Consequences after chemotherapy

Cancer cells have a feature to rapidly divide, which allows the tumor to grow very quickly and metastasize to other organs of the human body. To prevent their growth and destroy existing cancer cells, medicine uses a technique of influence, such as chemotherapy. But at the modern level of medical development, it has not yet been possible to create a drug that selectively destroys only cancer cells. Therefore, the consequences after chemotherapy are quite complex and destructive for the patient's body.

After passing such therapy, the patient has to undergo a rehabilitation course.

[1], [2], [3]

Consequences of chemotherapy in men

Cancer cells are quite aggressive and have a high fission rate. To slow down this growth and destroy cancer cells, treatment with chemical medications is applied. The consequences of chemotherapy in men are mostly the same as those of the fairer sex, but in the light of physiological differences, there are differences. The drugs used significantly affect the function of the genital organs of the strong half of humanity. After carrying out of medical procedures, reproductive abilities decrease, as the quantity and activity of spermatozoa decreases. This becomes a factor of temporary infertility. With a favorable outcome, after a certain period of time, the sex cells are restored, their number is normalized.

Another, purely psychological problem, can be a loss of libido and erections. Here the support of the second half of the patient is of great importance in helping to restore the "lost" functions. Over time, in the vast majority of cases, an erection and attraction to the opposite sex is returned. During chemotherapy and for a year after it, during the sexual act the man should use condoms, as the probability of conception of the child with deviation of development is great.

[4], [5], [6], [7], [8]

Consequences of chemotherapy in women

Cancer is behind, and now we have to face the consequences of chemotherapy in women. The way of life after a hospital some have to be changed radically.

• You need to be more careful about your health.
• A more thorough approach to a balanced diet.
• Vegetables in raw and stewed form and fruits should become the basis of the table.
• Do not forget about meat and fish.
• Positive emotions - this is also a medicine that will help the patient in the shortest period of time to undergo the process of rehabilitation.
• Sleep and walk in the fresh air.
• Minimize physical activity.

Consequences after chemotherapy in women can lead to a violation of the ovaries. In this regard, the monthly are not regular or generally able to disappear for a while. This factor is the cause of temporary infertility women. Over time, all childbearing functions should be restored. The term depends on the physiology of the particular woman. Symptoms may appear akin to menopause. But this is also all passing.

If during the chemotherapy the attending physician took care of the protection of the woman's ovaries, it would give her the opportunity to become a mother in the future. If a malignant tumor is recognized at a time when the fair sex is pregnant, doctors can, if possible, postpone chemotherapy for the postpartum period. During the procedure, sexual partners need to use contraception, since during this period pregnancy is unacceptable. The consequences of exposure to chemicals can affect the development of a small person.

[9], [10], [11], [12]

Consequences of chemotherapy in children

Many parents understand that the effectiveness of chemotherapy in the destruction of malignant cells is undeniable, but the effects of chemotherapy in children can be significant and manifest with varying degrees of severity. Little people after such a procedure need increased attention of parents and special care. Something has to be limited. All the complications experienced by adults are inherent in small patients with the only difference that, because of the lack of perfection of the immune system, they tolerate them much sharper. Therefore, parents need to know a few simple rules that will help the baby to go through the procedures and survive their consequences.

• To avoid or reduce the severity of the manifestation of vomiting or diarrhea, do not give the baby a sharp, sweet and fatty food. Food intake should be divided, in small portions. The child should drink enough fluids. For three to four hours before the procedure, the baby should not be fed. If these complications are nevertheless manifested and sufficiently severe, it is necessary to inform the oncologist who will prescribe medications that remove this problem.
• The child should clean the teeth with a soft brush to prevent damage to the mucous membrane. When dry in the oral cavity in the hygiene complex, rinse with medicinal infusions, rinses or sprays.
• When washing the head, you need to use a mild shampoo, when combing - not a hard comb. When entering the street, the head of the baby should be covered with a panama, hat or handkerchief. Older children should buy a wig before discussing the color and hairstyle so that they feel more comfortable in it.
• The baby needs to drink a sufficient amount of liquid so that there is no delay in removing urine from the body.
• It is necessary to monitor the baby's nutrition. It must be diverse and necessarily contain products that help restore the level of hemoglobin in the blood.
• If in the process of rehabilitation any symptoms of a disease of any genesis have arisen - it is necessary to immediately notify the attending physician of the child.
• Often the baby's consequences after chemotherapy can manifest themselves in years. Most often reproductive and cardiovascular functions may suffer. Therefore, these children are in control of a cardiologist.

