Flu-like syndrome is a side effect of many treatments used in cancer care. The exact process of how flu-like syndrome is caused is not fully understood. However, when the body is exposed to certain medications it is believed that these medications trigger normal inflammatory mechanisms of the immune system. This process is similar to the body's response when it is dealing with a "flu" virus.

Symptoms of flu:
-- Fever (sudden onset, timing associated with the therapy causing the flu-like syndrome).
-- Chills (often come before the fever, usually involve upper body first).
-- Muscle/joint aches (myalgias/arthralgias), (generalized aches and pains, accompanied by sensation of weakness, may or may not be relieved by rest).
-- Headache (usually across forehead, accompanied by sensitivity to light, may include visual disturbances for example, blurring).
-- Poor appetite.
-- Nausea, vomiting
-- Diarrhea
-- Nasal stuffiness (runny nose usually clear, watery and persistent).
-- Cough (dry, hacking, and persistent, rarely productive).
-- Bone pain.
-- Fatigue (malaise) (accompanied by sense of apathy, lack of energy or motivation).

Home Remedies for Flu-like symptoms
Stay in bed. Bed rest is important to help your body battle the flu, so stay there until your temperature returns to normal and you no longer have body aches and pains.

Cover the mouth and nose with a tissue when sneezing or coughing. Discard the tissue in the bin after use.

Drink plenty of fluids. Fluids prevent dehydration and keep the protective mucous lining of the respiratory system moist so it can fight off the virus. It doesn’t matter if the fluid is hot or cold as long as you drink at least eight glasses a day.

Avoid touching the eyes, nose or mouth. Germs will be spread through this way.

Be judicious in lowering your temperature. A fever of up to 102°F acts as an antiviral agent, so don’t take acetaminophen or ibuprofen to lower your fever if it’s in this range. However, if your fever is 103°F or higher, take two acetaminophen or ibuprofen every four hours. (Aspirin should not be taken by anyone age 19 or younger because of its association with Reye’s syndrome, a rare but fast-progressing and often fatal disorder that can be triggered by aspirin.)