1st July-8th July - Understanding Chemotherapy & Chemo worries

I’d already done some reading about the chemotherapy typically involved in treating testicular cancer.  Before I started this reading I’ll admit I was very naive in my understanding of what chemotherapy was.  This was likely a result of me being very lucky in that I’ve never known someone close who’s needed to go through chemo.  However, even if I had previously come across someone who'd been through chemo, I wouldn't have appreciated just how many different types of treatment there are and how different they can be in terms of their administration and side effects.  Consequently, whilst I knew chemo wasn’t a pleasant experience by any means, I probably didn’t appreciate how severe - particularly the type used for testicular cancer – the treatment can be.

The chemo typically used to treat testicular cancer is a combination of three potent chemicals whose names are abbreviated to BEP (Bleomycin, Etoposide and cisplatin [platinum]).  Whilst the treatment is extremely effective in tackling testicular cancer, it can be a brutal beast.  I found this link provided a really useful explanation to how the individual drugs work; http://www.lisamckaywriting.com/chemotherapy-for-dummies-what-does-bep-do/

A single cycle of BEP chemo is given over 21 days with various combinations of the drugs being administered separately on different days with rest days scheduled in between.  Some days you can be wired up to the intravenous drugs on and off for up to 8 hours (yes, 8 hours) as the toxic chemicals flush their way through your body in order to target the cancerous cells.  

I don’t mean that last sentence to sound flippant, but that is basically what chemotherapy is.  It’s toxic drugs designed to kill cancerous cells.  Unfortunately, however, the drugs can't differentiate between the 'good' and 'bad' cells its targeting, and hence the negative side effects where the drugs impact rapidly producing 'good' cells in the body (white blood cells/immune system, hair cells etc).

Typical side effects can include nausea and sickness, extreme lethargy, weight loss, very limited immune system, hair loss, loss of appetite, a metallic taste in the mouth.  Basically it can be like having ongoing flu (proper flu that is, not just man flu!) coupled with the ongoing challenge of needing to continually visit hospital on and off.  I’d read a number of blogs from patients who’d been through BEP chemo and based on some of their first hand experiences I already started to feel queasy at the prospect of some of the things they’d been through.

Based on the diagnosis information I had to date I began preparing myself for a best case scenario of 2 cycles of chemo (over 42 days!) provided it was contained as Stage 1.  I was really keeping everything crossed that it had not spread further as this would likely lead to 3 or 4 cycles or chemo – potentially up to a time frame of 84 days of treatment and side effects.  I just did not want to contemplate this scenario at this stage, but I needed to be aware of it.

During this period I began to make enquiries about whether I could receive chemo privately (I was lucky to have private health cover).  Lots of private hospitals advertised the option of having chemo administered privately, or even from your own how.  “Fantastic” I thought, that would really put my mind at rest to know I was in comfortable surroundings or at home (note: I don’t mean to sound like a spoilt brat at this point, but I thought if ever there was a time to make use of my private health cover, than this was it). 

However, following many phone calls to make enquiries, to cut a long story short I was repetidly told that the BEP chemo is so potent and intensive in the way its administered and with its risk of adverse side effects it could only be given by specialist NHS units.  In that sense, I can count myself extremely lucky to live within half an hour’s drive of a world renowned Testicular Cancer centre at St James’s.  I’d read some chemo blogs where patients have had logistical problems just getting to the hospital in order to receive treatment.  Fortunately that’s one less thing I need to worry about.