Braf mek treatment for joint pain

Hi Rebekah. Sorry to hear your husband is having so much pain from his treatment. Have you tried the normal over the counter pain killers? Aleve is great for joint pain and to help reduce swelling. There are also some prescription pain killers like toradol or tramadol that don't have quite as much potency as other narcotics, making them more tolerable to people who don't like the feeling of strong pain meds.

If you want more natural treatment ideas, I have read great things about turmeric for joint pain (and it has anti-cancer effects) so you should look into that. A good long soak in a warm bath is always relaxing and helps with sore muscles. If you want to do a foot and ankle soak, you could add in Ginger, Frankincense, Rosemary, Chamomile, Peppermint, and Lavender essential oils – all have pain relieving properties. 

Before you do any of the above, please check with your oncologist about your husband's side effects and what you can (and can't) do to relieve the pain. They probably know what will work best with the treatment he's receiving. 

Hope things improve soon! 

WithinMySkin

Hi Rebekah. Sorry to hear your husband is having so much pain from his treatment. Have you tried the normal over the counter pain killers? Aleve is great for joint pain and to help reduce swelling. There are also some prescription pain killers like toradol or tramadol that don't have quite as much potency as other narcotics, making them more tolerable to people who don't like the feeling of strong pain meds.

If you want more natural treatment ideas, I have read great things about turmeric for joint pain (and it has anti-cancer effects) so you should look into that. A good long soak in a warm bath is always relaxing and helps with sore muscles. If you want to do a foot and ankle soak, you could add in Ginger, Frankincense, Rosemary, Chamomile, Peppermint, and Lavender essential oils – all have pain relieving properties. 

Before you do any of the above, please check with your oncologist about your husband's side effects and what you can (and can't) do to relieve the pain. They probably know what will work best with the treatment he's receiving. 

Hope things improve soon! 

WithinMySkin

Hi Rebekah. Sorry to hear your husband is having so much pain from his treatment. Have you tried the normal over the counter pain killers? Aleve is great for joint pain and to help reduce swelling. There are also some prescription pain killers like toradol or tramadol that don't have quite as much potency as other narcotics, making them more tolerable to people who don't like the feeling of strong pain meds.

If you want more natural treatment ideas, I have read great things about turmeric for joint pain (and it has anti-cancer effects) so you should look into that. A good long soak in a warm bath is always relaxing and helps with sore muscles. If you want to do a foot and ankle soak, you could add in Ginger, Frankincense, Rosemary, Chamomile, Peppermint, and Lavender essential oils – all have pain relieving properties. 

Before you do any of the above, please check with your oncologist about your husband's side effects and what you can (and can't) do to relieve the pain. They probably know what will work best with the treatment he's receiving. 

Hope things improve soon! 

WithinMySkin

Hi Rebekah,

Being on this board implies your husband is also battling melanoma.  I know my doc always checks my ankles for swelling at every check-up so before writing this off to inflammation, be sure there is not something else in play.  Inflammation seems to be the universal problem with so many pain and discomfort issues, so I agree with previous responder, anti-inflammatories like Aleve, and perhaps to a lesser degree natural anti-inflammatories like Tumeric should be looked at.  As one who has dealt with a lot of pain, there is no shame in using pain relief.  I was like your husband.  I'm over it now.  As an aside, while on immunotherapy last year, my doc prescribed low-dose prednisone to counter side-effects before they happened.  At the time I was suffering with debilitating lower back pain unrelated to my cancer.  MRI revealed inflammation and degeneration in several spinal discs.  I looked at a procedure to actually go in and cut the nerves to the area to eliminate the pain.  But low and behold, after a week on Prednisone my back pain almost completely disappeared and now a year after going completely off the steroids my back pain really never came back.  Steroids get a bad rap but wow, I am a believer that powerful anti-inflammatories can heal a multitude of sins.

