![]() ![]() It is also important to note that some health plans require patients to pay higher coinsurance or copays for oral chemotherapy compared to intravenous chemotherapy. It’s critical to discuss your treatment options with your medical team. ![]() Oral chemotherapy may be one treatment option for some patients, but not for all. This summer I will be a 15-year survivor. Over the years, my regimen has changed several times but I’ve found the chemo pill to be a good option for me as it’s kept my cancer at bay. My side effects are minimal (I do struggle with diarrhea, fatigue, and neuropathy on occasion), and I’ve not had any cancer growth. I see my oncologist every three months for blood work and receive yearly scans and colonoscopy. Now I’m on a long-term, low-dose regimen, which is considered a maintenance plan. At first, I continued taking it because of nodules in the lung. It allowed me to live my life to the fullest. I could travel when I wanted to and do activities as I was physically able. I missed the cancer center, but I enjoyed the freedom. Once the dosage was adjusted and side effects were few, I liked the idea of oral chemo. I could do things when I wanted to, and I didn’t have to visit the cancer center biweekly. In the beginning, I struggled with not having someone closely monitoring me when I took chemo, but I soon overcame the fear and liked the comfort of being at home. Most importantly at the time, I wondered if the chemo pill would work as effectively. I didn’t have other patients to talk with. What if I had a reaction? Who was I going to talk to about cancer and chemotherapy? What if it didn’t work? I didn’t have the chemo nurses to answer my questions. Chemo from home and not the clinic brought anxieties. This was a big change, and a little overwhelming. When I talked to him about Xeloda, he and I both felt oral chemo was the answer for me. He found a new surgeon and together we made decisions about my care. When chemo and radiation didn’t shrink my tumor and a surgeon told me that surgery wasn’t an option and to get my affairs in order, my oncologist comforted me by assuring me we’d find an answer and make it work. I was excited to discuss this with my oncologist. The thought of taking a chemo pill and his suggestion to take it on a long-term/low-dose regimen intrigued me. I met a cancer survivor/professor from Harvard University that talked to me about an oral chemotherapy drug, Xeloda. Pam Seijo, Stage IV survivor In Search of New Treatment OptionsĪs I was waiting for my next appointment with my oncologist, I attended a conference in Washington, D.C. I knew my body needed the break and I would start back on some chemo soon, but the anxiety of not being on it when I needed it was weighing heavily on me." After a few months of being off chemotherapy, I was feeling healthier however, I started fearing that cancer would take over and I would not make it. ![]() "There weren’t as many options back then compared to today. ![]()
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