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Anyone taken Xeloda for a long period of time: Side effects?
I was diagnosed with Stage I colorectal 3/12, Had surgeries and chemo, and was declared NED. Then 12/13 it was back, Stage IV, mets to lung and liver. I've had chemo again and am now NED (Thank God), but am on Xeloda, and have been told it was for the rest of my life. I also take Chinese herbs and IV Vitamin C, so don't really know what has helped. I'm currently taking Xeloda, one week on, one week off : 1000mg BID.
Has anyone else taken Xeloda for a long period of time, and if so, what are the long term side effects. I have painful neuropathy in my feet and would like it to go away!
Thanks for all your help and support (I'm open to any questions about my journey & tricks that I believe have helped me)
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Two years later still taking Xeloda Recently reduced to 2500 mg day to heal hand foot syndrome. Golfs 18 and plays pickle ball and sleeps a lot but good otherwise
I have been on xeloda for 5 months, i had the same problem with feet, i started using asper cream 3 in 1 and jell socks that you can get from amazon or walmart, it works i dont feel like walking on needles anymore, hope this helps
My husband has irreversible chemo induced neuropathy which started as a side effect of oxiliplatin. He takes Xeloda 3000mg a day. Gabapentin plus cymbalta plus over the counter Nerve Renew (b vitamins) has controlled it fairly well. Stage IV rectal cancer with liver metastasis. 20% urea cream helped with skin cracking and peeling. But the disease is stable after 16 mos so that’s good.
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1 Reactionfor feet neuropathy, I am taking pregabalin ( lyrica) x 2 per day (75 mg) , I have meaningful reduction in numbness and shooting pains, I will have a meaningful increase in numbness if I skip a dose
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1 ReactionSue l, I’m on 2000 mg of xeloda daily for MBC and experience the hand foot issue too. I am doing clobetasol and Urea 10 cream (OTC) twice a day. They help with the dryness and cracking but hardly eradicate the problem. Sometimes I throw on Vaseline for a little extra protection. My question is for anyone else using creams and lotions. Can you put a sock or nylon over the creams. Especially in the morning I have to get to work and don’t have time to let everything dry.
Good luck Sue. I’m wishing everyone the best
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1 ReactionI’m thankful to have stumbled upon this thread. I’m newly diagnosed Stage 2 colon cancer. I had my sigmoid colon removed which is where the tumor (7 cm) was. It had wrapped around to the other side and attached to my right ovary, Fallopian tube and appendix and cecum so they removed all. I had 0/28 nodes affected, and clean margins. Because I’m considered high risk (I’ve had ulcerative colitis for 25 years), I will be doing Xeloda and oxiplatin. I start on July 2. The side effects scare me, but I was able to see how my sister dealt with the hand and foot syndrome (she just finished treatment for breast cancer). I will be doing 3 cycles of Xeloda and oxiplatin as my oncologist said recent research shows that 3 months is just as effective as 6.
The nurse said keeping my hands and feet super moisturizer and wearing socks at night will help. She also said wear shoes at all times.
Any other tips?
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1 ReactionI am currently on 1000mg of Xeloda twice daily. One week on and one week off. I have hand foot syndrome from the side effects of the medicine. I have tried all kind of lotions, Urea, and Triamcinolone. It is extremely hard to walk for long period of times or know what kind of shoes to wear. I understand friction is bad for them but it is kind of hard to walk with no friction! Just wondered if anyone has suggestions. Thanks!
Welcome To Connect, @mjjc.
May I ask if you could share more details? There are many members who’ve written about Hand-Foot syndrome (HFS) – skin reaction that appears on the palms of the hands and/or the soles of the feet as a result of certain chemotherapy agents – and it will also help me bring other people into the conversation. I look forward to getting to know you.
Has the acupuncturist helped with hand foot syndrome?
Hi
I have stage IV colon cancer with mets to liver and lungs and have been on maintainence therapy since 7/2015 which consists of 1150mg of xeloda twice a day for two weeks followed by a week off
In addition I have an infusion of Avastin every 3 weeks
I have been NED since June of 2015 thank the lord
Seems the xeloda/Avastin is working and hope it continues
Xeloda is a hard drug
I have had significant hand and foot syndrome which has lessened with time
My feet are actually pretty good and I wear protective cotton gloves most of the time which helps
Bottom line however is that I am very thankful I have been able to tolerate the drug pretty well as I have 2 friends that couldn't handle it
In addition I work with a wonderful acupuncturist who works with cancer patients and I think this has helped as well
We just need to be strong and never give up