OT questions about chemo treatments

Hi Leslie, just click reply to answer to my email address I might can help as I went through this with my mom. Barbara inFL.

Both sisters have gone thru this ... they both complained about being cold all the time. I got them those big wooly work socks for one thing - a quilt with a flannel backing is great too. All the best to your Mum.

Sharon (N.B.)

Thanks Sharon! I'm working on a snuggle quilt for her, but had planned to use a coordinating batik for the backing. I'm going to re-think that one- the flannel is a good idea, but they live outside Phoenix and it's going to be pretty warm during her treatments-- at least outdoors it will be warm. Hmmmmm...

Hope your sisters are doing well.

Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

Both sisters have gone thru this ... they both complained about being cold all the time. I got them those big wooly work socks for one thing - a quilt with a flannel backing is great too. All the best to your Mum.

Sharon (N.B.)

Yes, but hospitals are ALWAYS cold - I've never gone through chemo, but I've spent LOTS of time in the hospital getting tests for this and that done. Even in the middle of our summer (where it's between 89-101 on average), if I'm going to the hospital, I bring a sweater or two!!

-- Connie :)

Mom was always cold, even when she was sitting in the sun during 88 degree temps. Barbara in FL

An inside that's kept a constant temp feels much cooler when it's hotter outside. Our gym is the same temp all year round, I know because they have units with the temp on them everywhere. When I go in there in winter, I feel fine with a medium weight clothes on. When it's been really hot in summer, I can go in in the same clothes and feel unpleasantly cold.

Anne

If they do the icepacks on the head to reduce the chance of hair loss she'll be even colder, it doesn't seem all that common to offer that though.

Anne

I found that my dear friend Anne liked the fleece backing I did for her!

Your Mom will lose her hair and her scalp will become very tender. She will need a cap or hat of some kind to keep her body heat in. You lose most body heat through your head. Baseball caps with those adjustable plastic things on the back are very painful. A cap made of fleece or knit cap or toboggan as some folks call them are great. A wig can be very painful if it has a web or netting on the inside. Not too tight. The seams of a lot of hats and caps are very hard on the scalp and hurt like the dickens. A hat, in the summer time, with a brim will help shade the eyes.

A full size hug quilt is the best with a flannel backing keeps the patient warmer than the usual cotton fabic backing. A lap quilt is not big enough to keep out the chill.

With the radiation treatments the skin will be burned badly like a 3rd degree sunburn. One thing I recommend it a product called Aquaphor by Eucerin. Its a healing ointment. This is applied after her radiation treatments are completed. This ointment should be applied very gently as the skin is very tender. Once the skin has started to heal it will become very dry and itchy. Aquaphor helps greatly to stop the pain and itching. It can be found in most drug stores. I am not affiliated with the company, my doctor recommended I use it and I got great results.

Can you find her a hospital gown that has snaps on the shoulders so they can be undone easily without having to get undressed. Those things that tie in the back and around the neck are a real pain to wear.

When your Mom goes for her treatments go with her. She will never tell you that she feels less scared with you there, but she will. Her attitude about the whole process will be a big factor in her going through her treatments and them being successful.

Remember that a big tote bag will carry a lot of things. Easier to handle than a purse and can be hung on the handles of a wheelchair. Two things in the tote bag, tissues and bottled water.

Hope this helps.

Kate T. South Mississippi

Great info, Kate. Thanks! I live 1500 miles away. For me to get away for

3-4 days is doable, a week would really be pushing it. If I can only be there one time would the beginning, middle or the later treatments be the best time for me to be there? After she gets home from the treatment or during the actual treatment- like if the treatment is on a Wed. should I be there Tues. or Thurs.? ? (My dad is there to help her, too, but this is really distressing him at age 84 and he's in rather frail health himself.) Do the chemo caps and other patterns available on the internet work correctly or are they made by folks who have good hearts but don't really know? What about a sun hat with a brim and lined with Minkee? Would batting under the outer cotton hat with a silk (or similar) lining be an idea? She lives outside Phoenix and it'll be getting hot there soon.

I'm a bit overwhelmed with all the thoughts, possibilities and things to think/worry about.

Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

I belong to 2 groups that make quilts for cancer patients. We make sure the quilts have flannel backs so they're soft. Chemo patients get "chemo skin." That is dry sensitive skin that breaks and bleeds easily. We try for light warm batting. The quilts are dropped off at the hospital with instructions to the hospital personnel to give them out as they see fit. The idea is to give the patients something they're in control of. If someone wants two, we say let her have them. When you have so many reasons to feel like you're getting the short end of the stick, there should be one place to feel like you can take advantage.

