Geri, I have also referred to this tx as barbaric, not advanced medicine. A physician friend of mine had to make a decision regarding chemo for herself. She consulted an MD with advanced training in integrated/holistic/Eastern medicine. He told her that there is a Chinese saying: You have to fight poison with poison.

As Christine mentioned, we were told to fill prescriptions ahead of time, bring all the medicine with us, and nurses would direct us. Some meds are taken immediately before infusion starts. He had small amount of cold cereal & tea in AM, as usual.

My husband received IV steriods during chemo to help control symptoms. Nurses told us this would make him hungry and to eat anything that appealed to him. I went out to buy a turkey sandwich and he had no problem with it. The meds completely controlled the nausea.

The nursing staff and PAs were tremendously helpful with suggestions and support. Believe it or not, after the first chemo, I found the tx room relaxing. I trusted the staff and got a break from worrying about what needed to be done, as opposed to a trip to the hospital to change PEG, where I had to watch over everything. Lottie