Gary

Hi Rebekah,

Being on this board implies your husband is also battling melanoma.  I know my doc always checks my ankles for swelling at every check-up so before writing this off to inflammation, be sure there is not something else in play.  Inflammation seems to be the universal problem with so many pain and discomfort issues, so I agree with previous responder, anti-inflammatories like Aleve, and perhaps to a lesser degree natural anti-inflammatories like Tumeric should be looked at.  As one who has dealt with a lot of pain, there is no shame in using pain relief.  I was like your husband.  I'm over it now.  As an aside, while on immunotherapy last year, my doc prescribed low-dose prednisone to counter side-effects before they happened.  At the time I was suffering with debilitating lower back pain unrelated to my cancer.  MRI revealed inflammation and degeneration in several spinal discs.  I looked at a procedure to actually go in and cut the nerves to the area to eliminate the pain.  But low and behold, after a week on Prednisone my back pain almost completely disappeared and now a year after going completely off the steroids my back pain really never came back.  Steroids get a bad rap but wow, I am a believer that powerful anti-inflammatories can heal a multitude of sins.

Gary

Hi Rebekah,

Being on this board implies your husband is also battling melanoma.  I know my doc always checks my ankles for swelling at every check-up so before writing this off to inflammation, be sure there is not something else in play.  Inflammation seems to be the universal problem with so many pain and discomfort issues, so I agree with previous responder, anti-inflammatories like Aleve, and perhaps to a lesser degree natural anti-inflammatories like Tumeric should be looked at.  As one who has dealt with a lot of pain, there is no shame in using pain relief.  I was like your husband.  I'm over it now.  As an aside, while on immunotherapy last year, my doc prescribed low-dose prednisone to counter side-effects before they happened.  At the time I was suffering with debilitating lower back pain unrelated to my cancer.  MRI revealed inflammation and degeneration in several spinal discs.  I looked at a procedure to actually go in and cut the nerves to the area to eliminate the pain.  But low and behold, after a week on Prednisone my back pain almost completely disappeared and now a year after going completely off the steroids my back pain really never came back.  Steroids get a bad rap but wow, I am a believer that powerful anti-inflammatories can heal a multitude of sins.

Gary

Is the pain from nivo/ pembro?

after 6 months of keytruda I had excruciating pain in my entire body except hand and feet

i took prednisone 25 mg per day and stopped  treatment. As the pain improved I started keytruda again but the pain came back worse than ever and I had to stop

my onc sent me to a rheumatologist who did not want to give me remicade which would have reversed the inflammatory effects of keytruda. His reason was that there is a small risk of MS TB and infections

so he put me on 200mg ketoprofen and 200 plaquenil after screening me with the eye doctor and over time it has improved tremendously. ( I never started keytruda again but there were no new mets in 6 months) the plaquenil takes 26 weeks to reach maximum effect so I still have 16 weeks to go but I have reduced the prednisone down 1 mg every 2 weeks till at the moment I am on 7 mg per day

i tried tumeric and sulphur tablets and all the homeopathic anti inflammatiries and as my doctor said I was just WAY beyond that and they did not help at all

anne-louise

Is the pain from nivo/ pembro?

after 6 months of keytruda I had excruciating pain in my entire body except hand and feet

i took prednisone 25 mg per day and stopped  treatment. As the pain improved I started keytruda again but the pain came back worse than ever and I had to stop

my onc sent me to a rheumatologist who did not want to give me remicade which would have reversed the inflammatory effects of keytruda. His reason was that there is a small risk of MS TB and infections

so he put me on 200mg ketoprofen and 200 plaquenil after screening me with the eye doctor and over time it has improved tremendously. ( I never started keytruda again but there were no new mets in 6 months) the plaquenil takes 26 weeks to reach maximum effect so I still have 16 weeks to go but I have reduced the prednisone down 1 mg every 2 weeks till at the moment I am on 7 mg per day

i tried tumeric and sulphur tablets and all the homeopathic anti inflammatiries and as my doctor said I was just WAY beyond that and they did not help at all

anne-louise

Is the pain from nivo/ pembro?

after 6 months of keytruda I had excruciating pain in my entire body except hand and feet

i took prednisone 25 mg per day and stopped  treatment. As the pain improved I started keytruda again but the pain came back worse than ever and I had to stop

my onc sent me to a rheumatologist who did not want to give me remicade which would have reversed the inflammatory effects of keytruda. His reason was that there is a small risk of MS TB and infections

so he put me on 200mg ketoprofen and 200 plaquenil after screening me with the eye doctor and over time it has improved tremendously. ( I never started keytruda again but there were no new mets in 6 months) the plaquenil takes 26 weeks to reach maximum effect so I still have 16 weeks to go but I have reduced the prednisone down 1 mg every 2 weeks till at the moment I am on 7 mg per day

i tried tumeric and sulphur tablets and all the homeopathic anti inflammatiries and as my doctor said I was just WAY beyond that and they did not help at all

anne-louise

Hi Rebekah – my husband also has joint pain from taking Dabrafenib (2+years).  He takes both 10 mg hydrocortisone and 75 mg Extended Release indomethacin twice a day for his joint pain.  Still has a bit of pain and stiffness but is able to move about ok.  Hope your husband responds well to his treatment and can get some relief from the joint pain.

