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Support or Side Effects or Chemotherapy
> Treatment
Support
Last update: 04/04/2008
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Chemotherapy
and radiotherapy are often necessary and effective cancer treatments.
However, each of these therapies can result in side effects
because of damage to normal cells. The experience of cancer treatment varies. Many
patients experience little discomfort and are able to
continue work and family activities with little disruption. ...
... For others
the experience of treatment may involve high doses of chemotherapy or
radiation which will require close monitoring and extensive after care.
Additionally, the following factors can influence the treatment
experience and the outcomes: your age, health status, the agents or
dosing received, and the unique sensitivities you may or may not have to
treatments.
Sometimes
the anxiety about treatment can disrupt the patients' lives more than the therapy, and can
make recovering from cancer more difficult. It's important to be
positive about the treatment you have chosen and to learn what you can
do to manage or prevent side effects so that you will have the best
chance to have a great outcome.
Related Resources
Questions
for Your Doctor
Suggestion by Mary Hanson (Cyberfamily)
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Please provide readable information about each of the chemo drugs I will be getting. |
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What symptoms or side effects are expected, and which require:
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Immediate attention? |
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A call the next day? |
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How can I contact you? |
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If drugs to control nausea will be needed,
please provide me with a prescription several days prior to the first chemo treatment.
Prior approval may be required by their insurance company. Delays -
and unnecessary suffering - can be avoided with sufficient advance notice. |
Avoiding Trouble: General Guidance
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Preparations - getting
ready for treatment:
Take care of dental problems and chronic
infections. See below
Let neighbors, family, and friends help with
preparations and tasks; try to relax and store energy.
Notify employees, family, and friends that you will
need to be careful to avoid infections.
Make preparations to minimize the responsibilities
you will have when treatment starts.
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| Avoid infections - The main point to
remember is to wash your hands often, and to avoid places and
circumstances that increase your exposures to germs, molds, and
viruses.
Also see Avoiding
Infections for details and tips from patients.
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| Avoid Dehydration: Drink plenty of water
daily to keep tissues hydrated, reduce constipation, and
to help remove toxins from your bladder and kidneys.
"Dehydration occurs when not enough free water is taken in by the body, and as a result the blood gets more and more concentrated. This makes it more difficult to fight off infections; it makes it more difficult to eliminate toxins by the kidneys; and it decreases the fluidity of the blood, so it doesn't flow as freely and favors clot formation.
Caffeine dehydrates. Caffeine is a diuretic, which means it makes you pee out more than you drank in. For each cup of coffee, tea, cola drink, or cocoa, take an extra cup of water. Likewise be aware of chocolate also requiring extra water.
Alcohol dehydrates as well. It is also a liver toxin, so shouldn't be used during chemotherapy as well."
source: www.leiomyosarcoma.info/diet.htm
Also see: Importance of Hydration plwc.org
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Avoid excessive sun exposure - especially if
treatment includes vincristine
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Food Preparation Tips:
On treatment days, eat a small meal two hours before treatment and take a
snack with you to treatment. Also try to have some of the following
food and drink, which require little or no preparation, available
throughout the day: broth-based soups, canned fruit, crackers, fruit
juice . . .
Prepare meals ahead of time, fixing quality small portions, such
as soups
that include quality protein, grains, and vegetables. You can make
larger batches and store smaller ready-to-use quantities in the refrigerator or freezer for later use.
Cooked foods are safer. Be sure to thoroughly wash
vegetables and fruits (see above)
Smoothies can help
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| Also see: Keeping Bacteria
from Cross Contaminating Your Food Webcast
Main points: Separate, don't cross contaminate!
Sources
of cross contamination:
Raw foods, food containers, cutting boards, plates, your hands, dish
towels, counter tops, and sponges.
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your hands with warm soapy water after handling any kind of raw
food. |
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Put raw
food like chicken or meat in separate plastic bags,
wrap them separately so that the juices from the raw food don't
contaminate
the fresh food that you're buying. |
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Use
separate cutting boards for fresh produce and raw meat. |
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separate dish towels when handling raw meat. |
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Always
boil
marinades before using with cooked foods. |
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Use
clean utensils and plates for cooked food.
