Fatigue after 4th triplet

[Jennedy]

Hi all, 

I got my 4th round of the triplet last Friday. This one really kicked my butt! They gave me a reduced dose because I am anemic... hematocrit(26.9), hemoglobin (8.8) , platelets (117), RBC (2.82). I am keeping hydrated, nibbling throughout the day and trying to make sure I get protein.

Any ideas? Even putting my dirty dish in the dishwasher is too much.

Thanks

Jenny

[LexieCat]

Hi, Jen,

In my experience, the fatigue is something you just gotta wait out. Rest, sleep, try to get a little food in you. 

If you're still wiped out in a couple of days I'd let the doctor know. Or even sooner--I think it never hurts to err on the side of communicating sooner rather than later.

Hope you're feeling better soon!

[Jennedy]

Thanks @LexieCat. I decided if it doesn't improve tomorrow, I'll give them a call on Friday morning. 

[LexieCat]

Good idea. I always try to make any calls before the weekend because things become exponentially more complicated trying to get anything resolved on a weekend.

 

[BridgetO]

When my hemoglobin got low like  yours, I got a transfusion of packed red blood cells and by the next day my energy was mostly back. This was after docetaxel and carboplatin for a prior non-lung cancer. I don't know if it would work for you, but it might  be worth asking.

[Jennedy]

Thanks @BridgetO. the doc mentioned iron infusion but not red blood cells. I'll mention it if I'm not feeling better tomorrow.

[Jesse L.]

By all means don't wait until it will be tough to get a reply because of the weekend. It never fails that  everything has gone south with me always happened on Friday night and then I suffer for two days before I can get a hold of anyone on my team. Belive me when I tell you that can be tough and even dangerous in some cases. 

Don't suffer...call if you are concerned...if you need anything that's what they're there for. 

[Deb W]

Hi Jen -  Ooooh...I'm sorry that's happening to you.  I understand.  I remember it very clearly.  It's  sort of  a slow climb to a normal hemoglobin, but you will get there. This is your last dose of the triplet then, right? Red meat also helps (unless you're a vegetarian of course).  Hydration, rest.  I didn't take anything for it, but nothing was offered to me or I would have gladly taken it!

[Jennedy]

@Deb W I am not a vegetarian. I have been eating some red meat. I might need to kick it up a notch. A friend did bring spinach salad. That might be lunch. 

This was my last dose of the triplet. Not feeling much better today. 

[Jesse L.]

Believe me I know it seems really rough now, but you will recover. For me it's day 2 through day 7 for sure after infusion day and day 8 gets better and then by day 9 I'm back to 96 percent of my old self. I'll say this though, those days are rough!! Very touchy stomach (lots of crackers, very careful eating, NO spicy foods, etc.) and extremely run down. Normally I'll walk four miles a day every day I can. I tried to do that during that time and after two miles I was barely able to crawl back up the driveway to my house (I live in the country). I thought I was going to die on the road, roll into the ditch, and the only way they'd find me is to look for the well fed turkey vultures knawing on me in the ditch (and yes we do have those where I live constantly soaring looking for the next dead meal on the side of the road)!!!

And to think I only have three more infusions left... One good thing is you're done for now!!!  

[Jennedy]

I sent a message via the portal. We'll see what they say.

This is so much worse than past treatments.

[KM_NRP]

My oncology team kept saying to me ......."IF ....x,y,z... We want to know about it."  Gonna make them a sign that says "We want to know about it".  I know often we feel like, I don't want to bother them or add more to their plate, but definitely sounds like you need to make a call.  Don't wait on the portal unless they are very responsive to it.  Like others said, the weekend is approaching.  Don't wait until the afternoon to contact them.   You always have the ER if needed, but that are very generalized. 

 

I hope you start to get on the mending path.  Stinks when you don't feel good. Hang in there!

[Jennedy]

Thanks all. I had blood work and a chest xray this morning. They said my numbers were improving and Xray looked good. I was offered steroids but turned those down. I guess another day or two of binge watching The Crown and online shopping. 

[Jesse L.]

Hey...it gets better...believe me. For now just take it easy and before you know it you won't have any excuses to do so. I wouldn't take any steroids either...for that matter I don't take any drugs unless absolutely directed to do so. Your body will recover!

[LexieCat]

Hey, retail therapy is always a good thing. Enjoy--and The Crown is a great escape. So glad you're doing OK--and glad you checked so your mind can be at ease.

[LouT]

The low Hemoglobin is a real drain, especially once it drops below 10.  Perhaps you can discuss this with your doctor and get some tips to more quickly recover next time; or perhaps they could intervene.  I may have missed this, but do they have you taking a "slow-iron" supplement at treatment time?  My wife suffers from AVM's (arterio-veinous malformations) and can often drop down as low as 8.  But the supplements are really helpful in getting her levels back up and holding them there.

See what you can find out and what can help you recover more quickly in the future.

Lou

[BridgetO]

My chemo anemia was a strange experience. My hemoglobin decreased during my chemo and continued to drop after thechemo was over. When it got pretty low, I think around 10,  I started craving red meat. One day I said to my Wife, "can we go get a hamburger?' Seh nearly fell over from surprise. In the years she had known me, she'd never seen me eat a burger. I rarely eat red meat, maybe two or three times a year, when I crave prime rib or steak. For a couple of weeks I wanted red meat daily and I ate it. But my hemoglobin continued to go down anyway. My body seemed to know I needed iron, but apparently I coudn.t assiimilate it  or not fast enough. Thr day after my red blood celll  transfusion, not only did I have my energy back but hambuger sounded terrible to me!

[Jennedy]

I have been on the slow iron supplements for years. So my body must tend toward issues with iron. I get my Zometa infusion next Friday. I'll ask about checking it again. Maybe they'll give me the "rusty nail" infusion too. I got some iron supplement early in my treatment. I looked at the IV and that there was blood in the line. Hence, rusty nails.

[Judy M2]

I was also anemic after chemo. I think I received one awful IV iron treatment in the hospital when I was recovering from abdominal surgery. Long story short, I eventually got back to normal but did eat more red meat than usual to get there.