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Neurapathy after chemo treatment

Diane11
0 Recommendations

I need to help my sister who has neurapathy after 6 pacia taxel and carbo platin treatments for ovarian cancer. She has not been able to feel her feet since her 4th treatment, which was months ago. Is there anything she can do to help get her feeling back? She has been taking B6 since her 4th treatment on the advice of another cancer survivor. When she asked the Dr. about the B6 - he said, yes it seems to help some. I don't understand why patients are not told what may help from the get go! Anyway my sister is only 58 and is afraid of falling now that she can't feel her feet.

Five years ago I had breast cancer and was treated with lumpectomy, chemo and radiation and now on arimidex - but I've not had side effects like my sister has.

Thanks for listening - Diane

Explore topics in this discussion:

Cancer Tylenol Surgery Colorectal cancer Vertigo Ataxia Ovarian cancer Paraplatin Chemotherapy Thalidomide Peripheral neuropathy Carboplatin Acupuncture Paclitaxel Rectal cancer Docetaxel Taxol Uterine cancer Seizures Breast cancer Taxotere Constipation Weakness Pain Neurontin Lyrica Lung cancer Thalomid

19 replies

kmarienap

i too have neuropathy in my hands and feet also from 6 rounds of paclitaxol and carboplatin. i have stage 3c ovarian cancer and was treated in 2004. neurotin was recommended to me but since i was on a small daily dose of hydrocodone, i decided to stick with that as it works for me. if i don't take this daily or miss a dose i have the same problem with my feet. i was told that sometimes it takes a few years to improve if at all. i wish i could give you some better info. i am always looking up these things and if i find anything i will be sure to pass it along. take care, karen

gloriahouse

I too have neuropathy after cheemo . It got worse after my second round of cheemo so after an extensive discussion with my family doctor we decided to try 75 mg of lyrica three times a day and it helped but was not enough to make it go away so we uped it to 150 mg three times a day. The higher dose was better for control but I did not like the weight gain I was experiencing which is a side effect.So we went back to lower dose which helps me cope but I can still feel it but not exceesively.So if she doesn't mind gaining weight then she should try higher dose.

KathrynSomers

The neuropathy will continue as long as your sister is on chemo, however I have found that some shoes called Crocks help me. They are plastic and have little nobby things in the sole of the shoe that massage your foot while you wear them. They are clunky looking, but they make the condition better. Mine is always worse at night and some times wakes me up, so I wear these shoes in the day and it seems to help. God bless you both as you go through this together. I have a sister supporter too and she is there for me always.

sherib1

Diane, yes I have neurapathy also, hadn't a clue that this would happen. I was diagnosed stage IIA uterine cancer. Rare cell, papillary serous carcinoma, much like ovarian cancer. I had surgery followed by paxtaxal and carboplatin chemo, and internal radiation. My fingertips are affected and also my feet. Numbness in the toes and soles are stiff feeling when flexing my feet. The rotary jets on my hot tub feel good and help some. Massage with lotion also. I have found shoes that confine my toes are impossible,. I found a a ballet type flat with a large round shaped toe sold by Lands End to be comfortable. I have a wide foot, and they are offered in wide widths. Born makes similar styles with this stitch out design. But.... I mostly wear sandals that do not confine my feet. Birkenstocks work, with wool socks in winter in Idaho, and also the best sandal I wear year round has arch support and offers stability also is a sandal made by Chaco. "chacousa.com" These are a sport river type sandal. I have an acreage which I irrigate, I do a lot of walking and find these are the greatest. The 2Z style is what I find most comfortable, has a heel strap and toe strap for stability, all these sandals are made to adjust to your feet, I again buy the wider width a mens sandal, not as pretty as colors offered as the womens but they work for me. I drop the toe strap and wear with socks in winter too. I found a cute western boot recently by Ariat called a FatBaby, also a larger toe box. I had chemo in spring of 2006 and my feet are not better yet, so I have just decided to live with them, I thank God that I am still alive and that I still can walk, even if the feet are not like before. Life is good!
Feel free to contact me if you have questions anyone, just put re: neurapathy in the subject line.
Blessings to all, Sheri

