I had my 2nd FEC last Thursday and started vomiting about 3 hours after I got home. Out of hours GP came out to give me an injection of cyclizine Thursday night but I was vomiting again by morning. By Sunday I couldn’t keep even a sip of water down, was dry retching and very dehydrated, and had to spend 6 hours in A and E having my arm bruised repeatedly as several doctors and nurses dug around trying to find a vein. Eventually a senior doctor managed to find a vein deep in my arm, it was that or put an IV line in my foot. I had cyclizine and fluids by IV.
I was then admitted onto a medical assssment ward (mixed men and women) bu refused to stay overnight because they put a detoxing alcoholic man in the next bed bit one, he was temporarily sedated with Diazepam but had been in the next cubicle to me when I was in A and E and I had seen/heard him violently struggling and being restrained for over two hours, I just couldn’t have slept as I was so frightened of what would happen when he woke up.
I had Dexamethasone and Ondansentron injected at the time of chemo and some more in tablet form to bring home, also Metaclopramide and Omeprazole, but couldn’t keep any of them down.
I wasn’t sick after the IV fluids and cyclizine injections I had in the hospital on Sunday, just felt queasy Mon and Tue.
I have neve felt so ill and am so terrified of going back for my 3rd FEC that I am considering giving up.
Phoned my BCN Monday and am waiting for her to call me back.
Does anyone have any ideas as I am desperate.
I really feel for you Irina. I had horrendous vomiting with FEC, the only thing that helped and maybe you could ask about it. They gave me suppositories for the anti sickness as i couldnt swallow anything. If i looked at the packet on my bedside table i puked! i am sure you are the same. I am in France but surely they must have the same meds in the UK. Just ask if they have suppositories instead- alot better honestly.
Thanks, I was going to ask about that, I am the same, have to psych myself up for ages to reach for the tablet and then force myself to swallow it. Even imagnining the smell of Ondansetron makes me feel nauseous, leave alone eating one. Do you know what drug the suppositories were?
Irina, I’m so sorry you’ve had such a horrendous experience! Do you think it’s the Ondansetron that made you so sick or an overal adverse reaction to the FEC? I know I was fine until I took Ondansetron and that made me really sick. Each time I took the tablet afterwards it’d make me feel vile. My second cycle of FEC was postponed last week due to low wbc/neutrophils but I’m hoping to go ahead with it tomorrow, so hope I’m not sick again.
I’ve been having acupuncture as a way of combating the nausea and vomiting. Worth looking into, perhaps, for you?
Do hope you find an answer, would hate for you to go through this again.
Cat xx
Thanks Cat, I am seeing my GP on Tue and he does acupuncture so perhaps he will suggest it. Where did they put the needles? My daughter says Ondansentron smells “horrible, like old fashioned sweets or when they first invented medicines.” Good luck for tomorrow, hope it goes ahead xx
Acupuncture needles can go anywhere - legs, toes, tum, face, ears, arms, hands. The only place I can’t have them is in my arm because I had an axillary clearance. They don’t hurt and can actually feel really nice. We also use moxa sticks, sometimes adding them to the needles, and we have one at home that my husband can use to help me relax at night.
Irina - i am sorry i cant remember as i finished chemo getting on for 3 years ago but will never forget that bloody auwful feeling looking at the bedside table.
I was so bad that i would get home from the session and walk in the house and straight up to the bedroom. I would have got everything prepared before going for it, water, clean glass and all the pills etc etc and of course the bucket and a loo roll. I would throw my clothes onto the chair and dive into the bed and wait for the first pukey session to start. It was usually with about an hour. If i glanced over at the chair with my ‘chemo clothes’ on i would start to puke which i know sounds very dramatic but thats how it was. The suppositories were a big help - i wont say they were perfect but they helped alot. I hope they can give you some.
I am definitely going to ask for the suppositories. I think the next worst thing to being sick is being on my own or with my little girl - she shouldn’t have to see me so ill, but then again I’m scared of being totally on my own as I was with FEC#1 because there’s no one to answer the door to the doctor if I can’t get out of bed.
Did you take your tablets that you brought home at the right time? After my 1st fec, I took the wrong tablet at the wrong time and was very VERY ill. Didn’t go to A&E that time though had to on a couple of other ocasions.
I sympathise with you re the violent patient, that must have been terrible. On one of my admissions for high temp and low white blood count, they put me in a ward of 5. 2 people had hacking coughs, and the patient next to me had 2 very poorly visitors, both with heavy colds! Each patient had at least 5 visitors so the small ward was packed and hot for a 3 hr visit too! I couldn’t wait to get to my ‘safe’ germ free home.
Hope you get sorted soon.
Irene
hi Irina. I was sick after FEC1. Had dose 2 yesterday and was advised to use domperidone suppositories starting as soon as I got home. They certainly did the trick for me yesterday. I am taking metaclopramide tablets ‘in case’ for the rest of the week. Do ask for the suppositories.
