From: "Dr. D. Kossove" <doctordee@telkomsa.net>
To: <Sarah_H_Ailey@RUSH.EDU>
Subject: gemtax info
Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2004 2:51 AM

Date:    Tue, 13 Jan 2004 19:40:24 -0600
From:    Sarah Ailey <Sarah_H_Ailey@RUSH.EDU>
Subject: Re: The Ya Ya chemo club..

To Jan: I had Stage II intermediate grade ULMS diagnosed last April. I did
6 cycles of gem/tax hoping to ward off further incidents. My next scan is
tomorrow and I have scanxiety. In any case, I found the gem/tax doable
although tiring. Day 1 was gemzar and it was not too bad. Day 8 was the
two together. On Day 9 I got neulasta, a new generation neupogen that
requires only one shot. Usually about day 10-12 was the worst. There was
usually a day or two where I could barely make it out of the bed. The
neulasta made my bones hurt starting about day 11 for 3-4 days and I took
tylenol or vicodin for that. Nausea was not too bad. Sometimes I had none.
Stuff tasted like metal and my mouth was kind of raw for a few days
following the gem/tax. By round three I had quite a bit of fluid retention
and started on Lasix as needed, about every other day. It really blew up
after round 6but subsided quite a bit after about three weeks. My albumin
levels fell low, but were back to normal about two months after I started.
I did work, although I took chemo days off and and usually day 10,11, or
12. I also kept up some social schedule and, unfortunately, spent many
days at the hospital visiting my son who had a serious heat stroke during
the summer. By 5-5:30, however, I was often found flopped on the couch
watching old movies ont he Turner Classic Movie channel.You will
undoubtedly get through it and hopefully it will keep the monster at bay.

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