Jamie,

As the Medical Oncologist explained to me, the 5FU is used to decrease the tumors and micromets while the Cisplatin enhances the radiation, as Gary explains above. Many people have mentioned no bad effects from the 5FU but I really struggled. I received 3 bags of fluid daily from the first week of chemo. My primary difficulty was creatinine and since Cisplatin has shown to be hard on the kidneys, they couldn't keep giving it until my creatinine came down and fluids was about the only way. I then got dehydrated and that caused a lot of dizziness when I stood up. I tapered down to 2 bags a day from about 2 weeks post treatment and this lasted for almost 4 months. I found that regular hydration was the best overall treatment for me. Dehydration really compounded my side effects from everything.

My wife often joked about the 5FU being called that because you were F.U. for 5 days. I had a friend on it continuously for almost 5 months and had little or no discomfort the entire time.

Ed

SCC Stage IV, BOT, T2N2bM0
Cisplatin/5FU x 3, 40 days radiation
Diagnosis 07/21/03 tx completed 10/08/03
Post Radiation Lower Motor Neuron Syndrome 3/08.
Cervical Spinal Stenosis 01/11
Cervical Myelitis 09/12
Thoracic Paraplegia 10/12
Dysautonomia 11/12
Hospice care 09/12-01/13.
COPD 01/14
Intermittent CHF 6/15
Feeding tube NPO 03/16
VFI 12/2016
ORN 12/2017
Cardiac Event 06/2018
Bilateral VFI 01/2021
Thoracotomy Bilobectomy 01/2022
Bilateral VFI 05/2022
Total Laryngectomy 01/2023