...Article 1 Quimby, Erin L. "The use of herbal therapies in pediatric oncology patients: treating symptoms of cancer and side effects of standard therapies."Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing Jan.-Feb. 2007: 35+. Academic OneFile. Web. 20 Nov. 2014. Summary: Erin L. Quimby graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with her Masters of Science in Nursing. She currently works for Penn State as a Nurse Practitioner caring for pediatric oncology patients. Throughout the article she explains many aspects of using herbal therapies along with chemotherapy. Quimby gives us positive and negative notations on these affects. According to Quimby, the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has increased in the pediatric oncology community. CAM is the use of herbal therapies to minimize the side effects of chemotherapy. Complementary and alternative medicine is commonly used, but is not always discussed with the health care provider. Not consulting a health care provider before using prescription drugs, with non-prescription drugs can be very harmful towards a child. According to Quimby “a study conducted by Friedman et al. (1997) showed that 64% of children with cancer use some type of CAM, where only 22% of them told their health care provider. These results suggested that families with chronically ill children are more likely to disclose information about herbal therapy usage in their homes. “ When asked by a health care provider, parents often times only...
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...systemic treatments. Skin-directed treatments for mycosis fungoides For patients with early-stage mycosis fungoides, treatments are aimed directly at the skin rather than the entire body. Skin-directed treatmetns for mycosis fungoides include • Phototherapy with ultraviolet (UV) light • Topical medicines • Radiation therapy Phototherapy with ultraviolet (UV) light Phototherapy uses two types of ultraviolet (UV) light to destroy cancer cells. A patient may be treated using either ultraviolet A (UVA) or ultraviolet B (UVB) light. Both types of UV light are administered using fluorescent lamps. The light boxes are specially calibrated to maximize the effect of treatment while minimizing the risk of burns. Phototherapy treatments are usually...
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...Anemia in Chemotherapy Patients Anemia: Side Effect of Chemotherapy BIOS 260 Section B 2/4/2012 Anemia and Chemotherapy Patients For patients receiving chemotherapy, anemia can be a common side effect . The big question, though is, why is anemia a common side effect for these patients? In order to be able to answer that question, the understanding of what both anemia and chemotherapy is necessary. Once that understanding is clear, then the causes can be analyzed. From that analysis, treatments can be established. What is anemia? Generally speaking, anemia is a condition of low levels of red blood cells. Nutritional deficiency, chronic disease, and hemorrhage could all be particular causes. These conditions decrease the number of red blood cells and oxygen delivery to the cells and tissues. Anemia symptoms that a patient can experience are fatigue, energy loss, lightheadedness or dizziness, shortness of breath, headaches, pallor appearance, tachycardia and chest pain. There are many different types of anemia, such as iron deficiency, anemia of chronic disease, megaloblastic and hemolytic (Zelman, 2009). The classes that are the result of chemotherapy are iron deficiency and anemia of chronic disease. The difference is the class is based on the type of cancer that is being treated. Iron deficiency anemia is when the body does not have enough iron. When that occurs, the body will make fewer red blood cells or the red blood cells are too small. Iron deficiency...
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...Patients with lupus going on CellCept may experience one or more of these side effects, “Nausea, Headache, Vomiting, Gas, Diarrhea, Loss of appetite, Stomach upset, Tremor, Insomnia, Anxiety, Numbness and tingling feeling, Swelling in the hands and feet” according to “Chemo for Lupus Treatment.” “Chemo for Lupus Treatment,” also states that patents on CellCept are more likely to later become cancer patients after being on CellCept, though lupus patients have a high chance of developing cancer to begin with CellCept tightens that risk. Methotrexate is a type of chemo used to treat those with, “a variety of cancers including lymphoma, leukemia and osteosarcoma,” according to “Chemo for Lupus Treatment.” The side effects of this type of chemotherapy are, “Temporary hair loss — though on such a low dose for lupus, it is not typical and is more often not total hair loss, Nausea, Vomiting, Acne, Boils, Pale skin, Rash or itching.” This type of chemo can only be given to those who are not breast feeding and have a negative pregnancy. And both men and women should be using protection when having sex for a minimum of 90 days after they stop taking Methotrexate. (once again from “Chemo for Lupus Treatment.” Cytoxan is a drug that is, “used to treat leukemia, ovarian cancer, neuroblastoma, eye cancer and breast cancer, in...