Diane11

Kathryn, Thank you so much for your suggestion!!! I forwarded the e-mail to my sister.
May you be blessed also - these mountains to climb are sometime tough, but with people
like you trying to help people like us - make life easier. Thanks again, may you return to
good health soon!
Diane

jrzgrls

I have had neuropathy during and after chemo treatments for Ovarian Cancer diagnosed in July 2003. I have had two recurrences, and have had 6 rounds of chemo each time. Neurontin was prescribed for my neuropathy too. I took it for a short time, but after research found that it is processed through the kidneys. The kidneys are taxed during chemo, so I want to give them a break while in remission. I have found acupuncture to very effective in treating my neuropathy. I recieve treatment once per week. Many insurance companies now cover acupuncture. I would recommend it to anyone, especially after chemotherapy.

dmiller

My doctor recommended L-Glutamin Powder for my neuropathy. I bought it at GNC for $19.99 for an 8 oz bottle.
It can be mixed with juice. It seems to help quite a bit. Please check with your own doctor before taking this.

Jackie_C

Diane,

I too developed neuropathy after receiving taxotere for breast cancer in 2005. It has been over 2 years since I finished my chemo and I will say my feet are better. I do still have the neuropathy, but haven't experienced the pain some people have with it. I recently went to a podiatrist for another problem and we got to talking about the neuropathy. He suggested that I try metanx. This is a prescription pill that is essentially B12. In the past B12 had to be given in shots, but they have been able to put it in pill form now. It is prescribed for people with diabetic neuropathy. You take it twice a day and it takes 3-6 months to see results. I consulted with my oncologist before starting it and he was fine with it. I do think I have had a little improvement. In the past my feet stay cold during the winter time, but that hasn't been the feeling since chemo until the past month. I have been on the metanx for about 6 weeks and I have been having problems especially at night with cold feet again. Not that I welcome the cold feet, but I do think that it is working. Only time will tell. I visit a couple other discussion boards for breast cancer patients and have not found anyone else who has taken this prescription for neuropathy. Maybe this is something to look into.

Jackie

Lindakaylkw101

Hey, I have colon cancer, was diagnosed August, 2007, only have 2 more treatments to go out of 12.

I have had neuropathy mostly here in the cold weather time now, I wear two pairs of socks, stay out of the cold, including off of the wood or tile floors, I know if sounds unbelievable but tylenol rapid release, 3 of them works for me within 5 minutes, sometimes my hands get to hurting so bad it feels like I put them in a light socket, I immediately put them under warm water also.
I have been feeling tipsy lately, could be neuropathy, just try staying the warmest possible and out of the wind, also keep those hands and feet moisturized with that horse and cow cream with the hoofs on it, udder cream, will keep them from cracking, which will cause more problems, please email me at lkw101@aol.com if you need any other things, I would be happy to help.
Good luck and stay positive, keep eating and drinking and hang in there.

God's Blessings to you
Linda

sqmarianna

I too have neuropathy and I am 9 months out of chemo. Most people I talk to say it can last a long time. Using Lyrica, only the rnds of the fingers and the toes are affected. Several brugs are out there to help - Lyrica, Neurontin, etc. Doctors & nurses seem to think we don't need to know all the side effects.

Marianne - Breast Cancer Survivor

gpawelski

Neurologic complications may result from chemotherapy directed against ovarian cancer. Paclitaxel and docetaxel are novel chemotherapeutic agents that promote polymerization and inhibit depolymerization of microtubules and are commonly used in patients with ovarian cancer. Approximately 60% of patients receiving paclitaxel at a dose of 250 mg/m2 develop paresthesias of the hands and feet. Although in most patients the symptoms do not progress and may improve, this toxicity may be dose-limiting. Arthralgias and myalgias in the legs can develop 2 to 3 days after treatment with these drugs and may last for 2 to 4 days. A distal sensory and sensorimotor neuropathy as well as a neuropathic proximal motor weakness may also complicate treatment with these drugs. One report demonstrates that the neuropathy is axonal in nature. Nerve growth factor prevents paclitaxel neuropathy experimentally and clinical trials are underway with this agent. Paclitaxel has also been associated with a reversible encephalopathy in a small number of reports.

