Chemo #1 Day 3 - Pain

Day 3 did not go well. First of all, Ma couldn't sleep last night. She didn't fall asleep till 5am. I'm guessing the Decadron she was given before the chemo caused the insomnia.

Second, Ma forgot to take her Zofran (anti-nausea drug). She blames Pa for not remembering, but she really needs to remember it herself instead of relying on Pa. When I asked her this morning, she said she had taken it. She recanted later and said she thought I was talking about another drug. I have no idea what the other drug could be since she's taking only one drug related to her chemo. Anyway, she didn't take her Zofran till 6pm. Thank goodness she didn't get nausea in the meantime.

Third and most troublesome is Ma started having pain in her knee last night. By evening tonight, the pain was severe and required Vicodin. It's not clear to me where the pain is; it might be in her entire lower legs. I asked Ma why she didn't take Vicodin earlier before the pain got bad. She said she was afraid of the nausea Vicodin gives her. I told her that Zofran will take care of her nausea IF she remembers to take it. She said she didn't know that's what the Zofran was for. When I spoke to her at 10pm, the Vicodin was just starting to relieve the pain, and she reported no nausea.

The pain, I believe, is a side effect of the Taxotere. It's supposed to be an uncommon side effect, but I see frequent mention of it on the web. The pain can last 4-5 days, but I hope it's severe for no more than a day. I also hope the pain doesn't get worse with each chemo session. I'll have to ask the oncologist about this. Ma has a follow-up appointment with him on Wednesday. In the meantime, I'm logging every side effect Ma gets so that I can report them to the doctor. Also, a lot of chemo patients see a pattern in their side effects. If this holds true, Ma will be fine on Day 1 and most of Day 2. By the evening of Day 2, she'll start having pain. On Day 3, the pain will be severe. I hope Day 4 will be better.

I almost forgot -- the fourth side effect is difficulty breathing. It's not clear to me what Ma means by this. Is it shortness of breath? Is she out of breath like when she walks at the mall? She did say she breathes better lying down, and she's able to take deep breaths. She also said she had the same problem after her surgeries. Whatever it is doesn't seem to be an emergency.