Chemotherapy complications from

The aim of a bone marrow transplant is to replace the abnormal bone marrow stem cells with healthy stem cells from a donor. Healthy stem cells are normally harvested using a syringe to withdraw bone marrow from the rear hip bone of the donor. They are then infused into the patient via a catheter in the chest area. Before the infusion, the patient receives chemotherapy or radiotherapy to destroy the diseased bone marrow stem cells so that the infused stem cells have a chance to grow free of complications from diseased cells. 

There is no official register of MCS fatalities, but within MCS circles cases of death are reported (especially in the United States and Canada). These are often MCS patients who die from suicide, fatal reactions (such as anaphylactic shock or an allergic reaction) or due to complications from being unable to undergo traditional methods of treatment, such as chemotherapy. Severe MCS patients can sustain fatal organ damage. Officially these patients die from heart, kidney or liver failure. In these cases the cause is rarely described as MCS. 

Extravasation generally is defined as leakage of intravenous fluids into the interstitial tissue. It is one of the most feared complications of the administration of cytotoxic chemotherapy. While extravasation does not cause death, significant morbidity may result from local tissue destruction, and immediate management is necessary. 

In acute uric acid nephropathy, acute renal failure occurs as a result of blockage of urine flow secondary to massive precipitation of uric acid crystals in the collecting ducts and ureters. This syndrome is a well-recognized complication in patients with myeloproliferative or lymphopro-liferative disorders and results from massive malignant cell turnover, particularly after initiation of chemotherapy. Chronic urate nephropathy is caused by the long-term deposition of urate crystals in the renal parenchyma. 

Malnutrition, and its ultimate form cachexia, are encountered every day in cancer and haematology wards. Malnutrition results from the parasitic metabolism of the tumour at the expense of the host, from the impact of the tumour on the metabolism of the host... The major consequence is an increased risk of complications and death during the course of chemotherapy, radiation therapy and major surgery. It is thus important to offer nutritional support, in order to stop or reverse the process of malnutrition. Nutritional intervention should be founded on the abundant literature devoted to cancer cachexia, including the pathophysiology of the disease. .. 

A 68-year-old man with relapsed AML presents to the clinic to evaluate further treatment options. He received high-dose chemotherapy (cytarabine and daunorubicin) earlier this year with complications of cardiotoxicity due to the daunorubicin and neurotoxicity from the cytarabine. He has relapsed after a brief remission. Which of the following MoAbs may be considered for use in this patient ... 

Leukocytosis is a normal host defense to infection and is an important adjunct to antimicrobial therapy. Unfortunately, bacterial infection is a common complication of neutropenia from cancer chemotherapy. These patients are incapable of increasing their WBCs in response to infection. In fact, susceptibility to infection in these patients is highly dependent on their WBC status. Patients with neutrophil counts of less than 500 cells/mm are at high risk for the development of bacterial or fungal infections. The absence of leukocytosis also occurs in the elderly and in severe cases of sepsis. ... 

Neutropenia in the cancer patient is a common complication of aggressive chemotherapy, but occasionally can result from the cancer itself. The risk of infection in the cytopenic patient is increased significantly when the absolute neutrophil count falls below 500 cells/mm and the neutropenia persists for longer than 7 days. " In many patients, the duration of chemotherapy-induced cytopenia can be reduced by the judicious application of colony-stimulating factors. ... 

Patients receiving radiation therapy may experience complications including severe esophagitis, fatigue, radiation pneumonitis, and cardiac toxicity. These toxicities are usually more common and severe when radiation is combined with chemotherapy. The patient s baseline performance status and the degree of pulmonary dysfunction (e.g., chronic obstructive pulmonary disease from years of tobacco use) must be considered in the decision of radiation dosage and fractionation. 

Several prognostic factors have been identified for adults with AML. The most important patient factor is age, with younger patients more likely to achieve a CR than older patients (older than age 60). The lower CR rate in older patients appears to result from an increased frequency of fatal infectious and bleeding complications, as well as disease resistance to conventional chemotherapy. ... 

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