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Lynda01's avatar
Lynda01
Member
9 years ago

Survived AC but swollen feet ahead of Taxol

My darling mum has survived her four rounds of AC and is now moving onto 12 weekly doses of taxol on Wednesday.  It's been tough as she developed deep vein thrombosis and is now injecting herself twice a day with Clexaine which as causes big inflamed nodules in her stomach. Unfortunately she has developed swelling in her feet and ankles in the last few days I'm wondering if this is common with chemo. Her taste has been severely affected along with the having terrible indigestion which is being treated without much luck. She's such a fighter and amazes me morewith every single day. What can I expect from the Taxol - I'm praying it's easier!!! Happy New Year to all you wonderful women and families on this challenging journey - may it be a wonderful year ahead for all of us! 

7 Replies

  • Oh forgot to mention the indigesion uuugh yes relentless!!! Nexium!!! Nexium!!! is the best thing! x
  • @Lynda01 I didnt do AC I did FEC but I think they are both nasty! I did 8 rounds of Taxol, and it is different as it is weekly and not as higher dose as the 3 weekly regime. Losing your taste was huge with Chemo, but it resolves itself!!! afterward. I didnt swell, apart from put on 6kg that after a year have not been able to shift!!! I too was told Taxol would be easier, whilst I wasnt as severely sick with it, I suffered, muscle, nerve and bone pain which is common and unfortunately relentless, Id have one good day after infusion and then 3rd day it would hit and Id just get over it by the time it was my next, so I found it a little tough, I also developed a rash on my hand like itchy hives, unsightly but this all resolves once you are finished. Its very doable though. Just focus one week at a time, not the whole thing. Youre a wonderful daughter!!! xo Melinda 
  •  Lynda01, Wonderful to hear your mum has completed her AC and is now onto the next stage of treatment. Happy New Year to you both, wishing you both the best for this next round. Xx Cath
  • I continued with heartburn on taxol but less of an issue initially than AC. I needed nexium twice daily and occasional zantac. Certainly my constipation issues resolved. Do let the chemo team know about swollen feet asap. Taste changes continued on taxol and by the latter half I couldn't tolerate spicy foods. I craved salt on AC but that can cause fluid retention,  so did try to reduce by taxol and it improved. I'm sure she will find it easier,  at least at the beginning.
  • My daughter had swollen ankles after AC and thankfully resolved themselves while she was on Taxol, but check with your doc Nat's wasn't worried but if they got really bad we had to call him..   Nat found Taxol so much better :) her taste  buds started to come back and the heartburn also resoled it self
    Hoping Taxol Is better for your mum too <3  
    Cheers Sue
  • Most people find Taxol easier than AC by comparison but it has its own little nasties. Losing your taste buds is one. I couldn't taste much at all except eggs, avocado, salad and bananas - all mild tastes when the conventional wisdom is that spicy food helps as it's stronger in taste. You can only experiment until you find what's best for the duration. My taste buds recovered virtually as soon as I had finished Taxol. Watch out for tingly feelings in the toes and fingers - Taxol can affect the nerve endings of extremities. If  it occurs, get advice soon on how to minimise the effects. It will get better once Taxol stops but recovery can be a bit slow. Some people get bloody noses - Taxol is hard on soft tissue, eyes can get weary or even temporarily blurry - vaseline or nose oil (from the chemist) will help the nose. Again, nose and eye problems usually stop when the Taxol does.  Counting it down helped me - after 4 sessions you only have 8 to go, 8 is almost 5, 5 is halfway and so forth. You get through it more quickly than you imagine! Best wishes to your mum!