Posts Tagged ‘side effects of chemotherapy’
Side Effects of Lung Cancer Treatment
Side effects of lung cancer treatment depend on the type of treatment, and may be different for each person. Side effects are often only temporary. Doctors and nurses can explain possible side effects of treatment and they can suggest ways to help relieve symptoms that may occur during and after the treatment.
Surgery for lung cancer is a major operation. After lung surgery, air and fluid tend to collect in the chest. Patients often need help turning over, coughing and breathing deeply. These activities are important for recovery because they help to expand the remaining lung tissue and removal of excess air and fluid. Pain or weakness in the chest and arm and shortness of breath are common side effects of surgery for lung cancer. Patients may take several weeks or months to regain strength and energy.
Chemotherapy affects both normal and cancer cells. Side effects depend largely on the specific drug and dose (amount of drug administered). Common side effects of chemotherapy are nausea and vomiting, hair loss, mouth sores and fatigue.
Radiation therapy, like chemotherapy, affects normal cells as well as cancer cells. Side effects of radiation therapy depend mainly on the body part being treated and the dose of treatment. Common side effects of radiotherapy are dryness and irritation of the throat, difficulty swallowing food, fatigue, skin changes at the site of treatment and loss of appetite. Patients receiving radiation to the brain may have headaches, skin changes, fatigue, nausea and vomiting, hair loss or problems with memory processes and thoughts.
Photodynamic therapy makes the skin and eyes sensitive to light for 6 weeks or more after treatment. It is recommended that patients avoid direct sunlight and bright indoor light for 6 weeks at least. If patients need to go outside, they must wear protective clothing, including sunglasses. Other temporary side effects of photodynamic therapy may be coughing, difficulty swallowing food and painful breathing or shortness of breath. Patients should consult with your doctor what you should do if they are blisters on the skin or it gets red or swollen.
Today, because of what has been learned in clinical trials, physicians can control, reduce or avoid many of the side effects of treatment.
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Chemotherapy as a Lung Cancer Treatment
Chemotherapy is the primary treatment option in most cases of SCLC. It can easily control the symptoms, which are often very pronounced in this type of cancer. However, the cures are rare and most often accrue past year or two.
Not all patients can be operated on as it will depend on whether they have sufficient capacity to withstand respiratory excision of part or all of the lung and how is your general condition.
In lung cancer, often used a combination of chemotherapeutic drugs. Some of these drugs can be given by mouth or by vein. When they reach the bloodstream, these drugs are spread throughout the body and act against cancer cells, destroying them. For this reason it is very useful in those cancers that have spread to other areas.
Chemotherapy can be given as primary treatment or as therapy to aid surgery. In many cases, chemotherapy is given before surgery, with the intention of reducing the tumor volume and pave the way for a surgeon. Even at times, some inoperable lung cancers become operable after several months of chemotherapy. It is also possible to receive chemotherapy after surgery, even when the entire tumor was removed successfully. The reason is that with this strategy avoids a percentage of relapse and end up healing more long-term patients. We know this kind of cancer treatment as adjuvant chemotherapy.
The choice of treatment of first or second line depends on the type of cancer, and ranges from non-small cell cancer or small cell.