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Nutrition and Food Safety Tips
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During and after chemotherapy your body will need to
repair.
Foods that are rich in protein supply your body with amino acids,
which help to build, repair, and maintain cells and muscle tissue, to
heal wounds, and to support the immune system.
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Nutrition and Cancer THREE STAGES:
Nutrition During Treatment | Specific Chemotherapy Agents
and Nutrition | Nutritional Suggestions for Immunotherapies
| Radiation Treatment and Nutrition
| Herbs and Surgery Warnings cancerNutrition.com
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"Eating Well Through Cancer" by Holly
Clegg Amazon.com
Focuses on cancer and nutrition with a mainstream
approach.
Recipes were selected to ease symptoms while undergoing
treatment and to maintain
a healthier lifestyle. (We have no affiliations with the authors
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A
healthy guide to eating CancerBACUP
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Eat a well-balanced
diet. Be sure to get adequate nutrients by eating a
variety of vegetables and good sources of protein to assist
immune function. Nutrients such as Vitamin A, zinc, vitamin
C, Zinc, etc. assist your body in fighting infection.
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| Focus on the positive!
You have chosen the treatment because it's in your
best interest. Focus on the positive aspects of the therapy.
See 10 Commandments for
Cancer Survivals.
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Avoid taking supplements
without consulting with your oncologist.
Vitamin D and Calcium: these
supplements can increase the risk of hypercalcemia - a metabolic
imbalance resulting from too much calcium in the blood.
Hypercalcemia is associated with lymphomas and can also be a side
effect of chemotherapy.
"Some patients with sarcoidosis, tuberculosis, or lymphoma
become hypercalcemic in response to any increase in vitamin D
nutrition (122, 134, 135). For these persons, it may be prudent to
avoid any dietary or environmental sources of vitamin D." www.ajcn.
org/cgi/content/
full/69/5/
842
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Avoid hot baths - See Hand/Foot
Syndrome | And to avoid risk of infection: cancer.gov
HFS is a skin reaction that appears on the palms of the hands and/or the
soles of the feet as a result of certain chemotherapy agents
Comment: When you think about it, the doses of chemotherapy
agents are carefully calculated to achieve blood levels within the
therapeutic window (to be effective with acceptable toxicity).
It may be that a hot bath will raise the temperature of
blood in your skin and extremities, which could increase drug
accumulations in those areas and reduce blood flow to other areas. When
you self-prescribe and experiment with the treatment script
with the goal of optimizing therapy it's possible to do more harm
than good.
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Keep physically active; discuss your limits with
your doctor.
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Exercise. Studies show that moderate (not strenuous) exercise
during treatment can
have many benefits. Please consult your doctor for guidance on activities
appropriate to your
performance level and special risks you may have.
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Exercise to Stay Active cancer.org/docroot
Find out how much activity is healthy during treatment and
create an exercise program that's right for you.
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| "It has been shown that exercise such as riding a
bike or walking can maintain a patient's strength and endurance while
undergoing therapy." rch.unimelb.edu
Benefits may include:
" Shorter duration of low neutrophil and platelet
counts
Decreased risk of upper respiratory tract
infections (urti's)
Decreased pain severity | Decreased anxiety and depression | Improved mood"
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Prepare a journal of your activities, body
functions, and symptoms and bring it with you to your doctor's
appointment. Write down your questions. Set goals.
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Rest - Try to get adequate sleep and let others
help you with chores and responsibilities.
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Talk to other patients; join a support
group.
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Dave (nhl-follic support list) writes:
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Get a binder, to keep your:
questions, answers, lab results, receipts,
important information; take it to all appointments.
Always take your nausea meds as early as prescribed, if you have
optional nausea pills, err on the overly cautious side.
Chemo day, take a little backpack with: book, non-smelly-bland
munchies,
water or drinks, binder, and a copy of your chemo dosages (check the
bags). The first day is long, nervous and boring. You
should have a
designated driver.