[13], [14], [15], [16]

How to ease the consequences of chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy is an effective technique in combating cancer, but it brings with it complications that patients have to deal with during rehabilitation. How to ease the consequences of chemotherapy? This question is posed to yourself by any person who has encountered these problems.

Soropents help to stop many complications that have arisen after chemotherapy. They sorb (take away) toxins and with the help of the urinary system are removed from the body, thereby reducing the aggressiveness of complications, making them less noticeable. One of the sorbents practiced in the current situation is enterosgel.

Enterosgel. The course of admission is purely individual. On average it is from a week to two, and in more severe cases of intoxication with an interval of three days, the cycle of administration is repeated. The preparation is available as a paste. Apply it inward, washing down with a decent amount of water. The medicine is drunk two hours before or after meals. The daily dosage for adults is 45 g, divided into three doses (one-time - 15 g or one tablespoon).

For children:

• at the age of up to three years - twice a day, one teaspoonful or 5 g per reception.
• kids three - five years - a teaspoon three times a day.
• children from five to 14 years - one dessert spoon three times a day. In total - 30 g per diem.

Contraindication to the use of the drug is only acute intestinal obstruction.

Antineoplastic drugs do not distinguish between cancer cells, and where normal cells, destroying with the same effort. Thanks to this defeat, the immune system suffers considerably, creating an excellent soil for pathogenic flora and viruses. If the fever has risen and there are other signs of the disease, it is necessary to consult an oncologist and start treating a progressive disease. The doctor may prescribe antibiotics.

The nutrition of such a patient should be balanced, enriched with a vitamin-mineral complex. Meals - in fractional, small portions, five to six times a day. Dairy products that can fill the need of a weakened organism with calcium are highly indicated.

In order to maintain liver function, hepatoprotectors are attributed to the cancer patient during the recovery period, for example, phospholipids. Apply this drug intravenously at a dosage of 0.5-1 g two to three droppers per day, previously diluted in 250-300 ml of a 5% solution of dextrose (or patient's blood in a ratio of 1: 1). Duration of admission up to three months.

The drug is contraindicated for use only with hypersensitivity to its components.

In any case, all drugs should be prescribed only by a doctor! And in everyday life, the patient will need to adjust his habits.

• Diets and restrictions in food are stipulated by the attending physician.
• Reduce physical activity.
• More rest in nature.
• If the kidneys are not severely damaged, then they can be supported by abundant consumption of mineral slightly alkaline water (without gas). It perfectly cleanses the body, displaying the results of cellular decay.
• To normalize the pressure - take diuretic herbs.

Many patients are so tired of injections and pills that they prefer alternative methods of recovery. For example, to increase the number of white blood cells (leukocytes) they drink infusions from the roots of Angelica, flowers of chicory, sweet clover. But the tincture of eleutherococcus, nettle, yarrow, golden root will help raise hemoglobin, the number of platelets and erythrocytes in the blood. To quickly restore the scalp on the head - it was recommended to wash it again our grandmothers infused with burdock root or hop.

If desired, the patient can undergo rehabilitation support in a specialized dispensary or a sanatorium.

Consequences after chemotherapy for lung cancer

Any anti-cancer drug is toxic to the body. Medicine and pharmacology have not yet succeeded in obtaining such a drug, which would effectively destroy cancer cells and bypass healthy ones. Therefore, the most common consequences after chemotherapy for lung cancer are hair loss, nausea and vomiting. How to deal with these symptoms is written above.

After chemotherapy for lung cancer, the patient needs to monitor the blood components for a long time, since complications of the late period include oppression of hematopoiesis.

Modern medicine offers a fairly wide range of antiemetics, which perfectly remove and nausea. There are innovative methods of combating and with hair loss - consult your doctor and he will tell you what to do.

[17], [18], [19],

Implications after chemotherapy for ovarian cancer

To date, there are no more weighty methods of preventing ovarian cancer than preventive examinations of women from a gynecologist. In case of suspicion of the disease, ultrasound tomography is prescribed and, when the diagnosis is confirmed (whether it is a malignant or benign tumor), it is removed, often together with the ovaries.

The newest methods in the field of oncology allow to treat the patient patiently less than a few years ago, and the most important thing is to choose the dosage of the drug and the protocol of their administration. The consequences after chemotherapy for ovarian cancer are quite diverse and similar to the complications that patients receive after chemotherapy of other organs. Although the doctors and try to minimize them.

Complications after chemotherapy:

• Loss of hair, which psychologically hurts a woman.
• Nausea with manifestations of vomiting, diarrhea.
• Infectious diseases due to a decrease in the body's defenses.
• Pathology of blood formations.
• Anemia.
• Problems with urination.
• Puffiness.

