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Anti Nausea Remedies for Chemotherapy

Suffering from cancer can be a long, hard and draining event. Cancer is often treated with chemotherapy, which is a drug cocktail intended to kill off all of the cancer cells. Chemotherapy often produces moderate to severe nausea, which can last for hours or even days after a chemo treatment. There are things you can do to decrease the nausea that you feel and help you to function somewhat normally while you fight your cancer.

  1. Zofran

    • Zofran (ondansetron) is the medication most commonly given to people currently on chemotherapy. It is administered once a day to combat nausea in chemo patients, with a success rate of approximately 90 percent. Some patients on Zofran have no relief from the nausea and suffer from headaches and other abdominal discomforts while taking the drug. It comes in several doses, from 2 to 4 mg, and can be given either through a pill or an IV. Zofran and similar drugs are serotonin antagonists; they attack the serotonin in the body, which mitigates the effects of nausea. Steroids and dopamine agonists are two other classes of drug that are prescribed to fight nausea.

    Ginger

    • Ginger can be consumed by eating ginger cookies, drinking ginger tea, and ingesting ginger tablets and lozenges. These come in several different doses and should be taken according to the manufacturer's product labeling. Ginger is a natural product that has nausea-calming effects, and it can usually be taken in addition to other products to reduce your discomfort.

    Marijuana

    • Marijuana is drug that can significantly reduce the effects of nausea from chemotherapy. Marijuana can be administered one of two ways. It can be smoked--either rolled into a cigarette, or through a pipe or a bong. Or, it can be cooked into foods such as brownies and ingested that way. The THC (which is the active ingredient in marijuana) is effective at blocking the chemical receptors that cause nausea.

    Tips

    • It will probably take more than one treatment to make your nausea manageable, and you may have to try several combinations to find what works for you. Possessing or consuming marijuana without a prescription from a physician is illegal and can land you in jail; although some communities have passed medical marijuana laws, the possession of marijuana is also a federal offense and can be prosecuted by federal agents. Do not take any medication or supplement without first consulting your oncologist.

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