Weakness from radiation

[Guest]

Hi all, wondering if anyone can give me any information from your experiences with radiation. My mother in law has just recently (4 days ago) finished 11 whole head radiation for mets to the brain. She has now fallen 3 times and can't pull herself back up once she falls because she is too weak. My husband and I have to lift her underneath her arms to stand her back up. She was on Carboplatium/Taxol for 1 round then switched to Gemzar for 2 rounds, the tumors started growing again in her brain, so we did the radiation, and now the onc is saying that we should start her back on Gemzar when she has rested for 2 weeks. We are very concerned and insisted that a whole body CT scan be done before starting chemo again so that we can see what is going on. She has had problems getting in and out of the car before she ever started radiation, and now it's gotten so much worse, she can barely make it up the stairs to go to bed now. She is 72 years old and very very fraile, we are just wondering how much longer her onc will pump her full of drugs even though she can't hardly make it to the dr. office. Does this sound right to anyone?? Please respond if you have any advice at all. She really likes her onc and would be mad if we tried to switch this far into the game, she won't hear of us taking her somewhere else.

[Ry]

Well from reading this board for so long now, it seems that a lot of the older people are given a break from chemo and treatment to regroup and get their strength back. It sure does seem like she could use a rest. Also, some of her problem may be due to dehydration, especially the stumbling. We've had several members end up in the hospital from dehydration. Try pushing fluids and see if it makes a difference.

[Cindy RN]

I can not imagine being her age and going thru all of this. I am 46 and after the radiation last spring I was so weak. It can do that. I can now get up off the floor again.