Chemotherapy: What can I do for nausea or vomiting? | Norton Cancer Institute

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07/09/23

Mary Anderson,Oral Chemotherapy Registered Nurse Clinician, with the Norton Cancer Institute, explains the different types of chemotherapy treatments available and what to expect while going through treatments.

Compared to 20-25 years ago, we don't see people vomit as much as they did before with chemotherapy. There are several things that you can do to help your nausea at home.

First of all, take your medication as prescribed by your doctor and also simple measures such as calming your environment, turning off the TV, turning on relaxing music putting a cool washcloth on your forehead. Also, you can avoid foods that don't smell good to you. Eating foods that are cool instead of hot give off less of an odor which might make it easier to eat. You can try ginger ale or ginger tea. Some people have said that ginger is also very beneficial for helping their nausea.

Now if you do get sick and you do vomit, you want to slowly reintroduce foods to your diet. Start off with clear liquids such as water broth, non-caffeinated soda. Once you keep that down you can advance to soft foods such as pudding, gelatin or yogurt. Then slowly work up to solid foods. If you’re vomiting persists for 24 hours after taking all these measures, you want to call your doctor's office.

Learn more about chemotherapy https://www.nortonhealthcare.com/chemotherapy