Guide To Chemotherapy Side Effects

Neuropathy

An individual being treated for cancer with chemotherapy may experience neuropathy. Chemotherapy drugs cause widespread death of cancerous cells and healthy cells in the process of cell division. When large amounts of cells in the body die, their contents are leaked into the tissues around them. These contents are toxic to the other cells and compound the toxicity already present due to the potent substances that make up chemotherapy drugs. The toxic substances in the individual's blood that are the result of chemotherapy treatments can cause damage to the nerve cells. When nerves become damaged, they are not able to conduct electrical impulses the way they should. This malfunction causes a patient to experience symptoms of neuropathy, which include muscle weakness, lack of coordination, sensitivity to touch, prickling or tingling sensations, and numbness.

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Diarrhea Or Constipation

Diarrhea or constipation may occur in a patient undergoing chemotherapy. Cells in the body reproduce through a process known as cell division, which consists of several phases where the cell splits in half into what are known as daughter cells. Cancerous cells grow and divide much more rapidly than healthy cells. Chemotherapy can target and destroy or damage the cells in an individual's body in certain phases of the cell division process. This mechanism is what makes chemotherapy one of the most effective treatments for cancer patients. However, chemotherapy drugs are not able to distinguish between healthy and malignant cells. Therefore, healthy cells in the process of cell division can unintentionally become damaged and destroyed by chemotherapy. The digestive tract is one of the parts of the body with a high cell turnover and reproduction rate, making it especially susceptible to the effects of chemotherapy. Damage to the tissues that make up the small and large intestines due to chemotherapy can cause an individual to become constipated or have diarrhea.

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