Needing help and insight about chemotherapy (Male 27)

[u/RainS__]

Hi, I'm Male (27 years old) reasonably fit and healthy until I got diagnosed with synovial sarcoma about a month ago. I underwent surgery to remove the tumor located at my left armpit. Luckily highly local and no found metastasis from the scans.

My chemo treatment is starting in a few weeks time and will be given daily for 4 days and repeated every 21 days for 5 times. I'm receiving Doxorubicin + Ifosfamide + Mesna. I've searched it's also called the "AIM" protocol.

This is not something I know a lot about and would like to know more before my treatment. Has anyone done a similar protocol? How have you managed the side effects? A quick search online shouts that it's a hell of treatment and I'm bound to have the worst time; making me worried. Any chemo tips, heads up/what to expect, or personal experience with recovery is greatly appreciated.

Update: Thank you all for the generous response. I now get that it would be tough but not impossible especially with your valuable insights. I’ll keep this post updated as i move towards a cancer free life. Stay healthy, take care.

[u/Georgian_B]

I had that same protocol following surgery for synovial sarcoma in the pleura around my left lung. Major fatigue was my most common side effect, but expect that most of the listed ones will show up at some point. Mouth sores were the most painful issue, eating was almost impossible until my doctor prescribed pain medication. Brain fog and fatigue have carried on long after treatment. Keeping emesis bags and tissues nearby is super helpful. Since Chemo can change the ph and impact all bodily fluids, saliva and mucus can become daily issues. The change with those made me more nauseous than I’d been during Chemo because nausea meds didn’t have any impact on the nausea caused by mucus/postnasal drip. My nausea during chemo was relatively managed by the medication regimen, it was mainly present during infusions. Post treatment I have to take Claritin-D daily to help with the head/chest congestion, despite not having allergies. Bathing wipes and a good shower chair are really helpful. If hair loss begins, once it really ramps up (constant shedding everywhere) I’d recommend shaving before you start losing clumps or large patches. I didn’t, and it was super traumatic. Also, chemo did change my taste buds. Some of it only lasted during treatment but a few changes remained following treatment. Once you identify which foods work well for you, stock up. It’s even better if they’re little/no prep. Many infusion days, the only food I could stomach was oriental flavor ramen, eating anything else made me gag. It was easy for even I was home and easy to pack when going to the treatment center. I’d just throw a pack into my bag and take a thermos of hot water so I could make it later. If you have any other questions I’m happy to help!