Hi Dave;
I just finished radiation/chemo in October and amiphostine treatment was recommended, especially since I had lost my right side saliva glands in a February neck dissection.

Amifostine is usually injected about a half hour prior to radiation treatment. They are not administered every day but I endured the Amifostine shots three days a week throughout treatment. I say endured because it is really hard for a lot of people to handle the nausea that accompanies this treatment. My Oncologist and the nurses were amazed that I was "handling" these shots so well and I watched a couple other folks fall off the treatment from the side effects. As I got into the fifth week of treatment I really started getting sick. Hard to say if it was from the accumulative effects of radiation, the chemo, the amifostine, or a combination of all. I do know that the nausea really escalated after radiation on the days that I got the shots.

The one plus to all of this is I am 8 weeks out of treatment and I have pretty good saliva production. During my last week of radiation my neck and face had the "really bad sunburn" look, and my wife asked the RO why I had clear skin in two areas around my cheekbones and everywhere else was burned. My RO told her it was due to the amifostine doing its job and protecting those glands. I am glad I took the treatment as I believe it greatly benefited me.

Regards,

Steve