Neuropathy Has Haunted Actor Dean Winters, 57, for 12 Years; How Cancer Patients Can Cope With This Debilitating Side Effect

In June 2009, the actor, also known for his performance as Detective Brian Cassidy during the first season of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and as Ryan O'Reily on the HBO prison drama Oz, almost died. It happened after he contracted a bacterial infection and subsequently went into cardiac arrest for more than two minutes. He had several operations and suffered from gangrene a serious condition where a loss of blood supply causes body tissue to die which resulted in the amputation of two toes and half of a thumb. He now suffers from serious discomfort.

"It's a very weird dichotomy. It's like, it's very hard to figure out. Nothing you can do about it," he says. "I've been sucking it up because, you know, the alternative is not a place where I want to be."

Winter tells Page Six he initially passed on playing the role of Mayhem in the Allstate commercials as he was in the hospital undergoing his 10th surgery yes, 10th. He says the insurance company was “relentless” in its attempt to sign him, and he eventually gave in.

"It's crazy if you look in the Webster dictionary, the Old English definition of the word 'mayhem' is 'one with amputations,'" Winters says.

Chemotherapy Side Effects Neuropathy

Neuropathy & Cancer Treatments

Neuropathy, sometimes called peripheral nerves, is a set of symptoms caused by damage to the nerves outside the brain and spinal cord. These nerves are called peripheral nerves, and they carry sensations a feeling in different parts of your body to the brain and control the movement of your arms, legs, bladder and bowel.

How does neuropathy play into cancer treatment? Well, a common side effect of some chemotherapy drugs is neuropathy. When this happens, it's called chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, or CIPN. "This can be a disabling side effect of cancer treatment," ACS reports.

Many women who undergo chemotherapy for ovarian cancer will experience this side effect.

Dr. Yvette Williams-Brown, a gynecologic oncologist and interim assistant dean of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Dell Medical School at The University of Texas at Austin, says a lot of women will feel a sort of prickly sensation like pins and needles. But in some cases, neuropathy can become severe enough that a woman can't feel the sensations of hot and cold. This can become dangerous, making it extremely important to keep your oncologist and team of doctors in the loop about the loss of sensation.

"Because the chemotherapy is a medication we know can cause the neuropathy to progress, at times we may have to lower the dose of the chemotherapy," Dr. Williams-Brown tells SurvivorNet, adding that in some very severe cases, it might be necessary to actually stop the specific chemo drug altogether, possibly switching to a different medication with less severe effects.

How to Manage

If it becomes a persistent issue, your medical team may need to change your chemo dosage, as previously mentioned, or take some other precautions. There are a handful of other options available for people dealing with neuropathy symptoms, including gabapentin, which is a medication that can manage symptoms like pain, or oncology rehab, which can help rebuild strength and get used to physical changes.

But after chemo, you should be able to return to your normal day-to-day life, for the most part.

If you're experiencing any symptoms, such as tingling in the fingers or toes, or even pain that's getting in the way of your normal physical activities, it's important to let your doctor know right away.

Managing Neuropathy During Chemo

What Chemotherapy Drugs Cause Neuropathy?

There are quite a few chemo drugs that cause this side effect. Here's a list:

• Platinum drugs like cisplatin, carboplatin and oxaliplatin
• Taxanes, including paclitaxel (brand name: Taxol), docetaxel (brand name: Taxotere) and cabazitaxel (brand name: Jevtana)
• Plant alkaloids, such as vinblastine, vincristine, vinorelbine and etoposide (VP-16)
• Immunomodulating drugs (IMiDs), like thalidomide (brand name: Thalomid), lenalidomide (brand name: Revlimid) and pomalidomide (brand name: Pomalyst)
• Proteasome inhibitors, such as bortezomib (brand name: Velcade®), carfilzomib (brand name: Kyprolis®) and ixazomib (brand name: Ninlaro)

Some of these chemo drugs are commonly used to treat ovarian cancer, which is why it's common for women with this type of cancer to experience neuropathy.

Contributing: SurvivorNet staff

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