Never eat your favorite foods when nausea is probable.
If you get tired, take a nap, then take a walk.
1 hour nap = 1/2 hour walk.
Keep active, avoid the temptation to cocoon.
If ANYTHING seems to change, ask your onc. (Mine got tired of
saying
"it goes with the territory", but I didn't need the extra
stress caused
by worrying over stuff.)
Many people go through CHOP+R with very minor bad side effects,
don't
believe the TV sensationalized stereotypes.
If you have hair 10" or longer, cut it and donate to kids with
cancer at
www.locksoflove.org
You are going to lose it, and it makes a good story when you don't
want
to tell somebody about the chemo.
Keep a sense of humor.
Dave (originally posted on nhl-follic
support list)
Fight nausea: Some cancer treatments can cause nausea.
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Ask your doctor to provide a prescription
several days prior to the first chemo treatment.
Prior approval may be required by their insurance company. Delays -
and unnecessary suffering - can be avoided with sufficient advance notice.
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Ask your doctor about medication
that can dramatically control nausea, such as Zofran, Kytril, and
Emend.
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Avoid foods that are high in fat, which tend to remain in the stomach longer
than
other foods and may contribute to nausea.
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Avoid odors that offend you.
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Breath through your mouth when feeling nauseous.
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Try smaller, more-frequent meals to help to minimize nausea.
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Complementary practices that may control nausea and vomiting:
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Acupuncture and Ginger
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Fight constipation
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Ask your doctor about laxatives and stool softeners.
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Drink plenty of liquids
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Eat foods with fiber content, such as celery and
cooked whole grains.
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Keep active.
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Oral Health - especially
important during and prior to chemotherapy
Important: See your dentist as early as possible
before chemotherapy begins. If you have already started chemotherapy and didn’t go to a
dentist, see one as soon as possible, and notify him or her that you
are receiving treatment.
New: See
Oral and Dental Management Prior to Cancer Therapy cancer.gov
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Avoid foods that are:
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Sharp, crunchy, which can scrape or cut your
mouth (hard nuts, brittle candy)
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Hot, spicy, or high in acid, like citrus fruits
and juices, which can irritate your mouth
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Sugary and can cause cavities
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Choose foods that are:
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nutritious, easy to chew and swallow
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soft and moist (soups, cooked cereals, mashed
potatoes, and scrambled eggs)
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If you have trouble swallowing, soften your
food with gravy, sauces, broth, yogurt, or other liquids.
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Chew slowly, take small bites, sip liquids with
meals.
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Also avoid toothpicks, tobacco products, alcoholic
drinks.
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When your mouth hurts, call or fax your doctor or
nurse.
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Oral hygiene: How to clean your mouth, tongue, and
gums.
NEW:
Prevention of oral mucositis - evidence-based best practices oralcancerfoundation.org
pdf
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Use extra-soft toothbrush after every meal and
at bedtime. Soften brush in warm water.
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Use a fluoride toothpaste.
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Avoid mouthwashes that contain
alcohol.
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Gently floss your teeth daily.
Avoid areas that are bleeding or sore. If blood counts are
low check with doctor or nurse before flossing.
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Rinse several times daily with solution of
1/4 teaspoon baking soda and
1/8 teaspoon salt in one cup of warm water.
Follow with a plain water rinse.
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Suck on ice cubes to relieve sores -
be sure that the water is pure (boil if from a well).
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Discuss with your doctor or dentist about your
dentures that don't fit.
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When to call your doctor or nurse - general guidelines
We have moved this information to an new
page
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-
Resources and Research |
Chemo
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| Related Resources
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| Coping with Side Effects Cancer.gov
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| Nutritional
and Dietary Management of Cancer Patients
Stacy
Steinberg, M.S.,
R.D., CNSD
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|
Dealing
with ill-effects of Chemo CancerLynx
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International
Journal of Experimental and Clinical Chemotherapy karger.com
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| Life after High Dose Treatment and Stem Cell Support CancerBACUP
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| Suggestions for conserving energy CancerLynx
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Understanding
Chemotherapy CancerBACUP booklet series
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