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Archive for the Coping with cancer category
Christmas is the season to be jolly but when you are ill, the holiday season can be actually stressful rather than joyful. This is especially true among cancer patients and their families. How would they fit in Christmas shopping and baking between chemotherapy and radiotherapy sessions? The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute gives some tips for cancer patients and their families on how to cope with the holiday fever as described below.
FOR THE PATIENTS
I received an interesting (well to me it was) email from my local blood donation center..nudging me to schedule my eight week donation and adding this information:
Did you know that there is another way you can save lives? Each year thousands of people are diagnosed with diseases like leukemia and lymphoma for which a stem cell or marrow transplant could be the only cure. About 70 percent of these people are unable to find a donor match within their family and must search for an unrelated donor on the National Marrow Donor Program Registry.
Why the need for stem cells or marrow?
Stem cells are destroyed by chemo or radiation. Stem cells are considered the foundation of blood formation. Stem cells become white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets.
For more information on this see the Battling Cancer Archives on neutropenia.
From the National Marrow Donor Program:
The basics:
“Race and ethnicity matter in tissue matches”
Your heritage can make all the difference. If you are from one of the following communities, you are urgently needed as a bone marrow donor or cord blood donor:
The cancer journey can seem very lonely, but there are others on the road and those who have gone before you who are ready to reach out a hand.
Today Battling Cancer features some unique organizations you may not have heard about whose goal is support and care. Check them out.
Also be sure to take a look back at the Battling Cancer archives for profiles of other organizations and stop by our links for additional resources.
Of the 1.2 million Americans diagnosed with cancer each year, approximately 400,000 will develop oral complications from their treatments. (Source: ACS)
While eliminating oral complications is not possible, the goal is to educate and prevent severe levels of stomatitis, and mucositis which will prevent the completion of treatment or lead to infections that can spread via the bloodstream through a cancer patient’s already compromised immune system.
Erythropenia is a deficiency of red blood cells or erythrocytes. Remember your blood is made up of red blood cells, white blood cells and plasma.
Your normal blood test, CBC or complete blood count assesses the number of red cells in a drop of your blood.
Next to alopecia, anticipation of nausea and vomiting is one of the biggest anxiety factors for cancer patients. And in fact– Anticipatory Nausea and Vomiting (ANV) is a phenomenon that reportedly occurs in 32% of all cancer patients. Nausea and vomiting related to chemotherapy is classified as acute: occurring within 24 hours of treatment, or delayed: occurring after 24 hours
Per the National Cancer Institute, the potential for nausea and vomiting increase if the patient: More →
One of the side effects of radiation, chemotherapy and many drug therapies is xerostomia or dry mouth. It is important to note that sometimes the dose of radiation may cause permanent damage to the salivary glands. The job of saliva is not only to keep the mouth moist for eating and swallowing but to rinse away food and bacteria. Dry mouth puts cancer patients at greater risk for dental disease and infections.
Salivary glands: More →
Hair loss during chemotherapy is a hugely overwhelming issue on top of everything else going on in the cancer patient’s life. The approach to the topic is as individual as your cancer treatment plan.
Hair loss is dependent upon the type of chemo you receive. Loss usually begins one to three weeks after the initiation of chemo. Hair loss will affect eyebrows, eyelashes, armpit and leg hair, as well as your head.
Hair loss can be the most distressing side effect of chemo. That’s understandable, as it puts you and your diagnosis out there. That which you wanted to keep private is now exposed.
We hide behind our hair, we take pride in our hair, and often hair defines us– and loss translates to loss of self esteem.
Many people find it less traumatic to prepare with a shorter haircut first. Remember the cancer support system you have in place can help you through this difficult time. Talk about it. Blog about it. Share with others who understand.
For more information on what to expect during treatment, visit the Mayo Clinic site.
Raquel Billiones has a PhD in Biology and has over 15 years experience as a researcher, scientific English teacher, and medical writer. Since 2006, she has been a freelance WAHM specializing in medical writing and scientific documentation. More ..
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No matter how much you educate yourself, how much you prepare for battle in every way; there will still be days you feel like crawling into the cave and giving up.