Hi Irina
I was very sick after my first FEC but for my second they tried me on a different anti sickness drug which helped loads and I was only sick once. The drug they gave me was called Levomeprmazine. I only took 1/2 a tablet and slept for 18 hours but it certainly helped the sickness! I was really down after FEC one especially as I got admitted with a throat infection when I was neutropenic - found it very upsetting being away from my young kids. but only a week after fec 2 I feel great and people keep telling me I look great (must be the wig!) I think the NHS must be overrun with alcoholics - when I got admitted the girl in the next bed was an alcoholic who had just attempted suicide! I was lucky and got moved straight away to a single room due to the risk of infection.
Keep on at them to sort your drugs out (my chemo nurses are great and have been really helpful) I really hope you feel better soon and don’t give up I am at the same stage of treatment as you and there are days when it feels everlasting but it will soon be over.
Irina - I so feel for you. I was like that 2 hours after my first Fec -so much so I was admitted to the hospital. In the end, i was given 5 different types of anti-sickness drugs (in fact all that they had) and had to take all of them essentially at the same times- I will try and hunt out my prescrip form to see what exactly I had. I had to start taking steroids the night before my FEC.
The drugs only kept the vomiting at bay, I was nasueos the whole time - in fact the only other thing that helped was eating “hangover” food - very heavy stodgy food. Such as toasted cheese sandwiches, bacon & eggs etc - so different to my normal eating habits. But it seemed to work.
will post back once i find the drug list.
Hi Irina
I am sorry to hear that you are feeling so rough. I have asked one of our nurses about your symptoms and she advises telling your doctors next time you go for the chemotherapy as they can adjust the dose of your medications and alter the type of anti-sickness drugs you are given (for example including suppositories). Some hospitals are also able to offer other strategies for coping with treatment side effects, such as relaxation exercises prior to having the drugs administered.
I hope this helps
Best wishes
Ann
Hi Irina - I had a similar response to FEC the first time. It improved when the doctors prescribed Lorazepam, a sedative with anti-sickness properties, and good for anticipatory nausea, which seems to be what you’ve described. I used to feel sick just walking through the door of the chemo unit. I took Lorazepam before I set out for chemo. I also found Domperidone suppositories helpful, had one as soon as I got home. This was on top of the dex, ondansetron and other oral anti-emetics.
Do let them know about your experience. I didn’t bother at first because I thought I’d just been sent home to be sick. Felt a proper charlie when I realised that it didn’t have to be that way.
All the best for the rest of the course
My vomiting/nausea was so bad with FEC (lost 2 stone) that the onc swapped me to Taxotere. I am on a strict regimen of steroids and lorazepam for 3 days. He tells me that ordnasetron is good for 48 hours but should then be replaced by domperidone.
Buccastem are every handy for mild nausea and domperidone suppositiores are invaluabale.
Lactulose is essential for constipation caused by ordanestron.
Don’t let them fob you off with this - there is no need for us to suffer this way. There are plenty of options out there.
Goof luck.xxxxx
Hi Irina
Sorry to hear about your sickness. Like you I was very sick through bouts 2 and 3 of FEC and started vomiting within an hour of getting home and for the next two days. However I discussed it with my oncologist and the nurses and after changing the anti-sickness tablets I was fine after round 4. Although I felt sick and felt ill throughout the treatment I wasn’t actually sick.
You shouldn’t have to suffer like this as others on here have said. I now take Emend an hour before chemo and one tablet a day for the next two days plus I also have dex, omazaprole and domperidone which all help.
Good luck with your next treatment
i was really ill through my chemo .its the fec i think thats makes people mre ill .i was admitted to hospital as was near collapse and my son asked the doc to call whose surgery is just over the road and they wernt interested told me to get in a taxi !! well the ambulance man that came was really wooried and we blue lighted it to hossy .i was put on an imediate drip and stablised within 6 hours .i ended up with suppositries as well ,which did help but took oral tranquilesers that they recommended .do hope you get this sorted out quickly . i actually found that when i was given taxotere i was even worse with the side effects ,and wished i was back on the fec !! lynnx
Oh you poor girl Irina, I felt very sick after my first FEC but fortunately wasn’t just kept feeling like it for days. My oncologist changed my meds to Emend capsules I take one 125 mg prior to the chemo and then one 80mg for 2 days afterwards.
I then had a terrible 4th FEC with the bowl on my lap for hours wont go any further on that and the hospital advised taking my back up tablet being cyclizine 50mg
My oncologist then advised me to take the back up table on going to bed the day I have chemo and then as many days after that it is needed as it would kick in before the other tablet wore off. This did the trick not saying that it will work for you but you could ask about the Emend capsules? Hope this may give you a bit more info and help. Although the suppositories sound very effective as they are straight into the system. Good luck.
Bev
Thanks everyone, it is so good to hear that others have been given alternative treatments which worked, I have never heard of Emend but am going to Google it. I am seeing my onc just befre I have my chemotherapy on 13th Nov (barring low neutrophils) and will ask him for different tablets.
I told my chemo nurse about how nauseous Ondansetron made me feel, Irina, so she didn’t bother to give it to me this time. I just have Metaclopramide and apart from being a bit sick once last night I’ve so far been OK (touch wood, fingers crossed, etc.). Definitely ask for something different if the drugs are making you this ill.
Cxx