My first round of treatment I had a terrible time getting off the Fentanyl patches. I was on 100 mcg's every 48hrs. I'm back on them again (same dose) for this round too.
The first time I suffered through a 'step down' program that lasted about 6 weeks and was awful. I have often said that the withdrawls were worse than the chemo and radiation (as bad as they were), and for me it really was true.

This time I'm already planning on discussing with the doctor a different plan - like where you're hospitalized for a short period but you come off the narcotics very quickly, over a few days I believe. I'm not sure what's available there but I know I'm not up for doing the 6 weeks of hell I did the first time.....wow.



Age 41 - Stage 2 SCC tongue Dx 2/06. Cisplatin x3, IMRT x35. Mets to neck node discovered 7/07. RND 40 nodes removed, margins not clear. Cisplatin, Taxotere, 5-FU Fall 07, then IMXT/Erbitux for 7 wks. Inoperable mets to both lungs and pleura Dx Oct'08. 4 cycles Carboplatin, Erbitux, 5-FU so far.