Ann

Hi Rebekah – my husband also has joint pain from taking Dabrafenib (2+years).  He takes both 10 mg hydrocortisone and 75 mg Extended Release indomethacin twice a day for his joint pain.  Still has a bit of pain and stiffness but is able to move about ok.  Hope your husband responds well to his treatment and can get some relief from the joint pain.

Ann

Hi Rebekah – my husband also has joint pain from taking Dabrafenib (2+years).  He takes both 10 mg hydrocortisone and 75 mg Extended Release indomethacin twice a day for his joint pain.  Still has a bit of pain and stiffness but is able to move about ok.  Hope your husband responds well to his treatment and can get some relief from the joint pain.

Ann

Hi rebekah

this time last year I went through the worst joint pain and swelling in my knees that I've ever experienced. It came off the back of being on pd1 for 6 months with progression to going straight back onto braf mek. I had been on the combi before with only minor fever. What hit me this time was very unexpected. My knees were so swollen I couldn't bend them. I also ended up on prednisone in the end it took the last twelve months to become stable on these drugs again.  At the beginning we cut back my dose to once a week. Over the last year we've built up to 5days on and two days off. This seems to be a working combination for me. I'm off the prednisone and the anti inflammatories. My disease is still stable so that's a good thing too. I hope your husband is on the mend soon. The anti inflammatories and prednisone really helped me.

Hi rebekah

this time last year I went through the worst joint pain and swelling in my knees that I've ever experienced. It came off the back of being on pd1 for 6 months with progression to going straight back onto braf mek. I had been on the combi before with only minor fever. What hit me this time was very unexpected. My knees were so swollen I couldn't bend them. I also ended up on prednisone in the end it took the last twelve months to become stable on these drugs again.  At the beginning we cut back my dose to once a week. Over the last year we've built up to 5days on and two days off. This seems to be a working combination for me. I'm off the prednisone and the anti inflammatories. My disease is still stable so that's a good thing too. I hope your husband is on the mend soon. The anti inflammatories and prednisone really helped me.

Hi rebekah

this time last year I went through the worst joint pain and swelling in my knees that I've ever experienced. It came off the back of being on pd1 for 6 months with progression to going straight back onto braf mek. I had been on the combi before with only minor fever. What hit me this time was very unexpected. My knees were so swollen I couldn't bend them. I also ended up on prednisone in the end it took the last twelve months to become stable on these drugs again.  At the beginning we cut back my dose to once a week. Over the last year we've built up to 5days on and two days off. This seems to be a working combination for me. I'm off the prednisone and the anti inflammatories. My disease is still stable so that's a good thing too. I hope your husband is on the mend soon. The anti inflammatories and prednisone really helped me.

My oncologist doesn’t believe in suffering either…whenever I have an issue I’ve been instructed to call right away. I didn’t want to take anything at first for pain, I kept believing i could do it on my own. You don’t receive any trophies for being the toughest with this disease…only he can determine what he wants to do but he would be much more comfortable looking for some sort of relief with anti-inflammatories at the least.

Good luck and update when you can.

My oncologist doesn’t believe in suffering either…whenever I have an issue I’ve been instructed to call right away. I didn’t want to take anything at first for pain, I kept believing i could do it on my own. You don’t receive any trophies for being the toughest with this disease…only he can determine what he wants to do but he would be much more comfortable looking for some sort of relief with anti-inflammatories at the least.

Good luck and update when you can.

My oncologist doesn’t believe in suffering either…whenever I have an issue I’ve been instructed to call right away. I didn’t want to take anything at first for pain, I kept believing i could do it on my own. You don’t receive any trophies for being the toughest with this disease…only he can determine what he wants to do but he would be much more comfortable looking for some sort of relief with anti-inflammatories at the least.

Good luck and update when you can.