Has anyone had Xeloda? My doctor is taking me off Camptosar and the 5FU pump for a break since my tumors are stable and I have been on chemo for 17 cycles. He mentioned the side effects of hand and foot problems. What should I use for my hands and feet?
I have stage IV colon cancer with mets to my lungs, diagnosed April 2004.
Thank you for any help.

I've taken Xeloda for six weeks along with radiation prior to surgery. I had no side effects even though it is the pill form of the 5-flur IV that I'm told has many side effects. Currently my cancer is "gone" after surgery but to be sure my doctor wants to put me back on Xeloda for six months. One missed cancer cell can mean re-occurrence. I am somewhat concerned because the dosage is more than twice what I was taking before my tumor was removed from my colon. I hope I will have no side-effects but right now I don't know. The most common are cracked skin on hands and feet; general fatigue; nausea and some hair thinning but none of these happened for me. However, I can tell you from my experience that Xeloda and radiation reduced the size of my tumor and killed 98% prior to sugery. More importantly it stopped the cancer from moving beyond it's location. I am at home recovering from surgery still concerned about taking additional Xedola at higer levels but it appears to have been effective in my case. Good Luck to you!

I've taken Xeloda for six weeks along with radiation prior to surgery. I had no side effects even though it is the pill form of the 5-flur IV that I'm told has many side effects. Currently my cancer is "gone" after surgery but to be sure my doctor wants to put me back on Xeloda for six months. One missed cancer cell can mean re-occurrence. I am somewhat concerned because the dosage is more than twice what I was taking before my tumor was removed from my colon. I hope I will have no side-effects but right now I don't know. The most common are cracked skin on hands and feet; general fatigue; nausea and some hair thinning but none of these happened for me. However, I can tell you from my experience that Xeloda and radiation reduced the size of my tumor and killed 98% prior to sugery. More importantly it stopped the cancer from moving beyond it's location. I am at home recovering from surgery still concerned about taking additional Xedola at higer levels but it appears to have been effective in my case. Good Luck to you!

I was on IV 5fu with radiation before my surgery, and my post operative chemo is xeloda. I haven't really noticed any side effects so far-- my first cycle (on two weeks, off one week) I noticed tingling and itchiness in my hands. But I've been on for...4 cycles now, and I haven't noticed it again. My doctor just said to keep my hands and feet moisturized a lot. I've been using one of those hand kits with shea butter and cotton gloves. It seems to be working okay, and at the very least it feels nice. I think one of the big things to remember is to avoid friction and overly hot water.