Stomach problems after chemo:(

[tricia keegan]

Hello Everyone
I am fairly new here and enjoy reading all the posts and advice given.I am hoping someone may have some for me! I had a dry sore mouth on chemo with a horrible coating on my tongue.When the usual things did'nt clear it up they put a camera up my nose and then prescribed Nexium tablets.Not sure why as I did'nt have any stomach problems but I do now.Eight weeks out of chemo the coating on my tongue is as bad as ever,I have very little appetite,feel queasy and this past week have a pain high up in my stomach more to the left side.I also have indegestion a lot.Has anyone heard of this or can offer any tips to help please?
I am seeing my Dr next Mon when I will be having my three weekly herceptin and will ask then but in the meantime I'm imagining all sorts! I was dx last summer with stage 2 bc with 3/9 nodes positive.Am currently undergoing Rads and have completed a/c x4 then Taxol/Herceptin x 12 weekly.Will be on herceptin for a year.Any help or advice is appreciated.Thank you:)
Tricia

[Barbara]

Hi:

After chemo I developed gallbladder problems; my gall bladder could no longer eject bile effectively. My internist said this will often happen after a serious illness or chemo. I had pain 20 minutest to 2 hours after eating, middle and upper right side. A heptobillary scan with CCK was done where you receive a IV medicine and than are placed under a nuclear medicine camera which measures how fast the gallbladder empties. My gallbladder was removed finally a year after finishing my A/C and Taxol and while I was still on Herceptin. My recovery was easy and the problem resolved. I also had plain indigestion when on Chemo and my oncologist had me take Nexium morning and night for the first five days after each treatment.

I hope you feel better shortly.

Barbara

[RhondaH]

the coating on your mouth makes me think of thrush which I got on my LAST chemo that landed me in the hospital for 3 days. They gave me some medicine (HORRIBLE stuff, but better than the thrush) as I first couldn't eat due to the chemo and THEN couldn't due to the thrush. Take care and God bless.

Rhonda

[Susan M(PA)]

I also think you have thrush, (coated tongue).i.e candida /overgrowth of yeast, a fungal infection.
I've had to take a lot of antibiotics over the years, so I deal with yeast all the time. If you want to try a natural route...
You could try acidolphilus capsules like PB8, or plain yogurt like Stonyfield organics. It helps the digestive issues too. I also find a couple of oregano oil drops (the medicinal type) mixed with a tbsp of olive oil helps. I get mine from nowcatalog.com
There are also many supplement products especially to combat yeast.

Good luck,

Susan M(PA)

[tricia keegan]

Thank you all for the replies.Barbara I should have mentioned I had my gall bladder removed two yrs ago otherwise I would have sworn thats what it was as it's very similar.Thanks also Rhonda and Susan,when I had the camera test the Dr's did'nt think it was thrush but that was ages ago and I've heard thrush can be really bad if it spreads through the body and digestive system.Will check with my onc next week but thanks for the help:)
Hugs
Tricia

[Esther]

Tricia, I don't want to alarm you, but ask to have your liver enzymes tested. The symptoms you are describing also match what I went through (except for the tongue part) when I was diagnosed with liver mets.

Those symptoms could also indicate a number of other things, so I hope you get it cleared up quickly.

[tricia keegan]

Thanks Esther.I am not alarmed as you tend to think the worst of any little ache when you have had this.I mistakenly said in my post the pain was on the right side but corrected it as it is really towards the middle and left .Is that where you had it?Thanks for the reply!
Tricia

[Chelee]

Hi Tricia, I ran into almost the same problems you did on my first chemo. I did the Herceptin, Taxotere, & Carbpotin. Since I was so NEW to all this...I just thought it was all normal and suffered the first month of my chemo. I had a AWFUL taste in my mouth...and my tongue was sore. I noticed my tongue sore and my gums were a little sore and had to be very careful brushing.
Then the worse was NOT being able to eat or drink anything without TERRIBLE indigestion and heartburn. I am a BIG water drinker...always have been...but I couldn't even drink water without a problem. If I had one sip or water...I payed for it.
I had to FORCE myself to eat...and all food had to be totally bland and even then I had indigestion. I wondered HOW others on chemo were eating or drinking since I had to suffer when I did.