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...Chemotherapy Chemotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses drugs to destroy cancer cells . It works by stopping or slowing the growth of cancer cells, which grow and divide quickly. But it can also harm healthy cells that divide quickly, such as those that line your mouth and intestines or cause your hair to grow. Damage to healthy cells may cause side effects. Often, side effects get better or go away after chemotherapy is over. Depending on your type of cancer and how advanced it is, chemotherapy can: Cure cancer - when chemotherapy destroys cancer cells to the point that your doctor can no longer detect them in your body and they will not grow back. Control cancer - when chemotherapy keeps cancer from spreading, slows its growth, or destroys cancer cells that have spread to other parts of your body. Ease cancer symptoms (also called palliative care) - when chemotherapy shrinks tumors that are causing pain or pressure. Sometimes, chemotherapy is used as the only cancer treatment. But more often, you will get chemotherapy along with surgery, radiation therapy, or biological therapy. Chemotherapy can: Make a tumor smaller before surgery or radiation therapy. This is called neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. Destroy cancer cells that may remain after surgery or radiation therapy. This is called adjuvant chemotherapy. Help radiation therapy and biological therapy work better. Destroy cancer cells that have come back (recurrent cancer) or spread to other parts of your body...
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...How can the mortality rate due to tuberculosis be reduced? Tuberculosis case reports and rates by age group and sex, UK, 2009 Tuberculosis case reports and rates by age group and sex, UK, 2009 Introduction to tuberculosis A major issue in the medical world which biologists attempt to solve is Tuberculosis, an infectious disease that kills millions of males and females every year. It iscaused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis. The bacteria may stay in the lymph system for years before becoming active, then likely will infect the lungs and possibly other organs in the body and damage them, if the lung mucus and immune system fails to defend in the first place. [1] The infection caused worldwide 1.7 million deaths in 2007. [2] An infected person will spread the bacteria in the air with tiny droplets by coughing, talking or even breathing. The main problem is in developing countries as the disease is spread due to unhygienic air, food or drinks. Young people in their productive years are especially vulnerable due to a weaker immune system. Although the mortality rate due to tuberculosis in western countries is much lower than a decade ago, tuberculosis cases are increasing all over the world and especially developing countries still face huge problems. “Among the 15 countries with the highest estimated TB incidence rates, 13 are in Africa, while a third of all new cases are in India and China.” [3] Biological methods and processes By carrying...
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...peritoneum and spread to the ovary. The stages and treatment are the same for ovarian epithelial, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancers. To my surprise, while researching the genetic link pertaining to ovarian cancer I found that 90% of all ovarian cancer is acquired by chance while 10% is inherited. Research has successfully identified three hereditary factors that predispose women to ovarian cancer: 1. Spontaneous new mutations in the tumor suppressor genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 2. Susceptibility to HNPCC also known as Lynch Syndrome II, a hereditary disease that puts individuals at risk for ovarian cancer. 3.Hereditary mutations in the BRCA1 gene or BRCA2 gene. There are three common treatment options for ovarian cancer. Surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Surgery for ovarian cancer has 2 main goals. The first goal is to see how far the cancer has spread from the ovary. Usually this means removing the uterus, along with both ovaries and fallopian tubes. The other important goal of surgery is to remove as much of the tumor as possible, this is called...
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...because of their genes. By scanning the entire genomes of lung-cancer patients and healthy controls, research teams identified a region on chromosome 15 that seems to influence the likelihood of developing cancer. People possessing a certain set of mutations at this genetic location are more likely than others to have the disease. Research suggests about 50% of the general population carries a single copy of this cancer gene variant, while another 10% of the population is likely to carry two copies of this set of mutations, raising cancer risk by as much as 80% relative to people with equivalent lifestyles without the cancer-linked gene variant (Hopkin,2016). The most relevant genes in lung cancer include the following: EGFR, KRAS, MET, LKB1, BRAF, PIK3CA, ALK, RET, and ROS1 (El-Telbany & Ma,2012). Lung Cancer and the effects of smoking A typical smoker who refuses or fails to give up has a roughly 15% risk of lung cancer over their lifetime, but with two copies of the genetic variant, this rises to 23%. Researchers disagree over whether non-smokers who possess the genetic risk factor have an increased risk of developing lung cancer. The technique called a genome wide association study, hunts 'blindly' for genetic mutations correlated with certain diseases, but provides no information about the mechanisms that cause the disease. Researchers believes that the genes promote cancer by making people more vulnerable to nicotine addiction...