Something else to keep in mind: Remember Clockwork Orange? The idea was to condition Alex to associate violence with being sick. Instead, he got ill from the Beethoven background music. It can happen to chemo patients. One friend's mother would get a wave of nausea when, during the week, she stubled on the overnight suitcase she took with her to the hospital. When the chemo was over, she got pleasure from burning the perfectly good suitcase. I don't know that it's happened, but I would be thrilled if one of my lovingly made quilts was given the same treatment! If it made a cancer patient feel better to slash and burn the quilt she associated with nausea, I'd applaud her and would be glad I could help in that small way.

--Lia

My sweet MIL had chemo for an extended period of time for colon cancer. I did make her a quilt to keep her warm. Oddly enough, this was about 7 years ago and she didn't have breast cancer but her quilt was pink. My FIL gave it back to me after she finally succummed to the cancer and I treasure it so. Anyway, my suggestion is to give your mom a tube of Utterly Smooth (hand cream in the tube with the cow markings on it). The chemo made my MILs hands crack especially around the nails and nailbeds. This cream, often used by hand quilters, worked wonders for her.

I will keep your mom in my thoughts and prayers!

I was doing a Yahoo search on breast cancer and found out that Amazon has low prices on breast cancer. Gee..... how special.

Leslie, Missy & The Furbabies in MO.

My mom had terrible chills after her first treatment. We couldn't do anything to get her warm. We just kept piling blankets on her & gave her a hot water bottle. She liked the hot water bottle.

My mom's skin was very sensitive as well, so lots we rubbed lotion on her whenever we could.

We bought "only the best" wig for her - human hair - it was ridiculously expensive. And it looked ridiculous on her - it was too much hair for my little mother. She ended up wearing silk scarves on her head. She had a multitude of them anyway, so she could always match her outfit, but they are so soft on your scalp, no seams, no yarn, nothing irritating. We all got pretty creative in how we wrapped the scarves on her head. (We donated the wig to a Wellness Center.)

Both sisters have gone thru this ... they both complained about being cold all the time. I got them those big wooly work socks for one thing - a quilt with a flannel backing is great too. All the best to your Mum.

Sharon (N.B.)

I'd guess going for the first treatment would be very helpful, be there the night before to help her prepare, figure out routines, check the route etc. then on the day help her figure everything out at the hospital, make sure she gets all her questions answered etc. Basically help both of them figure out how they can work through the whole thing. The first treatment can either be bad, because they give you everything, then if they find you react badly to something that's not absolutely necessary, they may decided to stop giving (I've know a fair few people have a reaction to steroids after their first chemo and for them not to be given later). Or it can be a relief it's not has bad as you might have thought, better drug selection and better management of symptoms have meant that for a lot of cancers it's no where near as bad as people might expect.

Cheers Anne

Leslie, this is really too trivial to mention - but if you are thinking of making anything for your Mom; turban, wrap, quilt or pillowcase, I find that Minky is not Minkee. Minkee is as soft as a baby's breath; the 'as good as' substitutes are not nearly so gentle. FWIW, Polly

"Leslie & The Furbabies in MO." I was doing a Yahoo search on breast cancer and found out that Amazon has

Polly, you reminded me of something else. It was recommended to me to purchase a satin pillowcase, because there is less friction with a satin pillowcase than a cotton pillowcase. And when your hair is falling out, you'll take all the help you can get to slow down the process.

Pauline Northern California

Hey Leslie

I have another suggestion to block out the desert sun. How about an umbrella that folds up. I used one in Houston in the spring and summer of 2002. It was a life saver. I would have to sit in the sun for an hour at a time waiting for transportation to my motel. A fad was started that year.

Have you looked into trying to find some kind of transportation to the hospital that is dedicated to taking patients to their appointments and that can accomodate wheelchairs. That way your Mom won't have to be getting in and out of the chair and vehicles so much. She and the chair can be loaded all at once.

Have you checked into home health care services. have you checked with the Area Agency on Aging and the cancer society for services that you mother could use. They surely would know about transporation services, home care services such as feeding, bathing and dressing. Maybe even home nursing services, if you mother needs it. Maybe even housekeeping services. Someone to help with the laundry, washing dishes, light house cleaning, etc.

I know you are in a whirlwind of confusion right now. S-l-o-w D-o-w- n and breathe. Concentrate on making Mother a quilt that will cover her during the treatments and make one just like it for yourself so you can wrap up in it and give mama a hug, long distance.

I know someone out there knows where a free pattern is for a wheelchair tote bag. Come on ladies and gents, this girl needs your help. We need to keep her quilting and sewing. This is her therapy during these trying weeks and months.

Again, hope this helps.

Kate T. South Mississippi

Here is one

another HTH

Dee in Oz