debbie412 Posted July 9, 2003 Share Posted July 9, 2003 my mom and i met with the dr today. she has to go back on chemo. it has been 5 months since chemo and 2 months since radiation. her tumor grew from 4.2cm to 6.4cm and there is a noted possible cyst?? on her liver. she had her first treatment of etoposide today. the dr. said it should not make her nautious or be anywhere near as harsh as the cis-platin and cpt11 she had first. (she had 8 cycles) her new treatment will be 3 times a week every 3 weeks. does anyone know about this or how effective it is after already having 8 cycles of cis-platin and cpt11? thanx again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna G Posted July 9, 2003 Share Posted July 9, 2003 I took this with cisplatin. My hair fell out ( not a big suprise) . During my second round of it after I had surgery I developed neuropathy esp. in my feet. Other than those and instant menopause I did not have any other problems. So far after 51/2 yrs no return, I had NSCLC. I would go to http://www.chemocare.com/splash/splash.sps and read up on it to check out things to look for. Hope that is some help Donna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy RN Posted July 9, 2003 Share Posted July 9, 2003 I get that same one but also the carboplatin, 3 days straight then the rest of the month off. The carboplatin is not nearly as rough as the cisplatin. I ended up with the neuropathy in both feet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jonathan Posted July 10, 2003 Share Posted July 10, 2003 Hi, It is probably because your mom has already had cisplain with the CPT-11 and oncologists usually do not repeat drugs, but there are some exceptions to that rule. Etoposide is a very effective agent against SCLC, and is not an in appropriate chioce for therapy. However, my concern is that the most aggressive and most effective way of treating SCLC is via combination chemotherapy (combining two drugs simulatneously - like the CPT-11 and cisplatin your mom had.) So I would ask about combining the etoposide with another drug to maximize the effects of the tumor shrinkage. You may go and research this, so you can see for yourself, or call and ask any oncologist about which is best in aggressive treatment of SCLC, combination chemotherapy or the use of a single agent. If I were you, I would just for the sake of it ask the oncologist about combining the etoposide with taxol, or cytoxin - these are two other potent agents used in SCLC. Either way, etoposide is a good choice for therapy, but from my research, combination chemotherapy works best in small cell lung cancer. Best wishes for renewed health! Jonathan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy RN Posted July 11, 2003 Share Posted July 11, 2003 I agree with Jonathon. A similar drug to the cisplatin is the carboplatin but not with such toxic side effects. I can not hurt to ask if this could be added. Good Luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debbie412 Posted July 11, 2003 Author Share Posted July 11, 2003 thank you for all your replies. the reason why the dr is only giving etoposide is because she just finished cis-platin and cpt-11 5 months ago. he says this is borderline time to be off and on. this is a maintenance type of treatment. he cannot give a combination chemo unless a patient has been off chemo for a certain amount of time. i am just realizing that this is just a maintenance chemo and not a real fight to try and kill the whole tumor. this is to keep her out of pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kay Posted July 18, 2003 Share Posted July 18, 2003 My Mom was taking etoposide alone this spring. In fact it was a pill form and she took it at home twice a day. She had no side effects other than hair loss. The doctor explained that it would be more effective in combination, but since she had suffered extreme chemo-induced neuropathy a year ago, she has ruled out anymore cisplatin or carboplatin, since that is one of their side effects. After two weeks of the etoposide alone, the tumor stopped growing. Then she did a three week course and it was successful at shrinking the tumor quite a bit. She did another 3-week course, but the tumor began to grow again. Since she was taking it at home, it may have been a low dose, but her white cells did drop and they required blood tests. After about 2 mos., the tumor became stronger than the etoposide and has since collapsed her left lung. Each tumor is different, but the etoposide did initially shrink the cancer and if that is the only option your onc is giving you, I would certainly keep it up. Good luck with the treatment. All things good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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