Cancer and chemotherapy is a word known by almost every person in the universe; it is a dreaded word that no one person wants to hear about especially concerning ourselves. Cancer is a malignant growth that is ruining millions of peoples lives daily.
It doesn’t have a care who it attacks, rich, poor, adults, children, even animals. Has cancer always been so virulent among the population, or is it the modern lifestyle that has caused what seems like an explosion through out the whole world.
Breast cancer, lung cancer, liver cancer, bowel cancer and skin cancer are just a few. Not one single part of our body is safe from that hated word. Dreams of a simple cure being found may be in the far distant future but for the present chemotherapy is one of the main fighters against the disease.
What is Chemotherapy?
We have probably all heard of it but until we are faced with having the treatment we won’t have given it a lot of thought.
Some people who have gone through it will tell you about the terrible effects it had on them, while others will say it wasn’t so bad, so don’t listen to any of them as your experience may be entirely different.
Chemotherapy is given to stop the growth of cancer cells in your body. There are various ways of receiving the chemotherapy it may be a pill or an injection but the most common way is through an IV line which means intravenous.
An IV line is a tiny tube that is inserted into a vein usually on the arm. The IV line is attached to a bag that holds the medicine. The medicine flows from the bag or pump into the vein, which goes into the blood.
Once it is in the blood it travels through the body and attacks the cancer cells. Sometimes the IV line is inserted into a larger vein in the upper chest. This type of IV line is called a catheter it is called permanent and it stays in place until the patient has finished with the cancer treatment.
Your treatment schedule is very important so never miss a single session. If you do miss a treatment session you must contact your doctor. Your schedule may need changing if you are going on holiday or for any other reason.
Most people who are receiving chemotherapy may find that they tire easily, but many may feel well enough to continue to lead an active life. Each person and treatment is different, so it is not always possible to tell exactly how you will react.
Your general state of health, the type and extent of cancer you have, and the kind of drugs you are receiving can all affect how you feel. Most people can continue working while receiving chemotherapy.
However if your chemotherapy makes you feel very tired or you have other side effects then time off may be needed.
Making the Distress of Chemotherapy Easier on Your Stomach and Wallet
Zofran was the first drug of its kind to be approved by the food and drug administration and made available to the public, and it has since been approved to alleviate the nausea and vomiting caused by surgery. Zofran has become one of the top choices for anesthesiologists to prescribe in accordance with the prevention of the nausea and vomiting that are sometimes common after effects associated with surgical procedures.
The stomach sickness associated with chemotherapy is a big concern for cancer sufferers.
I’ve seen cancer patients following chemotherapy sessions, broken down in physical illness with a severely upset stomach and bouts of vomiting, sick for a day or more after the session. I’ve even heard of people unwilling to undergo the treatment for fear of being unable to enjoy any time between treatments, fear of being sick all the time.
Any delay in the treatment of cancer can have a significantly negative effect how the well the treatment works.
A drug like Zofran allows cancer patients to focus on the treatment of the disease rather than the unpleasantness associated with what they would have had to have dealt with after, allowing them to actually live their lives in between treatment sessions and giving them the possibility of feeling good while doing so.
The side effects of Zofran are said to generally mild and may include: headache, diarrhea, constipation and fever. Zofran was the twentieth best selling drug in the United States in 2005 with sales of more than eight hundred million dollars.
It was estimated the nearly forty-five percent of patients undergoing chemotherapy weren’t getting the support they needed in this important area of their treatment, either walking away with no prescription to combat the nausea and vomiting, or not getting the most effective prescription for the problem.
It’s believed that some of these people were suffering due to the cost of the prescription and veritable lack of a decent alternative.
In December of 2006 the US food and drug administration approved the first generic versions of the drug Zofran.
License to produce generic versions of the drug was granted to three U.S. companies.
According to the FDA these less expensive versions of the drug are now being used to fill more than fifty percent of all prescriptions, the FDA also adds that the generic versions are identical to their brand name counterparts in: dosage, strength, route of administration, quality, performance and intended use.
The introduction of generic forms of this drug make it much more readily available to those who may not have been able to get it before, allowing them to begin whatever form of treatment is right for then without being hampered by the inherent fear that the treatment would prove to be worse than the disease.
