Chemotherapy Side Effects

Not only feeling tired and depressed from Cancer,many people fear chemotherapy because they have heard that it can have uncomfortable side effects. But side-effect management has come a long way over the last few decades. Today, many side effects once associated with chemotherapy can be prevented or controlled. With some types of chemotherapy, you may experience only minimal side effects. And chemotherapy may be your best option for a successful outcome. You can help achieve a successful outcome by understanding how side effects can impact your treatment. Learn how best to manage chemotherapy side effects.
Chemotherapy is the general term for any treatment involving the use of chemical agents to stop cancer cells from growing. Chemotherapy can eliminate cancer cells at sites great distances from the original cancer. As a result, chemotherapy is considered a systemic treatment.
More than half of all people diagnosed with cancer receive chemotherapy. For millions of people, chemotherapy helps treat their cancer effectively, enabling them to enjoy full, productive lives.
A chemotherapy regimen (a treatment plan and schedule) usually includes drugs to fight cancer plus drugs to help support completion of the cancer treatment.2-8 To get the most from chemotherapy, it's important to stick to a schedule of treatment.
How Chemotherapy Works :

Chemotherapy is designed to kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy can be administered through a vein, injected into a body cavity, or delivered orally in the form of a pill, depending on which drug is used.

Chemotherapy works by destroying cancer cells; unfortunately, it cannot tell the difference between a cancer cell and some healthy cells. So chemotherapy eliminates not only the fast-growing cancer cells but also other fast-growing cells in your body, including, hair and blood cells.

Some cancer cells grow slowly while others grow rapidly. As a result, different types of chemotherapy drugs target the growth patterns of specific types of cancer cells. Each drug has a different way of working and is effective at a specific time in the life cycle of the cell it targets. Your doctor will determine the chemotherapy drug that is right for you. To understand more about the different ways chemotherapy is given, read about how people receive chemotherapy.

Discussing the Effectiveness of Cancer Treatment :

Understand the goals and risks of each treatment option so you can work with your doctor to decide which treatment is best for you. Balance potential benefits against the risks of treatment.

Some risks of cancer treatments may include time away from family and friends, uncomfortable side effects, or long-term complications. Cancer treatment may be inconvenient, prolonged, or unavailable close to home. These are important considerations when evaluating treatment options, but they are not typically mentioned in medical journals reporting the results and benefits of new treatments.

Once you and your doctor have decided on a treatment plan, talk with your doctor about issues that could interrupt your treatment plan. You can make note of subjects to discuss and questions to ask by using Tools for Organizing Your Cancer Information.

Importance of Dose and Schedule :

Your doctor will develop a treatment plan scientifically designed for you, based on your type of cancer, its stage of advancement, and your overall health. It will consist of specific chemotherapy agents, at specific doses and intervals. These are called your scheduled cycles. Generally, treatments are given daily, weekly, or monthly. Your doctor will help you determine the most effective treatment schedule for you.

The goal is to make your chemotherapy as effective, timely, and problem-free as possible. But while your chemotherapy treatment works to fight your cancer, it also can cause side effects such as a lowered white blood cell count. A low white blood cell count means your immune system isn't as strong as it could be, which can increase your risk of infection. It also can require your doctor to change your dose or schedule of your chemotherapy.

A chemotherapy-induced low white blood cell count, caused by healthy cells lost during chemotherapy, is an expected side effect of many chemotherapy drugs. A low white blood cell count typically occurs after the administration of certain types of chemotherapy and may continue for several days. To help reduce side effects like low white blood cell count that may interfere with your treatment schedule, learn more about managing chemotherapy side effects.

Under certain circumstances, your doctor may decide your body is too weak to receive chemotherapy. A low white blood cell count can temporarily disrupt your cancer treatment or result in having your chemotherapy dose decreased.

Many doctors agree that it's important to stick to a schedule of treatment. Find out about chemotherapy cycles and schedules.

