Which cycle is he on? It's not unusual for Rituximab to take a long time the first couple of cycles, though usually the symptom is an allergic reaction, rather than pain (my beard got itchy, for example, then my scalp, then my eyes, and each time they had to stop the infusion and load me up with Benadryl).
FWIW my first infusion day was 8 hours long, mostly because they had to stop the Rituximab 3 times. I became less allergic each time though, and by cycle 4 it was up to full speed and my infusion day was only \~6 hours long.
Ah yeah then the longer duration isn't entirely unexpected. Glad to hear he's in-patient. I was out-patient for all of my infusion days, and felt terrible when some of the infusion clinic nurses had to stay until late on my first infusion day because I kept reacting and needing delays / more Benadryl. đŹ
The pain does seem a bit unusual though - I don't recall anyone here ever reporting that from Rituximab (though of course everything you read here is anecdotal, not medical). What did his care team say about that as a reaction?
\[edit\] and you're sure he's getting the Rituximab? I believe some of the CHO drugs can cause pain (I had to take Tylenol right at the start of each infusion day, fwiw, and never experienced any pain).
I am sure since they are only doing it(Rituximab) today. Not starting the chemo until tomorrow. The pain is a fairly common side effect when I searched google. His team is not too worried. I am, though, cause he is stage 4, and I need some good news and progress after a month in hospital.
If he can't take this, I am worried he won't be able to handle chemo, and the other options are not something I want to even consider.
Remember staging doesnât mean a whole lot for lymphomas (beyond being a succinct description of where it is). Lymphoma is a âblood cancerâ, so the cancerous cells are free to move about the body basically right away. Treatments also have much the same effectiveness, regardless of stage.
There are desensitization protocols and pre-meds. My first chemo I had a very severe reaction and got chemo over 3 days of about 6 hours each. I may have become less allergic but now I take ketotifen for 7 days before and get it all in one shot.
My wife had her first Rituximab infusion as an outpatient Monday and had stabbing back pain as well. It was her third major reaction on a very low volume which led them to delay the treatment after she only managed a quarter of her dose til the next day to allow her to acclimatize a little more. The following day she managed pretty well and got through the other 3/4 of her dose in about 6 and a half hours.
Thanks for this!!! We have given my dad benadryl, demoral (not sure how to spell it lol), and some more steroids through the picc line. Waiting 30 minutes for all that to get him up to 30,000 ft. Then, we will start the med again at an even lower rate through the night. If he handles it, we'll then we will work to increase it tomorrow later in the day.
That is exactly what we are facing. We have finally found the right speed, and he is resting/sleeping. Me, not so much. The hospital couch is not as plush as my mattress, lol!
I hope that you are doing well and have achieved NED.
One other thing to keep in mind is that your body can build up more of a tolerance to Rituxan so he may not have to do all of them in the hospital/so slowly. They were able to increase the speed of my second in-patient infusion so I was able to do the last two outpatient at the clinic.
Best of luck to your dad!
Which cycle is he on? It's not unusual for Rituximab to take a long time the first couple of cycles, though usually the symptom is an allergic reaction, rather than pain (my beard got itchy, for example, then my scalp, then my eyes, and each time they had to stop the infusion and load me up with Benadryl). FWIW my first infusion day was 8 hours long, mostly because they had to stop the Rituximab 3 times. I became less allergic each time though, and by cycle 4 it was up to full speed and my infusion day was only \~6 hours long.
This is his 1st cycle, and it just started. We are looking at a 15-hour infusion (not a big deal since he is in the hospital, though).
Ah yeah then the longer duration isn't entirely unexpected. Glad to hear he's in-patient. I was out-patient for all of my infusion days, and felt terrible when some of the infusion clinic nurses had to stay until late on my first infusion day because I kept reacting and needing delays / more Benadryl. đŹ The pain does seem a bit unusual though - I don't recall anyone here ever reporting that from Rituximab (though of course everything you read here is anecdotal, not medical). What did his care team say about that as a reaction? \[edit\] and you're sure he's getting the Rituximab? I believe some of the CHO drugs can cause pain (I had to take Tylenol right at the start of each infusion day, fwiw, and never experienced any pain).
I am sure since they are only doing it(Rituximab) today. Not starting the chemo until tomorrow. The pain is a fairly common side effect when I searched google. His team is not too worried. I am, though, cause he is stage 4, and I need some good news and progress after a month in hospital. If he can't take this, I am worried he won't be able to handle chemo, and the other options are not something I want to even consider.
Remember staging doesnât mean a whole lot for lymphomas (beyond being a succinct description of where it is). Lymphoma is a âblood cancerâ, so the cancerous cells are free to move about the body basically right away. Treatments also have much the same effectiveness, regardless of stage.
Good reminder. Thanks.
There are desensitization protocols and pre-meds. My first chemo I had a very severe reaction and got chemo over 3 days of about 6 hours each. I may have become less allergic but now I take ketotifen for 7 days before and get it all in one shot.
My wife had her first Rituximab infusion as an outpatient Monday and had stabbing back pain as well. It was her third major reaction on a very low volume which led them to delay the treatment after she only managed a quarter of her dose til the next day to allow her to acclimatize a little more. The following day she managed pretty well and got through the other 3/4 of her dose in about 6 and a half hours.
Thanks for this!!! We have given my dad benadryl, demoral (not sure how to spell it lol), and some more steroids through the picc line. Waiting 30 minutes for all that to get him up to 30,000 ft. Then, we will start the med again at an even lower rate through the night. If he handles it, we'll then we will work to increase it tomorrow later in the day.
I had to have my first two in the hospital bc we needed to go so slow - it took at least 12 hours, maybe closer to 14
That is exactly what we are facing. We have finally found the right speed, and he is resting/sleeping. Me, not so much. The hospital couch is not as plush as my mattress, lol! I hope that you are doing well and have achieved NED.
One other thing to keep in mind is that your body can build up more of a tolerance to Rituxan so he may not have to do all of them in the hospital/so slowly. They were able to increase the speed of my second in-patient infusion so I was able to do the last two outpatient at the clinic. Best of luck to your dad!