The methods used in the recovery period directly depend on the results of the biopsy and other clinical studies. And, first of all, it is necessary to accelerate as much as possible the process of strengthening the protective properties of the body, which are substantially weakened by the action of chemical preparations. Chemotherapy in the case of cancer patients is justified one hundred percent, as this, at times, is the only way to give the patient hope for life.

More often relapses of the given disease are shown after treatment in the first one and a half - two years. Most of the affected cells are located in the area of space rectum - the uterus. Therefore, do not ignore preventive trips to the doctor-gynecologist.

Implications after chemotherapy with lymphoma

All types of cytostatics of the last generation are fairly selective, directing the maximum effect on cancer-affected cells, while they are more sparing for healthy cells. But they are still exposed to this toxic effect, which results in complications that are the same for the consequences of chemotherapy with the localization of the tumor in other organs. Therefore, if we list the consequences after chemotherapy with lymphoma, then, in many respects, they are the same as those described earlier.

But medicine does not stand still, and there are drugs (monoclonal antibodies) that selectively destroy only B cells, although both tumor classification and normal B lymphocytes. Complications appear during the procedure of administration of the drug, or after it, but still they are more narrowly focused. With such and to struggle easier. At the level of laboratory research are drugs that specifically destroy only cancer cells - it's just a breakthrough in oncology. Having received such a medicine, the patient will be almost completely devoid of consequences after chemotherapy. But while it may not be a distant, but still a future.

When setting the treatment course, the oncologist considers the prospects of possible complications and relapses. For example, if this type of lymphoma is aggressive and has a severe degree of leakage, then the risk of chemotherapy, with all the complications, is justified. It is better to treat the consequences than to lose life.

Consequences after chemotherapy with leukemia

The most common consequences after chemotherapy in leukemia can be identified as bleeding, nausea, in severe cases - vomiting, and hair loss. The cause of their manifestation is the inhibition or deceleration of the growth of rapidly dividing healthy cells of the body.

The consequences of chemotherapy for certain types of leukemia can be infertility. And it is able to touch and the prospect of not having children afterwards in still young patients. If the adult man who has been shown chemotherapy still plans to have heirs, the doctor will offer you to sperm freeze before the start of the treatment (later it can be used for reproduction). This is suggested because after exposure to anti-cancer drugs, the male sexual organs stop reproducing spermatozoa, becoming infertile. Over time, this function can recover, and may remain lost forever.

In the case of women, the ovaries are affected. Such pathology entails malfunctions in the menstrual cycle, there may be manifestations of menopause. As with men, a woman after chemotherapy has a high probability of infertility, so if she ever wants to know the joy of motherhood, she needs to undergo a seizure and cryo-freezing procedure before the treatment course.

The consequences after chemotherapy are quite different. Everything depends on the physiological characteristics of each patient, the severity of the disease, the dosage of the drugs taken and the time range of treatment.

[20], [21], [22], [23], [24]

Consequences after red chemotherapy

Medical workers, often, with red chemotherapy called breast cancer. And do not assume that this pathology concerns only women. Yes, their number among patients with this diagnosis is in percentage ratio higher than that of men. But the disease does not disassemble by sex.

The consequences after red chemotherapy, in most cases, are temporary. Part of them, with little effort on the part of the patient, pass independently, and some require medical treatment.

In addition to nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and other complications discussed above, scaly areas appear on the skin of the body and on the nail plates, the venous pattern may outline, inflammatory processes may appear. It is desirable to open such lesions as little as possible to direct sunlight. It will be nice if the underwear and clothes were made of natural materials (better from cotton and flax).

A patient after a course of chemotherapy must nullify contact with aggressive chemical media and household chemicals. A woman will have to spend some time without cosmetics, since there is a possibility of an allergic reaction to the components of the substance, even if there were no such occurrences before the treatment.

Hair loss and brittle nails - psychologically unpleasant, but fixable. There are manifestations of a more severe degree, when the nail plate is simply removed, moving away from the skin. This allows pathogens and viruses to enter the weakened organism. In this case, the marigold must be cut short, it is forbidden to use nail polish and false nails. Otherwise, the restoration of the nail will be much slower. It is advisable to hold home affairs by putting on gloves. Until the hair grows - you have to do with a wig.

Complications after chemistry in breast cancer are usually unpleasant, but not severe, and with adequate therapy are fast enough, allowing a woman to return to the rhythm and routine of the day that is habitual for life.

