scarred tear ducts from taxotere - need Jones tubes

[Pam P]

I was on weekly taxotere for 6 months 2 yrs ago. Taxotere caused severe tearing of eyes and even after I got off taxotere this problem never improved. It's like I'm crying all the time, my tear ducts are blocked & so the tears just roll down my cheeks. My regular eye doctor didn't give me any help / suggestions. I finally went to a specialist & learned that all my tear ducts are so badly scarred they are beyond repair. This doc sees this problem a lot with cancer patients who have had certain chemos (he said taxotere was most common -- also 5fu is known for this problem). When the scarring isn't too bad they can insert plastic tubes in the tear ducts for a few months to open them up then remove them. In my case it's too damaged, so the Jones tubes are inserted permanantly -- they are pyrex glass. He says the success rate is good. Has anyone else had to have these Jones tubes? How has it worked for you? It's scary to think that if taxotere (& all the other chemos I've been on) can do this much damage to the tear ducts, what must the rest of my body look like!