Strange Chemotherapy Symptoms

[rubyellen46]

I am 46, and have stage 1C ovarian cancer.  I had a staging and hysterectomy on 11/18, and started chemotherapy on 12/23.  I am on round three of chemotherapy (carboplatinum and taxol).  I take OxyContin for pain, and Xanax for anxiety.  The Oxycontin is for severe muscle aches in my legs and arms in the 3-5 days following chemotherapy, and i take it periodicallly in very small dosages (.05 a day) in the second week for pain.  I am also on estrodil .05.

I have developed strange and scary symptoms during chemotherapy.  I have chest pressure and pain (center of chest), and pressure in my abdomen.  It has become difficult to even wear a bra. When I eat, I can not eat very much because of the pressure.  I had a normal mammogram.   What is going on?  

I even went to the Er once because I thought I was having a heart attack, but had a normal EKG and X-ray.  

[Sunes]

Hi. I had a reaction like you when I got my trial chemo to see if everything will go fine...and I developped severe chest pain and the doctor discontinued my treatment due to severe allergy. I have a high pain tolerance but this was scary. Don't wait just act now.
I can't take any chemo and they are experimenting with other unconventional treatments as a preliminary trial run for people who do not tolerate chemo.
Take care, Sunes

[Annekathryn Goodman, M.D.]

Dear Rubyellen,

Thank you for your information. Chemotherapy can be really rough for some people. Taxol can cause painful muscle and bone aches that occur about a week after treatment.
Sometimes chest pressure can be a sign of an allergic reaction. it is also possible that severe anxiety plays a role in your symptoms.

The first thing you need to do is meet with your doctor fro a full physical exam and lab evaluation ( especially checking calcium, magnesium , phosphorus - where 9imbalances can lead to muscle spasms)

You should ask your doctor about the possibility of this being an allergic reaction. Should you be on more premeditation with steroid, benadryl, and ranitidine?

If your evaluation is fine, then it may be useful to consider other supportive interventions to help you such as counseling, medication changes to help with the anxiety. Acupuncture can also be be helpful for stress, muscle pain, and aching.

take care