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...sequence Introduction I. (Attention) Let me tell you a story about a 20 year old man. After he graduated high school at the age of 17 he was accepted to his dream university. In order to attend it he had to take on two jobs to pay his tuition and to help support his underprivileged family. Along the way this young man unexpectedly becomes a proud father of a beautiful baby boy. At the age of 20 this young man walks into the emergency department at my job complaining about a mild stomach ache he had for about 1 week. We routinely asses his medical history and perform necessary examinations, we send him on his way with some pain medication and tell him we will call him when the results are in. The next day he is called back in and he is asked to wait for our medical director. He is given the news that he has stage 4 pancreatic cancer and has anywhere from 6 to 12 months to live. His following weeks consisted of constant visits to medical specialists bombarding him with therapies and medications which left him no options but to take them. He was immediately started on three chemo-therapy sessions per week not necessarily to cure his cancer, but to prolong his life. The chemo-therapy deteriorated his body to the point where he couldn’t fight anymore. He passed away two months later. II. Did you know...
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...Advanced Pathophysiology Case Study 6 Case Study 6 Scenario: John is a 4 year-old boy who was admitted for chemotherapy following diagnosis of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). He had a white blood cell count of 250,000. Clinical presentation included loss of appetite, easily bruised, gum bleeding, and fatigue. Physical examination revealed marked splenomegaly, pale skin color, temperature of 102°F, and upper abdomen tenderness along with nonspecific arthralgia. Pathophysiology signs and symptoms The primary pathophysiological etiology for signs, symptoms and laboratory findings in 4 year-old John’s case study are secondary splenomegaly as a result of primary Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Because of its proximity to the diaphragm, splenomegaly results in pain or fullness in the left upper abdomen (subsequent tenderness and loss of appetite) that may spread to the left shoulder (non-specific arthralgia). Splenomegaly may result in anemia (bruising, bleeding gums, decrease in pallor) fatigue and frequent infections (4 year old John’s WBC 250, 000 count and fever 102°F). However, in John’s case, some of the symptoms related to splenomegaly can also overlap with those of his diagnosis of ALL such as fever and abdominal distention. Additionally, anorexia, headache, seizures, lethargy, arthralgia, infection, and bruising are also potential side effects (Ghazi et al., 2010). Pathophysiology of acute lymphoblastic leukemia-AML comparison According to Gedaly...
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...In Hodgkin's lymphoma, cells in the lymphatic system grow abnormally and may spread beyond the lymphatic system. As Hodgkin's lymphoma progresses, it compromises your body's ability to fight infection. Hodgkin's lymphoma is one of two common types of cancers of the lymphatic system. The other type, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is far more common. Advances in diagnosis and treatment of Hodgkin's lymphoma have helped to give people with this diagnosis the chance for a full recovery. The prognosis continues to improve for people with Hodgkin's lymphoma. Hodgkin's lymphoma signs and symptoms may include painless swelling of lymph nodes in your neck, armpits or groin, persistent fatigue, fever and chills, night sweats, unexplained weight loss, coughing, trouble breathing or chest pain, loss of appetite, itching, increased sensitivity to the effects of alcohol or pain in your lymph nodes after drinking alcohol. Hodgkin's lymphoma is most often diagnosed in people between the ages of 15 and 35, as well as those older than 55. Anyone with a brother or a sister who has Hodgkin's lymphoma or non-Hodgkin's lymphoma has an increased risk of developing Hodgkin's lymphoma. Males are slightly more likely to develop Hodgkin's lymphoma. People who have had illnesses caused by the Epstein-Barr virus, such as infectious mononucleosis, are more likely to develop Hodgkin's lymphoma than are people who haven't had Epstein-Barr infections. Having a compromised immune system, such as from HIV/AIDS or...
