I have experience with both Gemzar and Cisplatin.
I had my Chemo treatment starting 11 Sep and ending mod December 2007.
My routine was once a week:
I had Cisplatin and Gemcitabine (Gemzar) on Day 1
I had Gemzar on Day 8
I had Day 15 off
I had four cycles
I just reveiwed a couple of e-mails I sent to relatives and friends during my Chemo time togive you an idea of what I felt at the time.
Here is an excerpt to give you an idea of my experience:
Today I completed my forth of eight treatments of Chemo. In case you have never talked to a cancer patient; “Chemo SUCKS!” My first two treatments had mild side affects. I felt slightly fatigued and similar to flu like symptoms for about three days. I had no appetite for food or drink for about six days. I was not nauseas at all after the first two treatments.
What a difference a treatment makes. After the third treatment that was a week ago Wednesday, I went to work that Thursday. About an hour before my day was done I started feeling nauseated. Two blocks into my drive home, I threw-up. Now the road I was on did not have a shoulder to pull over so I had to barf and drive at the same time. No accidents occurred inside or outside the car (I hit my plastic bag completely). After emptying my stomach of all contents, I drove to the Marysville-Pilchuck High School (MPHS) Freshman Football game. I coached the team even though I felt a little “punk” most of the game.
At midnight that night I got sick again. Since I had not had anything to eat since the last emptying, it was mostly dry heaves. I felt good enough to work from home on Friday. However, at 4 PM as I was getting ready to go to the MPHS Varsity Football game, I got sick again. I did go to the game and survived. On the way home I got sick for the 4th time.
For me the side affects were bad nausea. Even though I took several type of anti-nausea medicine, my doctor could not find the right one to make me feel well (it turned out that after my treatment we were reviewing the medical history and he put in the record to prescribe three different anti-nausea medicines that he forgot to prescribe).
I did not loose any hair. The other common side affects listed for these drugs, I did not experience. However, my new Oncologist (I fired the forgetful one), said she always does a hearing test prior to treatment. This helps determine if there is any hearing loss associated with the drugs. I think I have lost some of my hearing.
Take Care
Rick