Shawna
The fear of infection is a very real one. Pete was in hospital for dehydration and whilst there ended up with staph. Even tho I spent hours sanitizing and policing the room to make sure EVERYONE washed their hands etc. It took three weeks to get him out of there and he went home still very sick.
I also am a believer in the PEG. Even though Pete`s nausea was so severe that he was fed thru his port.
Taking meds via the PEG is so much easier than having to struggle the way your Dad is doing.

Take Care
Marica

The Peg has been keeping my husband alive since surgery in April and 33 rad tx's that ended July 8th. He is making an effort to eat by mouth, not with much success. He got the peg during the tumor surgery which eliminated another trip to the hospital. Amy

The fever thing can be interesting. Harry had fever the first chemo and it turned out to be neutropenia.

By the second chemo (they were once a month) he developed fever and they were never really sure why.

The third and forth chemos brought about an infection called c-diff which is an intestinal pathogen that is spreading like wildfire through hospitals. This created a fever with a spike in his white counts. We battled that beast 3 times (almost 8 weeks) before we managed to get it under control.

As for the PEG, Harry was stuborn and waited until just before the end of radiation to have his put in and only then because the RO told him it was no longer an option. It saved his scrawny butt for sure. He lost 40 pounds by the time we had it placed and while he did not gain any more weight with the tube he did maintain and I had an easier time getting the antibiotics in him to fight that infection.

We had the tube removed at the beginning of July so he only had it about 3 months. When it became a crutch I had it removed. He was not happy with me but he was not trying to eat and drink and the tube made giving in easy for him.

Everyone's experiences are different but from what I have read lately and talking to Harry's RO, PEG insertion prior to beginning rad tx is becoming protocol. If they had been more insistant with Harry, I doubt he would have suffered the weight loss he has. He fluctuates now a little 5 up and 5 down sometimes and I have him on muscle man shakes to supplement his protein and try to get some weight on him but he doesn't always drink them and won't let me fix them for him so his weight is not increasing.

Low grade fevers are not unusual. The doc told me to watch him and anything over 100.5 I was to call and 101 I was to take him straight to the hospital. We went back and forth many times and he had many hospital stays. As I learned my new nursing skills and got better at them I was able to do more at home and he didn't have to go to the hospital as much.

If you are ever in doubt about the fever, CALL the doc! They will know best what to do always.

Best to you,
Cindy

Hi Shawna,

Steve again. I also had fever spikes. 102 twice. I couldn't breath when I laid down to sleep. Found out I had to sleep sitting up for the duration because mucus was blocking my airway. Tylenol reduced the fever ASAP. Since I had breathing issues, they admitted me both times, but went home after a couple of days. The fever spikes are not unusual.

Steve

Steve, you're the best. Thank you. Sounds exactly like my pop. We are getting it...did they delay your treatment?
Glenn, thank you-every one else, thank you.

Peggy-peg tomorrow. I am nervous about that procedure.

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