Medical professionals can administer chemotherapy medications in the following ways:. A doctor will be able to indicate what the person can expect before undergoing their first chemotherapy session. These expectations will depend on different factors, such as the types of chemotherapy drugs the doctor prescribes and their method of administration. The American Cancer Society ACS provides some useful information about the more common chemotherapy treatment types, as follows:.
Oral chemotherapy involves ingesting pills, capsules, or liquid medicines. People receiving this form of chemotherapy may take these medications at home, although they must do so according to a pre-arranged schedule. Some chemotherapy drugs require careful handling and storage.
A person should talk with their doctor about any special considerations when handling or storing their medications. Topical chemotherapy involves applying gels, creams, or ointments to an area of skin that contains cancerous cells. As with oral chemotherapy, anyone using topical chemotherapy drugs should exercise caution when handling and storing these medications.
In particular, they may need to wear gloves when applying certain topical treatments. Injectable and IV chemotherapy involves administering chemotherapy medication directly into a vein or other body part.
The catheter connects to a syringe or plastic bag that contains the chemotherapy medications. Chemotherapy drugs work by attacking fast-growing cancer cells.
However, these drugs can also attack fast-growing healthy cells. This causes chemotherapy side effects. The ACS and the National Cancer Institute provide some helpful resources for people experiencing chemotherapy side effects.
Chemotherapy is a form of cancer treatment that involves administering medications to kill cancer cells or prevent them from replicating. Told him 6 weeks to 3 months for the radiation side effects, up to 6 months for chem side effects. Hope this helps. He just finished treatment. My last chemo was almost 5 years ago. Chemo destroyed my teeth but it took 4 years to do it. The throat surgery combined with the radiation has left my esophagus only able to swallow something about the size of a nickle.
The feeding tube ended up stapling my stomach and i had to have my gallbladder removed. Possibly the drugs? For patients, this means the drugs are strong enough to damage or kill cancer cells. But this also means the drugs can be a concern for others who might be exposed to them. This is why there are safety rules and recommendations for people who handle chemo drugs. It's important to know that not all medicines and drugs to treat cancer work the same way or have the same safety precautions.
The information below describes some safety concerns of traditional or standard chemotherapy. There are also other drugs that are used to treat cancer in different ways, including targeted therapy , hormone therapy, and immunotherapy.
You may notice special clothing and protective equipment being worn by the nurses and other members of your cancer care team. Pharmacists and nurses who prepare chemo drugs use a special type of pharmacy that must meet certain regulations. And nurses and others who give your chemo and help take care of you afterwards wear protective clothing, such as 2 pairs of special gloves and a gown, and sometimes goggles or a face shield.
For your own peace of mind, it is important to remember that this is a very small risk, and only occurs with some chemotherapy drugs. Your doctor will talk to you about the specific risk with the drugs you are having. The risk of a second cancer is less of a risk to you than the cancer you are having treatment for. After cancer treatment, some people notice changes in their memory, concentration and the way they think.
These changes are called mild cognitive impairment MCI or cognitive dysfunction. Some people call them 'chemo brain' or 'chemo fog'. It's not clear exactly what causes these memory and concentration changes in people with cancer. So calling them chemo brain may not be accurate.
It's possible that these problems might be due to other cancer treatments. Or more recent research has shown that some people with cancer have similar problems before they start any treatment. So these changes could be due to the cancer itself. There are many different chemotherapy drugs and they all have different side effects.
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