An overview of concerns we have with chemotherapy treatment…
- Nausea/vomiting
- Pretreat prior to therapy
- Alopecia (hair loss, nothing we could do about it)
- Bone Marrow Depression
- Treat with filgrastim (Neupogenยฎ)
- Extravasation of vesicant drugs (drugs that cause tissue blisters)
- This used to be an issue but it is now prevented with careful administration
- If we put an IV infusion into a peripheral vein and the needle moves out, extravasation is this adverse event where the drug goes all over the surrounding tissue. ย We don’t want this to happen with chemotherapy drugs because it will destroy everything around there so we no longer give chemotherapy drugs by a peripheral vein. We give it by a central line so we’re always sure we’re in a vein at all times.
