questions for my dad who will be enduring chemo treatments soon..?

Question

Dad is 70.. always been physically active his whole life.. plus, loves to socialize.. and yes, have the odd cocktail.. ok, question - he will be having 6 months of chemo treatments.. every 2 weeks..starting soon. He asked me this today.. would he be able to still exercise?.. I am no doctor, but I guess he was just curious....as I know people who have had cancer. I had no answer...as I understand ..some people get through chemo..relatively ok..and some have a real hard time. plus a side effect is that you tire out fast. Any input about this? He belongs to a exercise facility... and even after recovering from his colan surgery...has already started back to the gym..

Has anyone out there.. in this age group area.. continued or desired to.. exercise during chemo treatments?.. Any information..would be helpful. Also, Can a person enjoy the odd cocktail.. during this period or will that mix with the chemo medication?.Thanks..Chris

Answer 1

Just finished months of chemo and a bone marrow transplant. Sorry....tell dad absolutely NO alcohol of any kind. As his white cell counts go done due to chemo, he will be unable to eat any fresh fruits or veggies too at times. It gets on your nerves but it is better than dying from the bacteria on them (even after washing). As for exercise....can't help you there. I was one of the ones who had horrible time with nausea, but I am a female in the middle of menopause so we usually do a lot worse. Different kinds of chemo effect people in different ways, so he'll just have to wait to see how he feels. I hope he does well and feels GREAT the whole time! I knew some who did!!!

Answer 2

First of all, I wish you, your dad, and your family the best during this difficult time. Having had several family members go through chemo treatments, I have been able to see first hand how chemo affects their (and my family's) lives. What I have discovered is it really depends on the type of chemo administered (the drug/dosage and the type of cancer/stage it was detected). Another very important component in all treatment is the type of attitude your father has. Is he optimistic, and believes that he will overcome this disease? Or is he pessimistic and is constantly blaming life for "giving" him this misfortune? It is crucial that you and your father keep upbeat during this time. Create a reward for the both of you when treatment is over and follow through with it.
It is almost inevitable that the chemo may have some minor upsets in his day-to-day life for the next few months (or however long his treatment is). This is not to say, however that he cannot continue to still exercise and such; in fact, his physicians will probably encourage him to continue doing so. It is very good for him both physically and mentally. However, he should not get down on himself when there are days when he is not feeling up to par to exercise. Keep in mind that chemo is essentially a toxic substance that is designed to kill cancerous cells (and unfortunately some "good" cells such as white and red blood cells); which is why your father will more than likely be given some additional drugs to boost these red and white blood cell levels with drugs such as Procrit (red blood cell "booster") and Neupogen (white blood cell "booster"). Low hemoglobin levels (the protein component of red blood cells) is an unfortunate, common side effect with chemo treatment, which causes the fatigue feeling. Low white blood cell levels allows for vulnerability with common diseases, which is why your father needs to take good care of himself.
As for the occasional cocktail is concerned, I do not think that it should have any effect with the chemo; certain other drugs such as the pre- and post-treatment drugs may have slight interactions, but he will probably not be in the mood to drink right before or after treatment! Again, this should be discussed with his doctor(s). Just make sure that his drinking is not extreme (just an occasional cocktail) and that it is not out of depression from the cancer. Again, keep an optimistic attitude; you both can and will get through this. Best of luck.

Answer 3

It's fantastic that he still wants to exercise. He should receive advise from his oncologist before undertaking any rigorous exercise, but if he gets the go ahead . . than by all means. While he is on the chemotherapy he may feel tired or nauseous and may not want to do as much exercising. But for the two weeks he is off the chemo he should be able to do anything that he feels well enough doing. In other words if he wants to exercise . . go for it.

As for social drinking or any cocktail drinking, in general, depending on the type of chemo he takes, he should probably not do this (without permission from his doctor). No one knows if it will intefere with his chemotherapy treatment (the alcohol could interact with the powerful drugs he takes and make them ineffective).

He should also ask his doctor about an occasional drink of wine or beer.

http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/help/default.asp?page=5552

Answer 4

I did four months of chemo from Dec 04 to Mar 05.
Every type and site of cancer is different - so everyone's response is different.
Some people get incredibly sick, others not so much. Try to get him to eat as well as possible, and exercise when he feels like it. Try to be his exercise buddy, maybe.
[ If you had asked me to do any more than walk, I probably would have bitten your nose off. Cancer treatment gave me insomnia, which made me really bi**hy! ]
Alcohol is not recommended, and would probably make him sick, anyway.
Tell your Dad to report ALL side effects, wether big or small.

Answer 5

sorry, alcohol and chemo don't mix. about 3 days after chemo treatments all i wanted to do was sleep, day by day after that i felt like doing almost as much as i did before i got sick. he will just have to wait and see how he reacts to the treatments. i wish you and your family, especially dad, all the luck and blessings. keep your chin up.