Cis-platinum binds covalently to DNA bases and disrupts the cell cycle in this manner. The drug is effective against ovarian cancer and may be combined with paclitaxel in some protocols. Peripheral neuropathy is the most common neurotoxicity of cis-platinum and is common in doses greater than 400 mg/m2. The neuropathy involves large fiber sensory axons and begins in the toes and feet with progression to more proximal parts of the arms and legs. Proprioceptive loss may produce sensory ataxia and impair gait. Treatment is ineffective after the neuropathy has started although it usually improves if the patient survives the cancer. Lhermitte’s signs may appear during or shortly after treatment with cis-platinum and presumably represents a transient demyelinating lesion in the posterior columns of the spinal cord. Ototoxicity may result from cis-platinum damage of hair cells and is usually subclinical involving the high frequency range. Acute deafness has been reported with high dose cis-platinum. Vestibular toxicity is less common than hearing loss and involves vertigo, oscillopsia and nausea. Rarely seizures, cortical blindness and encephalopathy may follow intravenous cis-platinum.

You may notice symptoms in different areas of your body depending on which groups of nerves are affected. Symptoms in the hands and feet happen when peripheral nerve damage happens and are not rare with vinca alkaloids. The first sign of nerve damage is usually a feeling of tingling and numbness like what you experience when your foot goes to sleep after you've been sitting for a long time in an uncomfortable position. If the problem progresses further, it often produces weakness of the muscles, resulting in loss of strength at the wrist or the ankle. You will notice difficulty in doing up buttons and picking up coins. You may notice that you will tend to trip while walking up stairs or dragging your feet and tend to have a wide-based gait. In severe cases, the weakness may be so severe that you will need a wheelchair.

When the nerves in the bowel are affected, constipation is the earliest sign. In a few people, the abdomen becomes bloated with a distended bowel that is basically paralyzed. Some of the nerves in the head can also be affected. Platinum drugs can affect the auditory nerve and cause loss of hearing and tinnitus(ringing in the ears). Vision can very occasionally be affected.

A lot depends on how quickly your cancer treatment can be stopped. Sometimes the need for treatment is more urgent then the residual nerve damage. Sometimes, the balance between benefit from the drug and the side effect of nerve damage is more finely balanced.

Once treatment has been stopped, recovery is usually slow. It may take months to get even partial improvement and often there will be some residual impairment, either a motor weakness or a sensory numbness or both. Recovery is slower in the feet and legs than in the hands and arms.

There is no specific treatment that enhances nerve recovery. There are no drugs that will directly stimulate nerve regeneration or recovery. If you have severe and prolonged pain, then the pain may require narcotics often combined with antidepressants. In some cases, certain types of anticonvulsants would be helpful. Treatment options are subjects that you should discuss with your doctor, so you have accurate expectations of potential benefits and side effects.

Chemotherapy drugs that can cause neuropathy. NCI lists these as most likely to do so:
Cisplatinum (Platinol)
Carboplatin (Paraplatin)
Vincristine (Oncovin)
Vinblastine (Velban)
Etoposide/VP-16 (VePesid)
Cytarabine (Cytosar, Ara-C)
Hexamethylmelamine (Hexalen)
Suramin
Paclitaxel (Taxol) and Docetaxel (Taxotere)
Other medications reported to contribute to neuropathy include oxaliplatin (Eloxatin), gemcitibine (Gemzar) and thalidomide (Thalomid).

http://survivor-support.rare-cancer.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=78

gloriahouse

Hey there gpawleski.I have enjoyed your writings .You seem to be a wealth of information on chemotherapy and drugs.Are you a doctor or a patient that has become well informed?I would like to come to you foe information hwen I have questions if that is okay? Are you up to date on all the clinical trials?Have you heard of AMG386?That is the one I am currently on along with toxel.They say it isn't a cheemo drug but it fights cancer through the blood supply.Do you know anymore about this ?Again thaks for all the info I have read from your writings to others.

LaGata

Diane,

No two people are exactly alike and no treatments will affect everyone the same. There are drugs on the market now for chemo induced neuropathy and I'm surprised the doctor hasn't recommended something. I wish I could remember the names of the drugs but I'm still suffering from chemobrain effects! LOL!

I have a neuropathy problem in my feet from chemo and was told that most of it would go away after treatment. It didn't. That whatever effets I still have after about a year would probably be permanent. Okay, it's been two years. I guess that means it's permanent.

Do some searches on the web on neuropathy and I'm sure you'll find the drugs recommended for treatment and suggest them to the doctor. He/she should really be more on top of the neuropathy thing than they seem to be. Some doctors just don't realize the severity of the problem.

gpawelski

Gloriahouse

Chemotherapy-induced toxicities are common and serious clinical problems that adversely impact both the quality of life of cancer patients and the ability of patients to continue treatment for their cancer. Very little has been accomplished to prevent or reduce chemotherapy-induced toxicities such as nerve damage, kidney damage, and even hearing impairment.

