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rondo · 03-02-2009, 03:08 PM

Janice,
You have my sympathy regarding the chemobrain. If you are interested in a nutritional-supplement approach to this problem, here is what I did and continue to do: fish oil 1200 mg caps, 5 per day; Coenzyme Q 10 200 mg per day; alpha lipoic acid 300 mg twice daily. All of these products are thought by naturopaths to help with brain health and they have other benefits as well. The ALA is an antioxidant and should be stopped for a few days before and after each chemo treatment. I will probably reduce the coQ10 to 50 mg and stop the ALA after a year. I take other supplements as well, but these are the most 'brain-specific'.
I certainly experienced chemo brain during my treatment it but only for several days during each cycle. Now, 4 months after finishing chemo, I feel my brain is completely back to normal. I realize you can't prove prevention, but these things are very safe and have other health benefits as well.

03-02-2009, 03:08 PM	#7
rondo Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Monterey County, CA Posts: 37	Janice, You have my sympathy regarding the chemobrain. If you are interested in a nutritional-supplement approach to this problem, here is what I did and continue to do: fish oil 1200 mg caps, 5 per day; Coenzyme Q 10 200 mg per day; alpha lipoic acid 300 mg twice daily. All of these products are thought by naturopaths to help with brain health and they have other benefits as well. The ALA is an antioxidant and should be stopped for a few days before and after each chemo treatment. I will probably reduce the coQ10 to 50 mg and stop the ALA after a year. I take other supplements as well, but these are the most 'brain-specific'. I certainly experienced chemo brain during my treatment it but only for several days during each cycle. Now, 4 months after finishing chemo, I feel my brain is completely back to normal. I realize you can't prove prevention, but these things are very safe and have other health benefits as well. __________________ IDC 6 mm l.b. 3/08 age 49; ER <1%+; PR -; KI67 40%; HER2 +++by FISH; lumpectomy/snb 4/08; extensive dcis found at surgery (didn't show in bx or mammo); micromet in sn; MRI breasts and chest 4/08-NED; re-excision l.b. 5/08; refused axillary node dissection; no ca found in re-excision tissue. TCH q 3 wk x 6 finished 10/08; whole breast rad x 7 wk finished 12/08; refused axillary and supraclavicular rad. Herceptin thru 6/09. Refused tamoxifen & aromatase inhibitors. 1/13 so far so good:-) have vestibular hypofunction from chemo but its all good since now officially on borrowed time!