[25], [26], [27]

Long-term consequences of chemotherapy

The long-term effects of chemotherapy are rare, but are manifested. After undergoing a course of treatment using the method of chemical influence on a cancer cell, there is a small probability that the used antineoplastic drugs may eventually cause cancer of another type. The percentage of such relapses is small (1 - 2%). But anyway. Usually such "deja vu" is manifested after ten years.

In some cases, the consequence of the use of chemistry may be the infertility of the patient who has been treated. To enable later patients to become parents, the oncologist treating the doctor suggests to undergo the procedure of seizure and freezing: in men - spermatozoa, and in women - for oocytes.

Rehabilitation, or recovery, which a patient with cancer should go through to eliminate the consequences after chemotherapy, can take a considerable time (from six months to two years). Only complete restoration of all body functions can unequivocally say that this stage is completed. But whatever the frightening chemotherapy with all its complications, at times, it is the only saving straw that can bring the patient back to life. Whatever the diagnosis was, you must fight for your life! And go in this fight to the end!

Treatment of the consequences of chemotherapy

How strange it sounds, but after the treatment course of cancer, it is necessary for oncologists to begin the next stage - treatment of the consequences of chemotherapy. From the action of antitumoral drugs, the gastrointestinal tract and the immune system of the organism are subjected to the greatest destructive effect. Therefore, the doctor ascribes to his patient drugs that are able to stabilize and support the function of the digestive tract. It is also necessary to increase the consumption of lactic acid products. Not the last place here is taken and grenades with liver, with daily consumption of hemoglobin increases.

• Loperamide

This drug is prescribed for acute diarrhea, which often accompanies the consequences after chemotherapy.

To children this medicine is prescribed:

• two-five-year-old carp - three times a day for 1 mg,
• children from six to eight years - twice a day for 2 mg,
• children from nine to twelve - 2 mg three times a day.

If on the second day the diarrhea does not stop, the dose is increased to 2 mg after each bowel movement. The daily amount of the drug is determined at the rate of no more than 6 mg for every 20 kg of the child's weight.

An adult is given a starting dose of 4 mg, and then each bowel movement is 2 mg more (gradually reducing the dosage). The supporting daily volume of the drug is 4-8 mg, the maximum dosage per day is 16 mg.

In case of chronic manifestation of symptoms, the starting dosage remains the same, then the maintenance dose is calculated depending on the daily frequency of the stool (the consistency of the stool should be normal). If the toilet is calculated by one - two campaigns, then the drug intake is 2 - 12 mg per day.

Side effects only occur with prolonged use of the drug.

• Diarol

The drug is administered to children more than 12 years old and adults to 2 capsules immediately after the first case of liquid bowel emptying. Then one drop after each bowel movement, but not exceeding 4 pieces per day.

Children:

• from nine to eleven years (with weight 27-43 kg) - 1 piece after the first liquid stool and half after each next trip to the toilet (no more than 3 pieces per day).
• from six to eight years (with a weight of 21-26 kg) - the dosage is the same as for older children, except that take no more than 2 drops per day. Take the drug no more than two days.

Contraindications: children under the age of 6 years, individual intolerance to the components of the drug, diarrhea with high temperature and in the case of feces and blood and mucus.

To raise the patient's immunity, a vitamin-mineral complex is appointed in tandem with food products rich in microelements and vitamins.

One of the unpleasant consequences after chemotherapy is the appearance on the oral mucosa of small, but painful sores - stomatitis. Usually it passes independently for several days, but in order to accelerate this process, at home, several times a day, rinse the mouth with therapeutic rinses, balms. It is possible to conduct rinsings with decoctions of herbs that have antiseptic properties: calendula, oak bark, sage, chamomile ... It is desirable to clean teeth with a soft brush, so as not to injure gum tissue, and the used toothpaste should not contain lauryl sulfate of sodium and calcium carbonate, which are sufficiently coarse abrasive . Excellent, when it is made on the basis of silicon dioxide, and it contains antiseptics and fluorides.

Against the backdrop of the chemotherapy, the patient often has nausea and vomiting. Modern medicine can offer a fairly wide range of drugs that can solve this problem, but they should be prescribed only by the attending physician. For example:

• Zofran

The drug for an adult doctor can be prescribed once in a vein or intramuscularly, in an amount of 8 mg before the procedure or 8 - 32 mg dissolved in 100 ml of a 0.9% solution of sodium chloride, through a dropper after chemotherapy.

