Oncura

FLOT: what to expect, day by day

Gastric14-day cycle5 effects documented

A strong four-drug regimen given before and after surgery. Expect meaningful drops in blood counts (with infection risk), diarrhea, and cold-triggered nerve tingling.

5-FU + leucovorin + oxaliplatin + docetaxel every 2 weeks (perioperative for gastric/GEJ cancer). An intensive four-drug regimen; low blood counts and infection risk are the leading concerns.

Timed to the cycle

Day 1 is the day of your infusion. These are the effects a retrievable document ties to a day range for this regimen — not a prediction about you.

Neutropenia

Typically around days 7–14

A drop in infection-fighting white cells — the most common serious effect; a white-cell booster is often used.

Call your team urgently: A temperature of 100.4°F (38.0°C) or higher — an emergency.

severe in 51% · Timing from the manufacturer’s prescribing information · from Docetaxel, Oxaliplatin, Fluorouracil

Infections / febrile neutropenia

Typically around days 7–14

Because white cells drop, infections (sometimes with fever while counts are low) are a key risk. Fever needs urgent assessment.

Call your team urgently: Fever with feeling unwell — go to the ER and say you're on chemotherapy.

severe in 18% · Timing from the manufacturer’s prescribing information · from Docetaxel, Oxaliplatin, Fluorouracil

Hair loss

Typically around days 14–21

Hair loss is common and grows back after treatment ends.

reported by about ~60% of people · Timing from a drug-monograph reference · from Docetaxel

Not tied to a cycle day

These build with the number of doses, or are measured from when treatment started, so a cycle day would be the wrong shape for them. Each keeps the timing its own source states.

Diarrhea

Loose or frequent stools; hydrate and use anti-diarrheal medicine as your team directs.

Call your team: More than 6 stools above normal in a day, or any with dizziness.

severe in 10% · from Fluorouracil, Docetaxel

Peripheral neuropathy (cumulative)

acute cold-triggered + cumulative over cycles

Cold-triggered tingling early on and a cumulative numbness/tingling that builds with cycles. Avoid cold in the first days after each cycle.

Call your team: Numbness that makes it hard to button clothes, walk, or feel the floor.

severe in 7% · from Oxaliplatin

Where this comes from

1. S1. Al-Batran SE, FLOT4 trial (2019) — PMID 30982686
2. S2. Oxaliplatin (Eloxatin) FDA prescribing information — FDA label
3. S3. Docetaxel (Taxotere) FDA prescribing information — FDA label

Timing windows on this page rest on:

• Taxotere (docetaxel) FDA prescribing information — “The median time to nadir was 7 days, while the median duration of severe neutropenia (<500 cells/mm3) was 7 days” source
• BC Cancer Drug Manual — paclitaxel — “usually complete, generally occurs 14-21 days after administration of paclitaxel; onset sudden, often occurring in a single day” source

A window appears here only where a retrievable document ties it to a drug in this regimen. Where nothing could be found, the window was removed rather than estimated — so a missing time is an honest gap, not an oversight.

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