Chemotherapy Side Effects :

An undesirable consequence of chemotherapy affecting your body—not related to your cancer—is referred to as a complication of treatment, or a side effect. Some common side effects of chemotherapy are:

Low white blood cell count

Low red blood cell count

Low platelet count

Nausea

Vomiting

Hair loss

Fatigue

Some side effects may be temporary and uncomfortable. Some can cause dose reductions and treatment delays or even be life-threatening.
For example, one of the most serious potential side effects of chemotherapy is a low count of infection-fighting white blood cells—a condition called neutropenia (new-troh-PEE-nee-ah). Neutropenia can interrupt your chemotherapy schedule and put you at risk for infections that may require hospitalization and may even be life-threatening.
Fortunately, significant progress has been made in the development of "proactive" therapies that help you manage the side effects of chemotherapy—ideally, before they interrupt your treatment schedule.

Take an active role in managing side effects. Learn all you can, use your tools for organizing your cancer information to note any side effects you experience, and be sure to discuss them with your doctor. You can make note of subjects to discuss and questions to ask by using your Tools for Organizing Your Cancer Information.

Dose and Schedule:

Certain side effects may prevent doctors from delivering your full dose of chemotherapy on schedule.

Impact of Delaying Treatment or Reducing Doses:
Chemotherapy Side Effects

Scientists have made a great deal of progress in developing therapies to help prevent and manage the side effects of chemotherapy. Newer supportive care treatments have led to vast improvements in the management of symptoms associated with cancer treatment. Some people don't experience side effects at all, and you are unlikely to experience all the side effects you read about below. Although chemotherapy is designed to treat cancer cells, unfortunately, it often affects parts of your body not directly affected by the cancer itself. This undesired result is referred to as a complication of treatment, or a side effect.

Side effects may be acute (short-term), chronic (long-term), or permanent. Side effects may cause inconvenience, discomfort, and even death.

Additionally, certain side effects may prevent doctors from delivering the prescribed dose of chemotherapy at the specific time and schedule of the treatment plan.In certain cancers, the expected outcome from chemotherapy is based on delivering the full chemotherapy dose on schedule so it is important to understand chemotherapy cycles and schedules.
Side effects from chemotherapy can include pain, diarrhea, constipation, mouth sores, hair loss, nausea and vomiting, as well as blood-related side effects. In this section, you can learn more about the importance of diagnosing and monitoring blood-related side effects. These may include low infection fighting white blood cells count (neutropenia), low red blood cells count (anemia), and low platelets count (thrombocytopenia).

CBC and Related Side Effects :

The CBC, or complete blood count, helps your doctor look for side effects of chemotherapy, which may include changes in the three types of cells in your blood. Because chemotherapy kills fast-growing blood cells as well as cancer cells, side effects involving your blood are an expected result of chemotherapy. Your first step in understanding blood-related side effects is knowing CBC, or your complete blood count.

Side effects involving blood include the following:

Neutropenia

Neutropenia (new-troh-PEE-nee-ah) is the scientific name for a low infection-fighting white blood cell count. A low white blood cell count may leave your body vulnerable to infection and too weak to receive chemotherapy according to your doctors' treatment schedule.This could lead your doctor to delay your current treatment or reduce your doses until your count reaches sufficient levels. Infection can lead to hospitalization. To help reduce the risk of treatment delays due to blood-related side effects, find out more about the risks associated with low white cell blood count.

Anemia :

Anemia (ah-NEE-mee-ah) is the scientific name for a low red blood cell count. Because red blood cells carry oxygen, a low red blood cell count may mean there is not enough oxygen circulating in your body. This condition can be effectively managed with one of several treatments, including prescription medicines, and/or blood transfusions, if necessary.

Thrombocytopenia :

Thrombocytopenia (throm-boh-sy-toh-PEE-nee-ah) is the scientific name for a low platelet count. A low platelet count may cause you to experience bruising or excessive bleeding. Learn more about the risks of low platelet count.

All of these side effects may be related to your chemotherapy. All are diagnosed through your CBC test. You can manage them to help reduce the possibility that they will compromise your treatment. A journal provides a place for you to keep track of your blood counts throughout your chemotherapy, and is one of the Tools for Organizing Your Cancer Information.

In addition to blood-related side effects, chemotherapy can result in other side effects that can interfere with treatment if not managed properly. Learn more about other types of chemotherapy side effects.

Sometimes side effects signal a serious problem. Find out when to call your doctor about chemotherapy side effects.