› Forums › General Melanoma Community › Appetite stimulant suggestions?
- This topic has 12 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 9 months ago by
cbeckner98.
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- July 31, 2015 at 2:45 am
Hi all,
I've written a few times – my Dad has stage 4 cancer in his brain and lungs and went through a course of whole brain radiation in late June. Since he is BRAF negative, he just had his first dose of Keytruda/Pembro on July 20th – after tapering from steroids in early to mid-July. In any case, he has been extremely fatigued since and has lost almost 15 lbs in the last two weeks (since everything tastes metallic and/or makes him nauseous). Given all of this, has anyone had luck with the non-steroidal appetite stimulants? Has anyone tried Dronabinol/Marinol (a version of marijuana)? For those of you taking immunotherapy/anti-PD1 drugs after steroids, how long did the effects of the steroids linger on? I would appreciate any recommendations on food which tastes good – beyond watermelon and pineapple, he isn't eating much (and no protein). I'm worried that they are going to have to put him on an IV if he doesn't start eating and gaining back some weight.
Also, he just had his first post-radiation MRI on his brain today – 2 tumors were the same, 2 tumors were a bit smaller, and one bigger tumor in the frontal area increased in size. Disappointing… We are still holding out hope that Keytruda will make a difference – finally hoping for some good news in the midst of this!!!
Thank you as always,
Carrie
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- July 31, 2015 at 4:38 am
There are non-steroidal medications that a doctor can prescribe to stimulate appetite.
Have you tried the nutritional supplements, such as Ensure? They come in different flavors–chocolate, strawberry, vanila.
Home-made smoothies may be another option. There are lot of recipes on the internet. They can be either vegetable or fruit based, and you can add a powdered protein supplement.
You could also add a powdered proten supplement to mllk shakes.
What about soups, cold summer soups or hot?
I hope this helps. Best wishes for your dad, you and your family.
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- July 31, 2015 at 4:38 am
There are non-steroidal medications that a doctor can prescribe to stimulate appetite.
Have you tried the nutritional supplements, such as Ensure? They come in different flavors–chocolate, strawberry, vanila.
Home-made smoothies may be another option. There are lot of recipes on the internet. They can be either vegetable or fruit based, and you can add a powdered protein supplement.
You could also add a powdered proten supplement to mllk shakes.
What about soups, cold summer soups or hot?
I hope this helps. Best wishes for your dad, you and your family.
-
- July 31, 2015 at 4:38 am
There are non-steroidal medications that a doctor can prescribe to stimulate appetite.
Have you tried the nutritional supplements, such as Ensure? They come in different flavors–chocolate, strawberry, vanila.
Home-made smoothies may be another option. There are lot of recipes on the internet. They can be either vegetable or fruit based, and you can add a powdered protein supplement.
You could also add a powdered proten supplement to mllk shakes.
What about soups, cold summer soups or hot?
I hope this helps. Best wishes for your dad, you and your family.
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- July 31, 2015 at 3:07 pm
Hi Carrie,
Sounds like my mom is in the same boat as your dad. Stage IV mucosal melanoma with mets to the liver and brain. She is also BRAF negative, and will have her 3rd Keytruda infusion next week. She had initial radiation treatments on the primary, and specific radiation on the one tumor in the brain. She has not been on steroids since the initial 3-day course after the brain radiation.
She has been very tired as well, and her appetitie is probably 1/3 what it used to be, and certain foods tend to really mess with her gut.
So, I don't have an answer or suggestions, but feel for you guys, and will keep tabs on this topic to see if anyone has any good info.
Take Care,
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- July 31, 2015 at 3:07 pm
Hi Carrie,
Sounds like my mom is in the same boat as your dad. Stage IV mucosal melanoma with mets to the liver and brain. She is also BRAF negative, and will have her 3rd Keytruda infusion next week. She had initial radiation treatments on the primary, and specific radiation on the one tumor in the brain. She has not been on steroids since the initial 3-day course after the brain radiation.
She has been very tired as well, and her appetitie is probably 1/3 what it used to be, and certain foods tend to really mess with her gut.
So, I don't have an answer or suggestions, but feel for you guys, and will keep tabs on this topic to see if anyone has any good info.
Take Care,
-
- July 31, 2015 at 3:07 pm
Hi Carrie,
Sounds like my mom is in the same boat as your dad. Stage IV mucosal melanoma with mets to the liver and brain. She is also BRAF negative, and will have her 3rd Keytruda infusion next week. She had initial radiation treatments on the primary, and specific radiation on the one tumor in the brain. She has not been on steroids since the initial 3-day course after the brain radiation.
She has been very tired as well, and her appetitie is probably 1/3 what it used to be, and certain foods tend to really mess with her gut.
So, I don't have an answer or suggestions, but feel for you guys, and will keep tabs on this topic to see if anyone has any good info.
Take Care,
-
- July 31, 2015 at 5:51 pm
The only thing that tasted 'normal' to my dad was vanilla, so we made him lots of vanilla milkshakes: Blend a cup of fortified milk with vanilla ice cream. For fortified milk, we did one quart full-fat milk with one cup powdered milk mixed in. The protein supplement powders tended to be too grainy for my dad. You could also try adding chocolate sauce, bananas, and so forth to vary the flavor; as I said, my dad only liked the vanilla. There are other shake recipes here:
http://cancer.about.com/od/chemotherapysideeffects/a/Recipes-For-High-Calorie-Shakes.htm
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- August 1, 2015 at 3:11 am
Thank you all! It sounds like creativity around milkshakes and smoothies may help us get through this phase. Appreciate the ideas – who doesn't like a cookie and cream milkshake, right? Sounds amazing!
Thanks again,
Carrie
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- August 1, 2015 at 3:11 am
Thank you all! It sounds like creativity around milkshakes and smoothies may help us get through this phase. Appreciate the ideas – who doesn't like a cookie and cream milkshake, right? Sounds amazing!
Thanks again,
Carrie
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- August 1, 2015 at 3:11 am
Thank you all! It sounds like creativity around milkshakes and smoothies may help us get through this phase. Appreciate the ideas – who doesn't like a cookie and cream milkshake, right? Sounds amazing!
Thanks again,
Carrie
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- July 31, 2015 at 5:51 pm
The only thing that tasted 'normal' to my dad was vanilla, so we made him lots of vanilla milkshakes: Blend a cup of fortified milk with vanilla ice cream. For fortified milk, we did one quart full-fat milk with one cup powdered milk mixed in. The protein supplement powders tended to be too grainy for my dad. You could also try adding chocolate sauce, bananas, and so forth to vary the flavor; as I said, my dad only liked the vanilla. There are other shake recipes here:
http://cancer.about.com/od/chemotherapysideeffects/a/Recipes-For-High-Calorie-Shakes.htm
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- July 31, 2015 at 5:51 pm
The only thing that tasted 'normal' to my dad was vanilla, so we made him lots of vanilla milkshakes: Blend a cup of fortified milk with vanilla ice cream. For fortified milk, we did one quart full-fat milk with one cup powdered milk mixed in. The protein supplement powders tended to be too grainy for my dad. You could also try adding chocolate sauce, bananas, and so forth to vary the flavor; as I said, my dad only liked the vanilla. There are other shake recipes here:
http://cancer.about.com/od/chemotherapysideeffects/a/Recipes-For-High-Calorie-Shakes.htm
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