Postby roadrunner » Tue Nov 30, 2021 3:25 pm
My hair thinned and turned white (from white/grey) on FOLFOX. It was full before therapy (though full for a 55-yr. old, not full for a 18-yr.-old). There was lots in the comb during treatment, but I never went bald or even close. After chemo it came back to former thickness, perhaps thicker, and (weirdly) came back as black (with some grey). Very odd.
I get the impression this is a YMMV effect.
FOLFOX/Oxaliplatin has some significant side effects. For me the big ones were difficulty holding/touching cold things (not too bad, tolerable, but used gloves when reaching into the freezer), first-bite sensation (pain near salivary glands (sides of face) when first eating (really painful but lasts only seconds), general fatigue, crazy liver enzymes, really low WBC counts (Neulasta helped 100%). I had a lot of arrhythmias as well (not sure if from 5-FU or Oxi or both, but determined to be benign). Really unpleasant GI stuff (no nausea or diarrhea, but just general
“Yuck” feeling often). Eventually you may get numbness, tingling, or pain in hands or feet (neuropathy). That’s generally regarded as the dose limiting side effect.
That’s what I recall for now. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds (most days, anyway : )
7/19: RC: Staged IIIA, T2N1M0
approx 4.25 cm, low/mid rectum, mod. well diff.; lung micronodule
8/19-10/19 4 rds.FOLFOX neoadjuvant, 3 w/Oxiplatin (reduced 70-75%)
neoadjuvant chemorad 11/19
4 rounds FOLFOX July-August 2020
ncCR 10/20; biopsies neg
TAE 11/20, tumor cells removed
Chest CT 3/30/21 growth in 2 nodules (3 and 5mm)
VATS 12/8/21 sub-pleural met 7mm.
SBRT nodule 1/22
6/20/22 TAE rectal polyp benign)
NED from 3/22 - 3/23
4 cycles FOLFIRI
LUL VATS lobectomy for radio resistant met 7/7/23