[tpt]

Side effects of ongoing ASCT

by tpt on Sat Aug 31, 2013 11:09 pm

Hello,

Dad was admitted for ASCT last Wed. He received 100mg/m2 of Melphalan on Thu and Fri. Following a 2-day rest, his stem cell will be reinfused on Mon and Tue. After that, it's juat a waiting game until his counts go up.

He is now having some muscle cramps and spasms on his jaw and neck, to a point where he cannot gargle properly, as water would splash due to the spasms. However, it does not cause any pain. His jaw has always been numb since he started VTD last year. Has anyone experienced this?

When do the diarrhea and mouth sore kick in? He hasn't had any of those (knock on wood) as of today (4 days post Melphalan). Can anyone get away with this?

When do the counts reach their lowest levels? When do they start going back up? Thanks.

[Wrast5423]

Re: Side effects of ongoing ASCT

by Wrast5423 on Tue Sep 17, 2013 11:15 pm

Hi! My dad's experience (I was his caregiver):
1. Numbers tanked about day 11
2. He got 1 little mouth sore
3. Completely lost appetite about day 7
4. Hair fell out starting about day 20
5. He got C.Diff (stomach bug) about day 12-cured with drugs
6. Was real wiped out about 4 days
7. Numbers followed the predicted path-started to pick up very quickly about day 17
8. He was feeling way better by day 30. It was amazing.

I remember being there, just be strong, positive and look to the future.

[tpt]

Re: Side effects of ongoing ASCT

by tpt on Wed Sep 18, 2013 1:17 am

Hello,

Thanks for your reply.

We were lucky we didn't get any infections and major side effects, only diarrhea and mid-range fever; that's why I asked when the mouth sores and diarrhea usually kick in. Dad was out in 21 days!