r/sarcoma • u/imperpu • Jul 28 '25
Support and Stories Chemo advice for gemcitabine and docetaxel
Hi friends, posting because the last relevant thread was over a year ago and I'm starting this after a big recurrance. Hope it's okay.
Can anyone give me the low down on their experience with gemcitabine and docetaxel? I'm starting a new regime with them tomorrow (day 1 gem, day 8 gem and tax, rest until day 21). I was previously on the red devil and ifosfamide which did tremendously well, but my lung mets decided during surveillance break to come back massively so we are hoping gem and tax will stop the party they're having and show them who is boss. Trying to mentally feel positive and prepared as much as I can, as my treating team were really shocked my growth has been so aggressive given my previous great response to AIM and age (34). So, gotta try something new.
I've heard that gemcitabine and docetaxel won't be anywhere near as strong side effects to manage like AIM was, but to still expect to be knocked out day 9. Any experience and advice with this combo? Thank you in advance.
3
u/Dremscap Jul 28 '25
Hey,
Not a doctor - just worked closely with a sarcoma specialist for a few years.
Gem/docetaxel is generally a maintenance therapy and is usually quite tolerable!
Some people transition to single agent gemcitabine if the taxane based therapy starts to cause numbness/tingling (or other toxicities). In our clinic, we had a nickname for gemcitabine: Gentlecitabine.
Gem/tax is still chemo, but it is mostly much easier to tolerate than dox/ifos!