Children aged from six months to 17 years:

• if the child has a body area less than 0.6 m2, the starting dose is given intravenously in an amount of 5 mg / m2 before chemotherapy. Then 2 mg after 12 hours for five days.
• if the surface area falls within the range of 0.6-12 m2, the drug is given in the same dose before the procedure, and then 4 mg every 12 hours for five days.
• the surface area of the child is more than 12 m2, the starting dosage - 8 mg comes before the procedure and the same amount every 12 hours for five days.

This drug is not recommended for pregnant women, mothers during lactation, with increased sensitivity to any component of the drug.

• Ativan

This drug is injected into the muscle or vein. The bottle is diluted immediately before the injection. The solution is obtained by mixing the contents of the ativan preparation with 5% saline for injection. The input speed should not exceed 2 mg per minute. This drug is not injected into the artery. It can not be attributed to people with an allergic reaction to the constituent drugs, if they have problems with breathing during sleep, functional disorders in the kidney and liver, and other diseases (for a more complete list of contraindications see the instructions for this drug).

Alopecia, perhaps, is one of the most psychologically unpleasant consequences after chemotherapy, especially for women. This phenomenon can be attributed to temporary inconveniences. Over time, the hair will recover itself, and for the rehabilitation period, you can use the services of a wig. In order to partially prevent, and subsequently reanimate the hair, it is necessary to adhere to a number of simple rules:

• Wash your head with a mild baby shampoo.
• Do not use curlers and forceps.
• Do not dry hair with a hairdryer.
• Be sure to use the headdress on the street.

In the process, and for a long time after chemotherapy, the patient's body is in a weakened state, the immune system is depressed, and it can not fight the pathogenic flora and viral infections. Therefore, in this period, it is necessary to minimize contact between the patient and others, including relatives. The less a person communicates with a patient, the greater his chances of avoiding infection and complications after a disease. The disease can also arise from its own bacteria, which, necessarily, are present in any organism (for example, such as thrush).

• Diflucan

This drug is presented in capsules and tablets. Drink it for half an hour before a meal. Dosage and the regimen can be prescribed only by the attending physician.

• with the emergence of thrush in the oral cavity - taking one to two weeks at a dosage of 50 - 100 mg.
• with cutaneous manifestations - once a week for 150 mg. The duration of treatment is two to six weeks. The duration depends on the severity of the disease.

This drug is not recommended for use in pregnancy, when the patient's hypersensitivity to the components of the drug.

It is also necessary to increase the body's immune forces, to connect the mineral-vitamin complex and rationally balanced nutrition.

Another consequence after chemotherapy is anemia, which is expressed by a decrease in the number of red blood cells in the blood plasma and the level of hemoglobin. To bring these parameters back to normal, the attending physician assigns to his patient iron-containing preparations, such as maltofer, ferlutum and others.

• Ferlatum

The drug is consumed before or after eating. For adults, the dosage is 15 - 30 ml per diem. For children is assigned individually at a rate of 1.5 ml per kilogram of the child's weight. After stabilization of the norm of hemoglobin in the blood, the fixing actions continue for another two to three months.

• This drug is contraindicated in case of hypersensitivity to component substances, if the patient suffers from chronic pancreatitis, cirrhosis ...

• Maltofer

Drug in droplets or syrup is dissolved in juice or any drink (only not alcohol). Tablets are simply washed down with a glass of water or the same liquid. The doctor appoints the period of admission and dosage.

Dosage:

• Breasts up to a year - once a day for 25-50 mg. Preventive maintenance - 15 - 25 mg.
• Kids from one year to twelve - once a day for 50-100 mg of the drug, prophylactically - 25-50 mg.
• Teenagers over 12 years and adults - 100-300 mg once a day. Prophylactically - 50 - 100 mg daily.

Duration of admission is five to seven months.

This drug should not be taken to people with individual sensitivity to the components of the drug, as well as problems with the function of iron release.

Thrombophlebitis is another consequence after chemotherapy. Inflammation of the walls of the vein, it can occur:

• As a result of taking medications used for chemotherapy.
• Due to the use of hormonal drugs.
• It can develop after a long presence of a catheter in a blood vessel.
• Injuries.
• Genetic or acquired propensity to form blood clots.

Such complications are rare, but they should not be discounted.

• Wobenzym

In the first three days for adults, a three-day tablet regimen is recommended three times a day. But with a severe form of the disease, the dosage may increase to 10 tablets three times a day.

Prophylactically - three tablets three times a day for one and a half months.

For children from five to twelve years, the daily dosage is calculated as one kilogram of a child's weight, one tablet. To adolescents over 12 years of age - the admission scheme is appointed for adults. The course of treatment is attributed by the attending physician individually to each patient.

The drug is drunk half an hour before a meal, with a glass of clean water.