Taxol Toe

The other day as I put on my sandals I noticed a very wide white area on the big toe of my left foot. Today when I went in to have my port flushed ( yup, I still get a flush every 6-8 weeks) I asked my nurse about my toe. After she looked at my foot she said that the Taxol ( placitaxel) treatments I completed in April had caused my toe problem. She said that many patients on Taxol type chemos experience issues where the nail separates from the nail base.

So how big is this problem? I came home and did a quick Google Search of placitaxel nail effects and sure enough there were a large number of journal articles ( 313,000) some with photos of toes that looked like mine.

Here is a neat word I learned which relates to Taxol and nails:

onycholysis on·y·chol·y·sis (ŏn'ĭ-kŏl'ĭ-sĭs)
n.
The separation or loosening of a fingernail or toenail from its nail bed.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Dee
Every Day is a Blessing ! Even if you find your nails are doing funky things!