Post Efudex Treatment - The Dumb Way

I am really embarrased about this but things were going so well and I thought I was healed enough to use something besides the bacitracin, vaseline and hydrocortisione on my face.

So I put on some Nivea creme with E and jojoba as well as some other ingredients like alcohol, glycol etc...

No burning at all until about three hours later I looked in the mirror and was as red as a beet.  I felt really stupid.

 I washed it all off and I was burning just like the peak of treatment again.  Now I was really mad at myself because I thought I messed myself back into the dark ages.

Well anyway, I put on the the top 3 again and healed pretty much overnight and am back on track but I would have been better off if I had never strayed.   

 All in all I think I cost myself one more weekend at home and two more nights of messy pillowcases.  

 Sunday night I get my good sheets back again (fingers crossed)

Jef1963,

    What was your treatment protocol ? I start tonite with 1 application per day for 14 days. I know it has to be done, but I am really nervous. Also, have you ever heard of Photodynamic Therpay. t I've read, it seems comparable to Carac, however, my dermatologist AND my promary care doctor both said to use Carac (both have little experience with PDT).

 Brian

Also, have you ever heard of Photodynamic Therpay. t I've read, it seems comparable to Carac,

Hi Brian,  the "blue light" therapy can be a good choice for "some" cases.  In fact, I am very fair and my arms and hands had so many AKs that I am doing the 5-FU solution (note our recent posts). But for my face, my dermo does do the aminolevulinic acid and light therapy and I will be doing that next.  It can be much less "trauma" and is very selective targeting only the "bad" DNA and the preventing the RNA developement, hence killing off those areas.

It may be that your dermo just does not have the light or not trained in the therapy (my doc actually was involved in trials serveral years ago and uses it for many cases).  It can be less time in healing/errosions, but every case is different.

Just google aminolevulinic acid and you will find lots of info.  In fact here is a basic info page.link below.  Good luck, Whitey

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=44

Hi,

I would read the "Efudex the easy way thread" all the way through as there is some conflict halfway through that gets resolved.  

I've learned my lesson to stick only with Vaseline, Bacitraycin (which are both very similar to the white petrolatum base that makes up efudex)

At some point I will rewrite the Easy way post to make it clearer. 

I am about done with this whole routine but will stick around to help others as much as I can.

dumb things - well I think we all do dumb things because we are trying to do the right thing.  Nothing wrong with being optimistic or hopeful.  But I may have done a really dumb thing too.  My doctor told me to use the Efudex on my cheeks, nose and forehead.  But I thought, why not do the whole face (chin)?  Maybe she missed something. Besides, she said that if there is no damage, the TX will not affect good skin.  Well the day after I started, the chin had two big areas of red that have gotten continually worse.  Far worse than any area on my face that I was supposed to treat. I have very sensitive skin, and I know that certain foods "seem" to bother it - NOT substaniated by any allergy tests - they can't find anything that shows an allergy or intolerance.   However, the night before I started the TX, I had a bowl of tomato soup in a restaurant.  It was highly concentrated soup - not the usual Campbell soup variety.  Nothing the next morning - so I just started the Efudex.  That night I had red spots in the same area that I sometimes get patches after eating certain things.  I did debate with myself and then decided that maybe those patches have always been related to sun damage - so I continued.  However, so far, none of the other areas of my face have gotten as bad - so now I think that I started the treatment on irritated skin - thus the dramatic response. I have stopped treating that area - I can always try that area again if I need to - but it is pretty bad.  I am putting Triple Antibiotic ointment on it and will call the the doctor if it doesn't improve this weekend.

I have been reading a little bit about the Levulan and the photo treatment.  I would like to hear more about it from those who have tried it.

Also folks refer to Efudex and Carac. One message stated that they used Efudex and later tried Carac.  Aren't they the same thing, just made by different companys?  However, the Carac company stated that you can use lotion after a few hours, whereas Valeant (efudex) says not to put anything on it.  All this can get so confusing. 

Carac is a.005 solution while Efudex is a .05 (or 5%) solution of the active ingredient flouracil.

They have different bases.

Carac does state that the medicine is absorbed in 2 hours while you have to call Valeant's hotline where they would say 3 hours.

Like in most things there are more gray areas than black and white with this treatment.

Many different protocols for many different people with many different conditions and goals.

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 "Carac is a.005 solution while Efudex is a .05 (or 5%) solution of the active ingredient flouracil."

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Jef, the correct spelling is fluorouracil - for those who are learning about the drug's use and effects.  Again, these message boards are fine for good info on experiences and general suggestions, BUT, if you are about to begin a treatment with these very strong cancer drugs, this is CHEMO and you need to learn about it by researching along with consultations with your doctors.

Here is another link with "basic" info on fluorouracil (Carac, Efudex, Fluoroplex):

http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=18

Whitey

Also, Carac is 0.5% also in most topical treatments, Efudex the same, just brand names.  I used a generic and it was simply Fluorouracil  .5%, or 5-FU for short.  So don't know of any other difference.

Whitey

Always,

The treatment (TX) can have many side effects (SX), but you and your doctor are the ones to discuss options and course of TX, not any discussion boards on the net.  Good luck, it will be over soon.

Whitey