So finally I just recently due to other problems switched oncologist. I had just had my second full chemo and asked her about this indigestion and heart burn I was getting. She said DIDN'T your other oncologist give you something for your stomach! I said "NO". She was shocked. She said that was just awful and that he should of.

Anyway...she gave me come "protonix"...which is like your Nexium...my insurance would NOT ok the Nexium. And she always wrote me a script for Pepcid. So far...I just take the Protonix and I can take two a day...but I find one a day and my stomach is great. :) No more problems at all with indigestion or heartburn. No acid reflux...nothing.

I can eat and drink again. Its so nice! I went from little to NO appetite from my first chemo...to actually feeling hungry this time around...and being able to eat anything I want since she gave me these medications for my stomach.

Didn't the Nexium help your stomach at all? Nexium is one of the best for stomach problems. I do know you can have a sore mouth...I sure did. In fact its been sore this time too...not as bad...but my tongue bothers me the most. What kind of coating do you have on your tongue? Is it white...like a oral thrush mouth? That is common...and can be taken care of easily with the right meds. I ended up with thrush...and was given this pill to take for 10 days...it went away fast with that stuff. Let us know how your doing. Hang in there.

[tricia keegan]

Thanks Chelee,love your name by the way! I'm eight weeks finished chemo and thought the tongue thing would be cleared by now.The coating is more yellow and puts a pretty disgusting taste in your mouth.I had no pain when given the Nexium so did'nt feel it did much to help but it's just the past week it seems worse.Someone told me it may be an ulcer induced by the chemo which I first thought but will get them to check at the hospital Mon just in case it's anything more serious.thanks again for your help and will keep you posted:)
Tricia

[sadie]

I had 4 rounds of AC and just now had my #9 out of 12 Herceptin/Taxol combos.

With my last 2 rounds of AC, I had Thrush (white spots at back of tongue).
They gave me a numbing agent, but that just numbed it, didn't cure it.

After AC, I didn't get Thrush anymore, but I now have a film type coating on my tongue. It just makes food taste more bland. My onc didn't comment when I told her about it. She just checked my mouth & said everything looked ok.
(no thrush).

After I started the Herceptin/Taxol treatments, I had a feeling like an apple was stuck in my throat. I too paid for it even if I had a simple sip of water.
My onc prescribed Prevacid, which I have to take every morning. But that did
the trick.
No more pain and I can handle the film-coating on my tongue. I just hope it goes away when the treatments are over.
I do notice, tho, that the coating gets heavier if I don't keep up with my water intake. Drinking water on a regular basis all day helps prevent it from getting worse, but it does not take it away altogether.
Hope this helps you.
Sadie

[tousled1]

I too get that horrible feeling in my mouth. My first round of chemo I did develop thrush and they gave me antibiotics. Now what I do is take acidophilus. You can buy it over the counter at the drug store or health food store. It seems that chemo upsets your body's ph factor and since I don't eat yogurt it makes it worse. I havenow found that taking 1 tablet of acidophilus in the morning and one in the evening I don't have the problem with the mouth anymore.

[tricia keegan]

Thanks Sadie and Kate for the advice.I am due at the hospital tomorrow for Herceptin and will get them to check it again.I also think drinking water is a good idea so will increase that.Hopefully will have it sorted next week.Thanks again:)
Tricia

[tricia keegan]

Hi again everyone, saw doc today and he thinks I may have an ulcer or esophagitis and is sending me for an endoscopy test.Has anyone else had this? They said I will be sedated so it should'nt be too uncomfortable.(Hopefully!) I was doing some research and it seems this can be caused by a fungal infection like Candida so it must be from the chemo as I thought as I have never had any stomach problems before.Thanks everyone for the replies and help.:)
Tricia

[R.B.]

I know that in this high tech world the suggestion if you do not already do so of increasing your fibre intake with greens, BEANS, and fibrous food sounds a bit weak, but my own experience and reading suggests it can play a big part in getting the digestive system and bowel to function very much better.

This is good in fibre (wide ranging not just cereal) at lots of levels including better food uptake, metabolism, digestion and elimination of toxins. Your digestive system is a complex and finely balanced amazing chemical factory and it needs all the help you can give it. We all have our lazy days, and weak moments but there is common ground in many diet books that increasing the quality and quantity of fibre intake can make a difference to digesitve function.

As an adjunct to treatment it has to be worth looking at.


RB