Circulation problems post chemo

[mikeygti]

Hi All,

Like many of us, post-chemo I've had some numbness and tingling in both my fingers and toes. The most anoying thing,has been that numerous times during the day,some,or ALL of my fingers from the second knuckle down to the tip,will turn waxy white.It's like they are dead ! The only way to "revive" them,is to run them under warm water for up to 5 minutes.Talk about bothersome. Any one else experience anything similar ?

Thanks !

[Jens]

Hi Mikey.

I have a little - but not as bad as yours. I had (and still a little every now and then, but it's really not much...) some sort of pain-attack in my fingers. My onko said it was bleomycin induced vascular damange and it would pass quicker than cisplatin induced neuropathy. And it has decreased markedly - as he said it would.
I had a little "tingling" during and after BEP. Luckily it seems to have disappeared.

I think that what you have, is described as "Raynaud-like phenomen" and is a well known sideeffect. You can read some more here. (note there is a free .pdf version of the full article.)

I hope it improves soon!

Best wishes
Jens

[Vinny]

Welcome to Raynaud's! In addition to what Jens posted, the US National Institutes of Health has a good article here. It works out very well if you're American, British, or French, as your fingers turn various shades of red, white and blue. Happens especially when the weather turns suddenly cooler - might even be stress related. My fingers feel like they're swollen, yet no nerve sensation whatsoever.

For a while this past winter, I was carrying handmade handwarmers in my pocket (just some cloth sachets filled with rice). Stick 'em in the microwave for a couple of minutes and you've can keep your hands toasty for a while. Recharge as needed.

It's been in the upper 70s/low 80s here, but we had a cold front pass through and I got some chills over my body and the raynaud's immediately flared up.

[mikeygti]

Thanks for the info,Vinny.

Pretty much sums it up.