Chemotherapy Side Effects
People with cancer are often concerned with what chemotherapy side effects are going to occur during their treatment. They often hear about how terrible chemotherapy side effects are and how sick you can feel. What many people don't realize is that these days, many people do not suffer as many side effects. There are now medications to prevent some of the more complications.
How your medication affects you depends on many factors, such as how aggressive treatment is, overall general health, and what chemotherapy drug is being taken.
Chemotherapy can produce many side effects, such as:
- Anemia, low red blood cell count
- Low white blood cell count (this increases risk for infection)
- Hair loss, or thinning hair
- Bleeding or bruising (due to low platelet count)
- Dry skin, or rashes
- Fatigue
- Diarrhea, constipation
- Nausea or vomiting
- Muscle and nerve problems
- Lung problems and difficulty breathing; coughing excessively
- Fertility and sexuality problems
These are a wide range of side effects from chemotherapy. Remember that not everyone will experience side effects. One person may experience many effects, while someone else may only suffer from one or two side effects.
There are a few side effects that are more common than others.
- Nausea and vomiting
- Hair loss
- Fatigue
- Diarrhea
With some of these side effects, there are medications to prevent and combat them.
Chemotherapy works by killing cancerous cells. However, sometimes it is aggressive against healthy cells, too. Since chemotherapy travels everywhere in the body, damage to healthy cells can occur at various places in the body.
Additional Information
Combating Chemotherapy Side Effects (3/29/05)
CHEMOBRAIN: A Once Misunderstood And Misdiagnosed Phenomenon. RGW (1/29/06)
For years, many chemotherapy patients have reported problems with memory, concentration and focusing attention. These problems were long thought to be the result of depression, anxiety, or other ailments unrelated to chemotherapy.
Recently, however, more attention has been drawn to this phenomenon as a side effect of chemotherapy. A movement has been underway to educate the public and the medical community about such side effects, a condition for which chemotherapy patients have adopted the term "chemobrain". More...
Treatment-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: Facts and Solutions (7/15/05)
It is common knowledge that cancer treatments chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery - have specific side effects that lower a patient's quality of life. All three major cancer treatments have a common side effect, nausea and vomiting. More...