Various Side Effects of Chemotherapy

 One standard form of cancer treatment is chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is an effective treatment method where certain medications are used to kill cancer cells throughout the body. This is a systemic type of treatment where the medication can be administered orally, intravenously and even using a catheter.

Basically, medications used for chemotherapy are produced specifically to target and eliminate cells that grow and replicate rapidly. As soon as these chemotherapy drugs reach the cancer cells, it limits and inhibits the cancer cell’s growth. It is also important to understand that a patient can receive chemotherapy treatment at a clinic, in a hospital or even at the comfort of the patient’s home.

The dose and frequency of chemotherapy treatment depends on various factors including the stage of cancer, the body response, type of medication, overall health of the patient, and more. The patient can be given chemotherapy daily, weekly or even monthly.

Even though chemotherapy is quite effective to treat various types of cancer, it also has several side effects. Chemotherapy medication is quite strong and can even harm healthy normal cells throughout the body. These adverse effects may be temporary or even permanent but this varies from one person to the other.

Side effects towards chemotherapy vary from one patient to the other. One side effect is fatigue, since the chemotherapy drugs are quite strong and administered systemically; this causes the body to expend large amounts of energy. Also, another side effect of chemotherapy is vomiting and nausea. Patients experiencing this during their treatment are recommended to use anti – nausea drugs based on their physician’s instructions. Some patients experience mouth sores and ulcers thus it is recommended for them to regularly use mouth wash. Another common side effect of chemotherapy is hair loss. Patients usually suffer from anxiety due to hair loss but this can be managed by various head gear such as wigs. Also, it is important to remember that usually hair will grow back when treatment ends.

Also, another indirect effect of chemotherapy is that patients are more susceptible to infections since some white blood cells are also destroyed during the course of therapy. These white blood cells are important for the human body since they support the immune system. As a matter of fact, there may also be a decrease in the entire blood cell count thus causing weakness and anemia. Patients undergoing chemotherapy are routinely given blood tests to assess this matter.

It is vital for cancer patients to have an understanding on the various side effects that may occur during the course of chemotherapy treatments. With the right knowledge they can prepare themselves thoroughly for chemotherapy.