This wasn't available when my wife had neuropathy, but you may want to check it out. There is a drug, Tavocept, that is aimed at preventing or reducing common and serious side effects, particularly nerve and kidney damage, associated with taxane and platinum drugs.

It is manufactured by BioNumerik Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
www.bionumerik.com/

You may want to look into a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Specialist for neuropathy (like a Pulmonary Specialist is needed for lung cancer patients treated with radiation).

I was a spouse/caregiver to an ovarian cancer patient. I became intensely interested in cancer medicine by virtue of working through, enduring and surviving my wife's illness. My college education and the experience helped me to gather knowledge by virtue of voluminous reading and hundreds of hours of past and "ongoing" personal communication with noted authorities and experts in the field. I still keep in touch with many of them (scientists, surgeons, medical and radiation oncologists).

Diane11

Dear gpawelski,
Thanks you so much for passing on the information you have accumulated. I'm truly sorry for all you went through - but I too find that knowledge is power. I will give my sister the information and again, many thanks!
Sincerely,
Diane

Hawkeye

Dear Diane11:
I am 69 years young, had that combo of chemo
when I , had cancer at the end of "07" and remission
until just this last month and am starting chemo
again.
I had and still do have a little bit of the neuroapathy
in my three middle toes. It was pretty bad for a whle
but as time goes on it gets better. I am not sure
if it will come back worse, I guess time will tell.
I am taking gemezar and platnium now for the
chemo, my ca125 started to rise, that is when my
Dr. did a ctscan and found aome small sites about
3cms in 5 differnt places.
Congratulations on your breast cancer surviving,
and tell your sister to keep her chin up.
I dont know if a little humor would help, but
when my toes were at their worst with being numb,
I was walking down the halway on day and all of a
sudden my big toes disappeared, they had folded
completley under my foot, it did not hurt, I had to
flopp them a couple times tog et them to come back up where they belonged. They did not even
turn black and blue. LOL
Sincerely
A friend I hope.
Hawkeye

Lindakaylkw101

First of all I feel that each person is different, I am a stage 3 colon cancer survivor and the neuropathy unfortunately lasted thru 6 months of chemo and then about 2-3 after that and then IT WENT AWAY. My doctor when the chemo was completed gave me a RX for Neurotin and the the new Lyrica, it helps and massages, etc help also. I am now 1 year from chemo and every once in a while will have some discomfort in the feet, but it onny lasts a short while

Good luck and keep the faith
Linda

quacker

I am on carboplatin and Gemzar for ovarian cancer, and this "formula" has helped my neuropathy a lot.
This is to be taken twice a day every day except the day before, the day of, and the day after chemo. Don't take any antioxidants on those days.

Alpha lipoic acid 200 mgs
Vitamin C 1000 mgs
Fish oil 1000 mgs
CoQ10 100 mgs
Vitamin E 400 units
Selenium 200 mgs

lgdeck

DIane, Sorry your sister is experiencing the neuropathy. I was dx with stage III rectal cancer and just finished my chemo/radiation treatments this past January. The eloxitin that I received for chemo caused my neuropathy. Many folks in my shoes would stop their treatments because of the neuropathy, but when you have the choice between cancer treatment and a temporary numbness in your hands and feet, I go for the cancer treatment. My doctor did cut back on my eloxitin near the end and that did help some.
The numbness in my hands is gone except for the very tips of my fingers. I still experience tingling when they get extremely cold.
My feet on the other hand are still experiencing numbness from my toes to my heels. It feels like my socks are bunched up under my toes, all the time. My toes are like little ice cubes. I have stubbed my toes a couple of times on things and not felt it, my little toe was black and blue, I don't remember hitting it on anything. But, I know it will go away eventually, and it is a minor inconvenience to rid me of those cancer cells.
I hope your sisters neuropathy gets better quickly after she finishes her treatment. In the meantime, have her ask her oncologist if it possible to cut back a little on what ever chemo drug that is causing the problem, without compromising the effectiveness. It does help.

Let's Kick Cancer in the Butt! March is ColoRectal Cancer Awareness Month.
lisa

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