fine, if any notice of loose stool, took small amount of chocholate, that took care of that.
Your stool might become like pencill, thats normal, swelling from radiatio, drink a lots of water.
Peak of the radiation is about 16,17 weeks from the start of radiatin, than lasts for years, once the operation happen, that part is gonne.
Xeloda acts as turbo to radiation, that really burns cancer cells.
Good luck to you!
55 year at the time of diagnosis, male
Diagnosed with T1,T2 N0 M0 rectal cancer
Total neoadjuvant therapy or TNT (chemoradiation followed by systemic chemotherapy)
Negative since Feb. '17
No surgery
Watch&Wait approach 8)
I don’t come much to the forum , so if this is not updated it means I remain negative!
Wish good luck to all!

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ocstacy
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby ocstacy » Thu Aug 03, 2017 2:19 am

I'm starting next week, I'll be taking XELODA oral pills (500mg) and the radiation will be IMRT (5 days per week for 6 weeks). Any experience with side effects or experience from either?? Thanks!



My mother has been on Xeloda for almost 28 days along with radiation mon-fri. She takes about 2600 mg per day. She has done fairly well considering her age and I thought for sure she would be so much weaker. Little Nausea, but no throwing up. Little diarrea, but she changed her diet and took less stool softener. Once you start radiation you will have to do a flip flop if you get diarrea and go on BRAT diet (all the stuff you avoid prior to radiation) I didn't understand it until we started the radiation and talked to the nurses. I would say that it's important to stock up on the care items prior such as aquaphor, fragrance free body washes and lotions. I bought my mom cotton panties, cotton socks, utterly smooth lotion. She has had no hand foot syndrome. Maybe a little on her feet, she mostly complained of it heating up in the shower... but then she rubs the cream and puts socks on. I would say that she poops out after her tx and doesn't want to go anywhere at all like to go shopping, or the market. She wants to lay down and watch t.v. I am her nurse and she is staying with us so I make sure she stays hydrated and she eats all the appropriate types of food. She lives literally two homes down from us, so we are like the "Greek Wedding" family, lol. I have learned going through this process with her is like going through the cancer with her. Up's and down's, but mostly this colon club has certainly helped me cope and seek advice. 10 more days left and she is done and we are praying for a "Full pathological response" "No Evidence of Disease" We love her oncology team and surgeon and the doctors seem very optimistic and think that she will do great!! Next, is surgery in the fall which she is very nervous about and doesn't want to but it looks like she will most likely have to and take Xeloda one more time after surgery. Best of luck to you all. I know Xeloda sounds awfully scary cause I was super nervous about receiving in the mail. One thing the nurse suggested to my mom or for myself is to wear gloves while handling and that seem to have helped a long the way. Xeloda is actually one of the more milder forms of chemo, you don't lose your hair. As mentioned, I am very PLEASED on how strong my mom has been on it. She does complain of rectal pain, we made her a special styrofoam pillow with a hole in in it. You will do great! :D
Caregiver/daughter to dear mother age 78, dx 5/09/17 because of me!! :wink:
Rectal CA Stage 3 low-grade adenocarcinoma- 6 cm
Neoadjuvant start 7/10/17 ended 08/16/17
3D Lap. surgery @ Keck USC, Dr. Sang Lee 10/17/17 temp ileostomy
11/1 hospitalized abscess/hernia - home 11/06/17 antibiotics
NO LYMPHS INVOLVED! NEAR PATHOLOGICAL RESPONSE! YAY! :shock:
Took her last chemo med 05/10/18! Ileo reversal 07/24/18
1st BM after reversal 07/25/18 Anal Fissure 8/15/18
Me:1st Colonoscopy age 38. 08/17 Benign polp.

kal74
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby kal74 » Sun Aug 06, 2017 7:58 am

Thanks everyone, I start tomorrow so I'm on edge but hope that it goes better then expected. I feel better reading some of the replies

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JJH
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby JJH » Mon Aug 07, 2017 9:01 am

kal74 wrote:... Any experience with side effects or experience from either?? Thanks!

