Hi all, I had my 4th FEC yesterday and my WBC and neutrophils levels were just ok. I’m really keen not to delay any treatments( i’ve got 4 x TAX to go) as the timings really fit in well for my little girls First Holy Communion in June and a family wedding in July.
I’m taking Manuka honey 10+ - should I try a higher level?
I’m also trying to keep as normal as possible - doing all the usual running about with 3 children, but should I try to isolate myself more?
Any tips in trying to raise my levels would be really great.
Thanks
I was told by my oncologist that nothing works except GCSF(spelling?) injections, which they gave me (and worked a treat). They are expensive so you may need to push for these.
However I know others on the site believe that more natural remedies will help - I asked my onc who did not agree they would
I also used the honey. whether it worked or not I have no idea. As soon as I went onto tax I was given the GSF injections and they kept my levels fine.Some people also use the Life Mel honey but that is very expensive.
Hi Michele,
I had probs with my first tax so was given an injection think it was called neulasta? Prob just another name for GSF? I also got into juicing mainly brocolli, carrots, apples kiwis don’t know if that made a difference but I was ok for the rest of the tax and had them all on time, don’t know if the juicing helped but it certainly made me feel I was doing something to help myself through the chemo. Wishing you well with the rest of your chemo
Smiler
x
There is very little in the way of raising your levels, the evidence on honey etc is not scientifically proven,
only the G-CSF will bring the levels back up, there are three kind of injections Neupogen, neulasta and Granocyte. The neulasta is longer lasting. I had the neupogen before my 2nd FEC when my neutrophils were 0.5 and they went up to 1.5 in 24hrs. The Neulasta costs £750 per shot the neupogen are less expensive but you may need them for a number of days. xxxTina
First 2 chemos wbc was 0.5, so chemo was delayed. Injections for the next two which gave me terrible bones aches.
Then I went on a liver support type diet, loads of fresh fruit and vege, no salt, no bread 3 litres of water every day, gentle exercise, nuts and seeds, a few supplements, no red meat (organic chicken and eggs). It was pretty full-on but I felt so much better and mentally felt better as I hated the injections
My wbc count was 5.4 and 3.6, and 4.2 for the last three. i.e. with NO injections. As far as I am concerned that is fairly comprehensive evidence that eating well makes a huge difference.
Oncologists LOVE drugs and if there was more emphasis on eating properly and taking personal responsibility then perhaps the NHS wouldn’t be spending so much money (£750.00 on one injection!!!), on drugs that should only be a last resort.
Hi, I am afraid I have to disagree - the NHS wouldn’t have spent £750/injection (and I was having 10 between chemos by the time I finished) if eating vegetables or taking vitamins etc would have helped! I did ask both my oncologist and the nurses more than once if there was anything I could eat/take etc and they all said that nothing else had been proved to work.
PS - I was very health conscious during treatment and aimed for 10 fruit or veg/day, but it didn’t help. Gretchen, you are just lucky that it didn’t wipe out your count in the way it does with some people.
Sarah
Sarah, it was not a go at people who had chosen to have the injection ( I had injections on 2 of my 7 chemos). More it is a go at the NHS which gives very little advice on diet and nutrition and are embroiled in a culture of drugs. Remember when the oncologist prescribes a £750.00 drug, it is not coming out of his pocket.
My wbc was only 0.5 on the first two, then I had injections for the next two and then I undertook a very strict diet regime, which was hard work and difficult. My wbc went to 5.4. I didn’t just eat a few more vegs!
My wbc count went from 0.5 to 5.4 by changing my diet! I was not ‘one of the lucky ones’ as I was a fit and healthly 36 year old when I had my first two chemos and yet my wbc was only 0.5.
If you note the medical team said there was ‘nothing had been proven to work’, not that nothing would work. They probably think that people want some other kind of magic pill or supplement, they do not have the time or often knowledge to educate all paitents on just how many changes need to be made.
My oncologist was very against me not having the injections and I loved the look on her face when she saw my 5.4wbc!
