I am sorry if this seems a daft question but as a rule do people put on weight with chemo? If so is i because of the actual drugs or do the drugs actually increase your appetite ? Melx
I put on 2 stone with chemo, I think it was because I was less active and eating comfort food which was less healthy, not sure if the drugs make you put on the weight though although the steroids you are given probably don’t help.
Tigs x
I put on at least a stone - the steroids make you hungry and I also had a lot of fluid retention with Tax. I think most people do gain weight, unless they are unfortunate and have nausea and can’t manage to eat much.
Sorry - that probably wasn’t the answer you were looking for. x
Same with me… I’ve put on more than a stone 
Like Finty it was a mixture of steroids and water retention, plus I was not very active. I have now returned to work so hopefully I’ll be able to shed some of that weight off. Sorry!!
Hi
I actually lost weight whilst on chemo. I lost around 2 stone overall from diagnosis until treatment end. Like everyone else i was on steriods and felt like eating a lot but I had such a nasty taste in my mouth all the time i completely went off food as I couldnt taste anything! I lived bannanas and custard as I could taste them and I drank coke - I could not stomach any dairy at all, including milk and as for alcholol well yuk yuk, just the smell of it made me sick! We are all different. x
Hi
People seem to say that you put on weight with chemo. I put on weight after diagnosis with comfort eating before the chemo started. I think I put on a little bit / stayed the same with the Fec chemo but have lost half a stone after 2 sessions of docetaxyl. This is because I can’t taste anything and have no appetite for a couple of weeks afterwards. I think everyones different this is just my experience.
Polly x
I’ve put on weight ,gone up a dress size to my digust. Partly through water retention and partly as not active due to breathlessnes and aches and pains ( not to mention it is bloody cold without hair in winter so going out not attractive) don’t think I’ve eaten much more as taste buds naff.
Pat
I haven’t gained anything so far - FEC 3 due 5th April. I’d heard a lot of people did gain & with recently having lost 2st (pre dx) I didn’t want to put it back.
Basically, I’ve just kept to my healthy eating (Slimming world) an making sure I eat free foods if the munchy monster comes a knocking! I only have the day of treatment + 1 day rest before going back to work, so am also keeping reasonably active too.
Chris
I had my last of 6 FECs two weeks ago and have lost about 5 kilos.
This is because I’ve had virtually no appetite and felt no desire to eat.
I haven’t had any nausea but have had indigestion.
Since FEC5 eveything tastes like cardboard and nearly all drinks have a mettalic taste.
Goes to show that no-ne can know how chemo will effet them!
Hi, I haven’t put on any weight yet. I lost about 1 stone after diagnosis, suffered with anxiety and no appetite. I haven’t put any of the lost weight back on yet but I only had my second chemo yesterday. Have had the munchies due to steroids but have been eating dried fruits/seeds/liqourice instead of cakes, sweets and biscuits.
My chemo nurse said that it’s best to maintain weight if you can rather than lose/gain. Supposedly, it is hard to lose any gained weight during herceptin treatment.
Lisa
I was told not to lose weight as dosage was calculated on body weight so it would be thrown out if I lost/gained .I gained about a stone and a half eventually-steroids and inertia!I then broke my leg a year post chemo so gained a bit more!I have now lost 3 stones over a year and feel much better for it 
Hi
I lost weight between dx and start of chemo then stayed steady until my 5th session when i started putting it on, think it was a mix of eating lots of carbs (bread was all I could managed especially the sticky bun variety) and having little excersise and then maybe the steriods. i think if I had realised or even cared at teh time I might have managed to keep weight gain to a stone but have put on 2 stone, I am two years past finishing chemo and ma starting to lose it now.
rx
Wow Horace 3 stone in a year well done go girl!!! how did you do it? i am doing slimming world, but hate the group thing
rhian x
I lost half a stone from diagnosis to first FEC. When I was in hospital on IV fluids I supposedly put on about half a stone in a couple of days. I know I did puff up a bit as my fingers were like sausages, but I reckon a lot of the difference is being weighed on different scales. I’m now the same weight as I was at FEC1 so don’t seem to have put on or lost, but it’s very early days for me too.
Good question though, I was also interested in everyone’s answers.
I lost over a stone specifically whilst I was having chemo - which I know was solely down to eating less. Tax in particular just took away my appetite for at least a week each cycle. I never felt the urge to ‘comfort eat’ during chemo - even though I never felt sick, i just didn’t ‘fancy’ any of my favourite foods- everything tasted so weird. Losing a bit of weight was the ONLY positive thing about having BC.
Hi On FEC I had no appetite for a week , would lose half a stone, then put most back on over next couple of weeks. On Tax my appetite has been less affected, but mouth is so horrible, most things taste either not too good or absolutely foul and drinking makes me feel a bit sick - longing to enjoy a cup of tea or even water. Again I lose a bit and then put most back on. By the end, I’ll probably be 3/4 pounds less than when I started.
Seems we are all different. Try to eat as healthily as you can, but it can be difficult with the taste thing and also if you are a comfort eater - it’s certainly a time for something to comfort you.
Quite a few people get fluid retention on Tax, but that should go when treatment is over.
Good luck.
HI there, I blame the steroids as finty said - I put on a stone of real weight over the year of my treatment- I was heavier but as I got further away from end of Tax the fluid gradually disappeared so I lost the fluid weight - so this past fortnight I’ve been digging the allotment like crazy and walking and swimming - and eating much less, drinking less, …weighed myself this morning .EXACTLY the same weight as I was a fortnight ago…guess this is going to be a long old haul. Nicola
Hi all weight problems seem to follow us around. I admire you ladies who have managed to stay slim and those of you who have lost lots and lots. I have put on 10lb since starting FEC in February and had last one on Wed, doc says its steroids and water retention. But I also know that the only thing to keep the nausea away is eating bread and carbs. Had to go with it as would rather gain a bit of weight than start the sickness, as apparently once you start being sick it is difficult to stop. My concern is when I start Tax on 13th April, as lots of people say they put on weight. I have twelve weekly ones of these. I am determined though not to go clothes shopping for a bigger size, going to make do and squeeze myself into the limited number of items I have. You have gussed - even before DX I had clothes that were too small, clothes too big and a small amount that I was able to wear at the time. In the grand schme of things what is a bit of weight when we are battling this demon!!! Adi x
I lost a lot of weight during treatment, 3 stone. I lost 2 stone while I had 4 x FEC and then another stone by the time I’d finished all the treatment. Mainly this was because I couldn’t eat much at any point during my treatment as I felt so unwell. When I could eat I made sure it was all really healthy stuff and cut out all sweets, crisps, chocolate, fatty foods etc.
I was overweight to start with though. Since finishing all the treatment and starting on tamoxifen my weight is shooting up in spite of the fact I’m eating the healthiest diet I ever have. A bit depressing really…
Hi all-Rhian I used Weight Wathers online backed up by a monthly meeting-it worked for me