VERY FATIGUED FROM ALIMTA

• By cards7up
• Posted November 1, 2009 at 6:47 pm
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Hi Janet, when are they going to check your blood counts? Are you taking folic acid and B12? These are stated on the Alimta site and usually recommended for chemo tx. Low blood counts can cause fatigue, so you should call your doctor and get them checked. Good luck and take care, JC

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• By jh2467
• Posted November 1, 2009 at 6:56 pm
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Thank you. I am on folic acid and had a vit B12 shot. I see the doctor next week for blood tests.

Janet

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• By cards7up
• Posted November 1, 2009 at 7:03 pm
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Might just want to call tomorrow and ask. Take care, JC

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• By britt1
• Posted November 1, 2009 at 8:42 pm
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Hi Janet,

My dad is on round 3 of Alimta. Each round he gets seems to take a bigger toll on him. He's very fatigued, nothing tastes good to him, and he has had some pretty serious bouts with shortness of breath. My dad has taken steriods for the SOB, and that seems to have helped. (I don't know if that would help you or not.) He has one more round to look forward to before his PET scan. Once we get that in December, we'll know if he's going to continue on Alimta or not.

On the bright side of Alimta -- his tumor is shrinking dramatically and so far there is no metastasis. So it appears to be working, which makes all the nasty side effects worth putting up with!

Take care and I hope you feel better soon,

Brittiany

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• By dsh65
• Posted November 1, 2009 at 9:48 pm
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Hi Janet....my husband has had Alimta as part of his combo drugs for two treatments now. We have found somewhat of a pattern. He doesn't get energy or start feeling half way decent until the 9th or 10th day. He does take one gram of folic acid every morning and has had one B12 injection. Onc said B12 at least every 9 weeks. I hope you feel better soon. Hang on, it will get better!

Donna

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• By kitty50
• Posted November 2, 2009 at 7:54 am
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Hi, my husband had his last Alimta treatment Sep. 30th. He took folic acid, got B-12 , and his blood counts have been quite good. He is now on Avastin only, but the fatigue from Alimta is still keeping him down. It's still pretty bad. I hope you do better than he has been!

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• By 71133
• Posted November 2, 2009 at 7:56 am
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Hey Janet,
My husband (NSCL IV since 2008) just had his third round of Alimta. We are waiting for his PET to see if it's our "drug of choice" for now. He really had it rough the first two round and the fatigue was really great...no appetite but we must have done something right because he's off to work - on time I might add after having treatment Thursday. Our routine this time is... Acuputure on Tuesday afternoon, massage on Wednesay evening... Chemo on Thursday... Acupture on Friday morning. He was taking 1/2 to 1/4 Adivan for the nausa but he's had a lot of Anxity with starting back again with chemo. He got sick when we entered the chemo room before he even received the chemo. Every one at the OC keeps telling us that non of their other patients have experienced these side effects. It was supposed to be "Chemo Light" - so much for that. Anyway if at all possible try Acuputure!
MAG

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• By brucesun
• Posted November 2, 2009 at 10:11 am
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Is he on only Alimta? My husband is on Alimta and Avastin, 1 treatment so far, next one is next week and then a scan following week. He has not had too many side affects from either and we are hopeful that the A/A are having a positive affect .... is your dad on Avastin also?

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• By brucesun
• Posted November 2, 2009 at 10:13 am
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Did he take Avastin with the Alimta and drop the Alimta, or just start Avastin after Alimta? My husband has had one treatment of both... just curious of any other side affects. He is doing okay so far with just some fatigue and mouth irritation.

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• By britt1
• Posted November 2, 2009 at 10:35 am
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Yes, my dad is on Alimta only. He completed concurrent radiation with cisplatin/etoposide in August and is doing the Alimta until he has his 1st PET scan in December. He has had 2 ct scans and a chest x-ray since August, and that's how we know the tumor is shrinking. My dad has never had Avastin.

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• By casepres
• Posted November 2, 2009 at 11:18 am
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My husband just finished his 13th treatment with Alimta. The first 10 also had Avastin (this was after 6 courses of avastin, carboplatin, and taxol). His doctor his taken him off most of his other medications--steroids, antidepressents, blood pressure. He experienced fatigue the second, third and fourth day after treatment each time . . . and it appears that the fatigue is lasting longer with less intensity . . . moving into the fifth, sixth, and even seventh day the last two treatments. The plan is to stay on Alimta until he can't tolerate the side effects or the cancer is no longer contained. He has experienced only minimal growth/thickening of the pleural fluid and the cancer has not spread outside the lung lining since he was diagnosed at Stage 3B in July 2008.

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