POST chemo

Dr. Goodman and all,

Is it normal to experience joint and  muscle pain 3 weeks after the a final chemo?  6 rounds carbo taxol ended in late August but still there is some joint pain and stiffness.

Any cause for concern?

Thanks

[Annekathryn Goodman, M.D.]

Dear Carey,
Yes!  I find the joint/muscle side effects of taxol based chemo to be mysterious. There are two different kinds of experiences that my patients tell me about:

1-severe joint and muscle pain about a week after each treatment

2- the development of an arthritis syndrome after chemotherapy is completed.

I do not know if these 2 situations are related or have a completely different mechanism of action.

I did a little search on this. Interestingly, taxol has been used experimentally to treat rheumatoid arthritis. It seems to inhibit the formation of collagen hat is involved in joint deformities.  I did not see too much else int he literature in my quick search. I have wondered whether stopping taxol uncovers a predisposition to arthritis. Or perhaps it is completely unrelated and the joint stiffness is due to the loss of estrogen that comes with surgery.

best wishes