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...I might conduct a study that investigates the correlation between social support and psychological and physical adjustment to chemotherapy treatments. Many factors influence stress from receiving chemotherapy: • Patent characteristics: age, comorbidities, and spirituality. • Chemotherapy: type of chemotherapy (vesicant or irritant), administration route (IV, PO, or intraperitoneal), the degree of side effects that a patient may experience • Social factors: socioeconomic factors, social support , etc The purpose of my study would be to determine which category of social support influences greater the adjustment to chemotherapy treatment. I would investigate three categories of social support (variables): Informational support (i.e....
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...cells in the lymph system change and grow uncontrollably that may form a tumor. In the lymph system there are thin tubes that branch out to all different parts of the body ("Types of Cancer: Lymphoma"). Its job is to fight infections and diseases. In the lymph system it carries lymph which is colorless fluid containing lymphocytes that are white blood cells. The main job of a lymphocyte is to fight of germs in the body. Two main lymphocytes are B-lymphocytes and T-lymphocytes. B-lymphocytes also called B-cells make antibodies to fight off bacteria and T-lymphocytes kill viruses, foreign cells and triggers B-cells to make antibodies ("Types of Cancer: Lymphoma"). In different areas of the lymph systems there are lymph nodes through out the body. “Lymph nodes are found in clusters in the abdomen, groin, pelvis, underarms, and neck. Other parts of the lymph system include the spleen which makes lymphocytes and filters blood, the thymus an organ under the breast bone and the tonsils which are located in the throat” ("Types of Cancer: Lymphoma"). There are two types of lymphoma Hodgkin and Non Hodgkin. They both have different types and it is important to know which you have so the treatment is affective. Hodgkin is a blood cancer but may appear as a solid tumor in the glands, most common in teenagers and young adults. According how the cells look under a microscope is how they are identified ("Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research"). Most patients will be diagnosed with classical...
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...expected side effect of this medication? a | Dry mouth | b | Increased urine output | c | Abdominal pain | d | Decreased heart rate | Question 2 In the event of extravasation, which drug is most likely to cause progressive tissue damage? a | Vindesine | b | Paclitaxel | c | Epirubicin | d | Amsacrine | Question 3 Potential late effects for patients treated with nitrosoureas include: a | development of myelodysplastic syndrome. | b | impairment of cardiovascular system. | c | reduction of pulmonary function. | d | dysfunction of neurological system. | Question 4 What is a dose-limiting toxicity of carboplatin? a | Peripheral neuropathy | b | Pulmonary fibrosis | c | Thrombocytopenia | d | Neurotoxicity | Question 5 Which of the following is a barrier to adherence for taking oral chemotherapy? a | Poor patient-provider relationship | b | Age of the patient | c | Reliance on treatment calendar | d | Lengthy commute to clinic | Question 6 Which of these factors heighten awareness to a possible acute infusion reaction with the first dose of cetuximab? a | Shellfish allergy | b | History of hay fever | c | Concomitant pneumonia | d | Chemotherapy-naive | Question 7 Which of the following chemotherapy agents causes harm when administered intrathecally? a | Cytarabine | b | Methotrexate | c | Vincristine | d | Thiotepa | Question 8 Best practice related to verifying chemotherapy infusions...
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...Cancer KEY POINTS Biology of Cancer Cancer encompasses a broad range of diseases of multiple causes that can arise in any cell of the body capable of evading regulatory controls of proliferation and differentiation. Two major dysfunctions present in the process of cancer are (1) defective cell proliferation (growth) and (2) defective cell differentiation. Cancer cells usually proliferate at the same rate of the normal cells of the tissue from which they arise. However, cancer cells divide indiscriminately and haphazardly and sometimes produce more than two cells at the time of mitosis. Through differentiation, cells become capable of performing only specific functions. o Proto-oncogenes are normal cell genes that regulate normal cell processes to keep them in their mature, functioning state. o When proto-oncogenes are mutated, they can begin to function as oncogenes (tumor-inducing genes). Tumors can be classified as benign or malignant. o Benign neoplasms are well-differentiated. o Malignant neoplasms range from well-differentiated to undifferentiated. Development of Cancer The stages of cancer include initiation, promotion, and progression. o The first stage, initiation, is a mutation in the cell’s DNA genetic structure following exposure to a chemical, radiation, or viral agent. The mutation may also be inherited. o Promotion, the second stage in the development of cancer, is characterized by the reversible proliferation of the altered cells. o Progression...
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