Hi,
I think my right little fingernail is about to fall off!! About half of it has come away from the nail bed.I’ve just had my last Taxotere and I was warned this could happen but I really thought it was an extreme side effect.I’ve just got my nails to a nice length and shape to and they are looking good(even though I say it myself).Now I’m going to have to cut them short again!!
Has this happened to anyone else and if so,how does it feel with no nails?
The thought of it is going right through me!
Alli x
Hi Ali
I am halfway through my taxotere. My nails seem to be getting weak, and are discoloured. They seem to be weaking on one hand more than the other. On my feet, its really weird, as i seem to be able to scrape my nail away on my big toes. I am trying to leave them alone. Spoke to someone at hospital, and she lost some of her toenails, but they were growing back. I think its not such an unusual side effect, maybe take calcium tablets, to help them recover? Hopefully someone can tell you the ins and outs of actually loosing the nails.
A
why dont you but false one for the damaged one rather than cut them off no one will notice shame to get them this far
Hi Allie
Sorry to tell you but mine fell off after taxotere. Lost all bar one which is now looking really weird. I finished tax last October. It didn’t exactly hurt but have plasters ready! The new nailbed will already be growing when they go. The last one went about a month ago (right big toenail) and I didn’t even notice! Picked it up in the kitchen. They do grow back but very weak in my case. Get to look half way reasonable and then just flake. Chemo has a very wicked sense of humour. But kills fast growing cells. So must be worth it?
Good luck my love
Dilys
xxx
Hi DilysP,
Oh it’s really freaking me out just the thought of it!
How do your fingers feel when the nail falls off?Is it soft underneath and can you still do things with your hands?
Alli x
Hi
Ihad my last Taxotere in March.My finger nails are ridged and peel away.My toe nails first went yellowy and last week I have pulled 5 of them away quite easily. Not nice Itell you
Take Care
Mary
xx
Hi Alli
I lost my nails about half way down they didn’t fall off completely. It does feel a bit weird but not totally freaky. I had my last TAX in Nov last year and my toe nails started to fall off about 6 weeks ago which was a bit heart breaking cos I thought I was geting over everything. The finger nails are now completely back to normal and I have had them done for the first time which was a right treat.
Its a horrid side effect on top of all the other horrid side effects, why does such a female desease have to rob us of all our female traits.
AJxxx
As I’ve just commented on the 28th April chemo thread - it can also rob us of undesirable male traits as well. I’ve been rather pleased to say ‘au revoir’ to decades of unwanted facial hair - not that it compensates for other losses, but it gives me a bit of a laugh.
M-L xx
Hi Allie
It is ok really. I thought I had lost my texting nail (which I did) but could still do most things. They are still rubbish now but in the great scheme of things it could be worse. When they come off there is still a nailbed underneath. I just went around armed with plasters all the time. No telling when they will go.
It will be ok in the end my love.
Take good care
Dilys
xxxx
Hi All
Just thought would add my experience. Although non of my nails fell off, they did go all rippled and split right at the fingernail part and looked awful, like I had chewed them til I could do it no more. I finished taxotere and FEC in November 07. Since March I have had Gel false finger nails and they look superb and today I had them all removed and my nails underneath looked really good surprisingly no ripples or anything and had grown really long. I still had my false ones put on again, but next time gonna go back to “au naturel” and see how it goes.
So for me the falsies were the best option and boy did it make me feel better and my hands look great!!!
Take care all
Love
Dawn
xxx
Hi, I finished Taxotere in November 07, and I had 4 horizontal ridges on every fingernail…my Onc told me it was one ridge per Tax dose. As each ridge grew up to the tip of my finger, a bit of nail peeled off. I never lost any fingernails completely, but they looked discoloured and awful, all are (nearly) OK now.
I have lost one big toenail and the other looks dodgy! Toenails take a lot longer to grow than fingernails!
xxx
Hi all
thanks for this thread
I am about to have Tax 2 of 4 (on Monday) and thought that as my nails seemed completely normal that I had missed that particular side effect. But it seems from reading these that it even if if all looks normal now it may still all fall out later … I have been warned!
Thanks again
Love FizBix xx
I lost my big toe nails about 6 weeks after last of 4 tax.Followed advice to paint nails with dark polish and apart from ridges and some thickening other nails stayed put and looked ok.Love Valx
Hello all,
I have had 5 out of 6 (or possibly 8) tax and mmy finger nails are awful. I am on my second lot of anti-biotics as I keep getting infections under the nails. I wish that they would just fall off as they are all lifting (which is why they get infected). Does anyone have any suggestions?
Gill
Hi Gill
I am making this up but this is what I’d do … but check with chemist/ doctor first
i have aways been a HUGE fan of TCP - have you tried soaking your hand in it? perhaps if you put them in he water and pressed the nails down onto your fingers then some might get sucked up ???
perhaps a bit of germolene afterwards ? that was always good for nasty spots and you can use it for burns and all sorts
these products have both stood the test of time - a bit smelly but they are very good
also, you ould try ringing a nal salon and ask them what the’d do - they must have to deal with infections - or may be there might be some people complaining on the internet about nail infeactions after false nails ??
don;t foregt to check first
just ideas … good luck and hope it feels better soon
lots of love - FizBix
Thanks FizBiz. Can’t see that TCP or germolen would do any harm - they are just topical rather than something you take. I’ve a friend who does nails so I’ll ask her too.
Gill
Hi Gill,
I cut my little fingernail right down short last night as I didn’t want to catch it on anything.It is now oozing with puss and the tip of my finger is a bit swollen.My friend gave me some colloidal silver,which is supposed to be good for everything so I’ve been dipping my finger in it.
Alli x
Still holding onto fingernail but it’s disgusting and smells like rotten stilton!
Alli x
I was advised by my onc to use dark nail varnish, so I used black and found that, although some of my toe nails lifted slightly, I didn’t actually lose any nails at all.
Lynn
oh I wish I hadn’t succumbed to the temptation to look at this thread…I have one more FEC to go and then onto TAX (x4). I don’t mind the hairloss, eyebrow loss, leg hair and underarm loss and am delighted with the loss of my moustache…but to lose my NAILS?
Och well - like the hair loss, it’s just temporary…a small price to pay…YUCK!
Hope everybody’s nails grow back quickly and we are all soon past this stage in our lives!
Sue xx