You can get more information by doing a search here for IMRT IGRT. This will give you some previous posts on the topic, e.g.,

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=48936&p=372445#p372445
"The darkest hour is just before the dawn" - Thomas Fuller (1650)
●●●

Sargent
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby Sargent » Mon Sep 18, 2017 6:10 pm

Massive adhesions from irradiation had 23 years ago my pelvic radiation "did my bladder in" resulting in iment kidney failure major resection entire pelvis a miracle as radiation melted ureters instestine loads ashesion now as result of sparing me kidney failure urostomy and ileostomy I have malabsorbtion syndrome. Becomes a cure radiation but never "home fre@ from the destruction to pelvis it causes I.e. Like mine 23 years after

skb
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby skb » Tue Sep 19, 2017 11:49 am

I had absolutely no side effects from 25 days of Xeloda (3600 mg per day). Maybe I was not watching closely what they were, I was busy trying to work, lead a normal life.

Radiation did have some effect on me. I was urinating more frequently. It could also be because of the high amount of water I was drinking. At the fourth and fifth week of radiation, my bottom was sore (because my tumor was in lower rectum) but the pain was nowhere close to the actual pain caused by tumor before therapy started.

Overall, the chemoradiation was very effective for my tumor until now. It completely erased the tumor last month.I did not have any surgery. I am now on additional chemo to prevent recurrence.

Based on my experience, I would recommend going with chemoradiation. The benefits (at least for now) outweigh the minor inconvenience it caused.
3/21/17: Dx T3N0M0-mid rectal 4.5cm
4/18 to 5/22/17: chemoradiation- Xeloda and daily radiation (25 doses)
6/28/17: clean biopsy, clean scans
8/17: MRI - no evidence of tumor, no surgery, starts wait and watch
8/17 to 12/17: Folfox
8/19 VATS - 1cm lung nodule
7/17/21- Clean CT, CEA 15.6 !
8/24/21- PET , biopsy finds met along obturator lymph nodes
10/1/21- Surgery , 12 rounds of FOLFIRI -ended 4/22
4/15/22, 9/6/22. 1/20/23- Clean scan, normal CEA
10/23- four sub-centimeter lung nodules, all PET negative

Jachut
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Re: Xeloda/IMRT Radiation Side Effetcs? Rectal Cancer

Postby Jachut » Thu Oct 12, 2017 5:27 am

Immediate side effects were very minimal for me, maybe because I went in very fit, a healthy weight and not sick from having cancer. I needed a bit of nausea relief and that was it. I did lose alarming amounts of weight it literally fell off me. 10kg over the six weeks, without any diarrhoea, vomiting or overt sickness, probably just the metabolic load of healing. I also had a complete response to the treatment but I still had surgery. What was much harder to deal with in the medium term was menopause. It was incredibly hard to deal with on an emotional level, even though I was 42 and had finished my family. It really knocked me for six - partly because I guess I had the "I'm not a real woman anymore" thing going like when people have hysterectomies at younger ages but also because it was a really brutal menopause with terrible terrible symptoms, the worst of which was insane mood swings and depressive episodes. Happy to report that seven years later I have just weaned myself off HRT which was my lifeline, and nothing more than a few hot flushes. For me, the side effects have come later. I had my ileostomy reversed 9 months after surgery and at first that was successful but it gradually degenerated. My new pouch got stiff and fibrotic, it could not expand to hold stool and it could not contract to expel it. I was in pretty great discomfort and dependent on enemas (which made me feel really sick) to empy my bowel. So I did end up with a colostomy, which I've now had for four years. If I ever need any more pelvic surgery I am going to be in a bit of bother becuase its an absolute mess of scarring, and all stuck together in there. My bladder is also quite dodgy - hard to empty.


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