Replies to Thank you very much for your detailed explanation. I am not sure how much of the…

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Colorectal Cancer | Last Active: Nov 5 8:02pm | Replies (6)

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@browen

Thank you very much for your detailed explanation. I am not sure how much of the colon was removed but it was at the lower part. Also, he is unable to take solid food. He is mainly on a liquid diet. He is taking something like a meal replacement called Diben and Supportan. He is taking the TS-1 oral chemo. Has anyone experienced swollen fingers taking this chemo regime? He can't even grip or turn a door knob. I wonder if this is another underlying condition and not the side effects of the chemo besides the teary eyes.

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Replies to "Thank you very much for your detailed explanation. I am not sure how much of the..."

rjjacobsen | @rjjacobsen | Nov 4 10:50am

I'm sorry about your dad's situation and wish I could help but I have no knowledge of nor personal experience with this TS1 chemo.

I did a little research and found this link about TS1:
https://www.singhealth.com.sg/patient-care/medicine/ts-1
One of the components of TS1 is Tegafur which is metabolised to 5-fluorouracil (a.k.a. 5-FU) which has the following side effects: see
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluorouracil
Nausea
Vomiting
Diarrhea (see below for details)
Mucositis
Headache
Hand-foot syndrome
Myelosuppression (see below for details)
Alopecia (hair loss)
Photosensitivity
Maculopapular eruption
Itch
Cardiotoxicity (see below for details)
Persistent hiccups[18]
Mood disorders (irritability, anxiety, depression)

"Diarrhea is severe and may be dose-limiting and is exacerbated by co-treatment with calcium folinate."

Note the "Hand-foot syndrome" which has these symptoms: reddening, swelling, numbness and desquamation (skin sloughing or peeling).

I did have 5-FU as part of my chemo via infusion and it is very tough on the body especially the nerves and senses such as feeling, taste, hearing and activities such as swallowing. I had severe balance issues as well.

Non-technically, I've heard it described as a poison which affects everything in the body in an attempt to kill off the weaker cancer cells. The healthy cells get beat up and recover, the cancer cells die.

I'm thinking your medical team should be informed of these symptoms ASAP if they are particularly severe.

Hope this helps!

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