I got a lot of info from canceractive.com. If anyone reading this wants to take control and not just keep pumping themselves with even more drugs to combat the se of the chemo, then cancer active is a great place to start.
I am sorry but I don’t think that people who take the advice of doctors are failing to ‘take control’.
…and those who write anti- cancer diet books and sell honey make an awful lot of money. It really is not a question of one method being in some way more wholesome or better than another. If it get’s you through it, do whatever it takes!
Sarah
The injections wiped me out and gave me crippling bone pain.
I run my own business and had some really big contracts in April that I had to be well for or I would have been bankrupt.
Listening to only the doctors advice would have ruined me both emotionally and financially.
I took control of my own life and feel much better for it. I was never on a an anti-cancer diet, it was a surviving chemo diet.
I have not put on weight, I am not depressed, I feel so much better for it and survived chemo with my pride intact. Some people get through chemo with few SE, but reading on the forum, LOTS of women suffer badly with SE and there is very little information on how lifestyle changes can make such a significant difference.
I had low counts even with the injections and they have now been upped from 5 days to 7 days.
I was neutrophenic and in hospital with counts of 0.3, a week later (no more injections in that cycle) they had risen to 2.6 which meant my chemo not delayed. I did it by healthy eating and on advice from BCN a glass of red wine (only one) the day before. I really think that helped and it made me feel good too.
This cycle I will have the 7 injections and see how i go, but i still will eat healthly and have that nice glass of red wine!!
Hi,
on our buddy site we discussed this many times and our lovely Angie’s Mum who was trained in the natural way of doing things said to eat mushrooms and nuts to help your neuts. I don’t like mushrooms but ate huge amounts of meat, walnuts and loads of eggs to keep my protein levels up (to repair cells).I did not use the honey but rested a lot and gave up work completely. Not sure if anything I did helped but my counts including Hb were always really good and often told they were good enough for a person off the street. Not sure if you can change neuts but adding things to your diet is not difficult and maybe just thinking you are doing something to help them gives you some sort of boost.
Good luck and keep battling
Lily x
Hi
Thanks for all your comments, i’ll try some of the diet tips, definitely the glass of red wine the night before! as the injections won’t be an option for me until the levels fall below them able to give me chemo and i really don’t want to delay any cycles if I can.
Only just seen this post. I was on epi/cmf 4 years ago.
I juiced fruit and veg every morning, and took a co q10 supplement between chemos.
I was in danger of my bloods being too low at one time and happened to mention it to my doctor. He told me a lady he knew swore by a guiness/mackeson each night and she never missed her chemo. I went straight from the doctors to the off licence!
Whether it worked or not i dont know, but i never needed any treatment. Worth a try?
Good luck
Funny you mention stout. During the birth of my son, I lost quite a lot of blood and nearly passed out when I got out of bed, whilst in hospital. One of the nurses suggested my husband should bring me in son Guinness/Brown Ale or something similar.
may I just add one thing that I don’t think has been mentioned yet…weight bearing exercise. If you’re up to it walking a little, or as much as you can, as often as you can is thought to help. Once again nothing proven of course. I managed to do the last 4 taxols on a two weekly regime without having to have neulasta injections which disagreed with me and in spite of the time of year (Late September to November) and the swine flu worries. I have dogs to walk so it came “easy”.
Of course keeping away from crowded places so as not to catch bugs also helps!
Hi, Guinness/Brown Ale/Stout, is full of iron, and was always recommended for anaemia, low red blood cell count. so not sure this would help, think as Lee mentions excercises is very good. I also have two dogs…perhaps we all should get a couple of dogs…a new treatment!! or perhaps just a nice walk will do!
Sandra
Like Lee, I really agree with exercise too. Although it does get difficult as fatigue sets in. Long walks in the fresh air is best.
Can’t say I think stout is a good idea - it may have some iron in it but it also has alcohol which lowers immunity and is tough on the liver - as is the yeast in the stout too. Personally I think it is a bit of an old-wives tale!