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Chemotherapy that is used in the
treatment of prostate
cancer can be administered either orally or intravenously.
When patients experience either hormone
refractory cancer or prostate cancer
bone
metastasis, doctors may begin chemotherapy.
Some doctors use chemotherapy in small and frequent
doses, such as daily oral pills or frequent low dose
injections. Small doses can benefit the patient by increasing
the exposure time to the therapy in addition to lower
the occurrence and severity of side effects. Some patients
use venous access devices which are used for frequent
low dose injections. Patients do not go to their doctor’s
office for this prostate
cancer treatment but receive their therapy through
a machine. A small device called a port is placed on
top of the skin. The port connects to a tube which connects
to the vein. Through these connections, the venous access
device supplies the body with low doses of chemotherapy
drugs.
Chemotherapy
Drugs
Doxorubicin
works by binding to the DNA of a cell and inhibits the
production of protein. The drug is administered intravenously
and has been known to cause serious tissue damage if
the solution escapes from the vein. Escaped doxorubicin
will cause pain, redness, and swelling around the injection
site.
Estramustine
phosphate is known as an alkylating
agent. The drug is taken in the form of a capsule. Patients
are encouraged to take the capsule with a full glass
of water one hour before or two hours after a meal.
Doctors also encourage patients not to take estramustine
phosphate with dairy products because dairy may affect
the chemotherapy’s effectiveness.
Etoposide
is a chemotherapy drug used in the treatment of prostate
cancer that can be taken orally or by infusion. When
taken orally, etoposide comes in a liquid-filled capsule.
Patients should speak with their doctors about when
they should take etoposide and what food or behaviors
they may want to avoid. When taken by infusion, the
etoposide is diluted in to a solution and given as a
slow drip.
Mitoxantrone
belongs to the chemotherapy group called antineoplastics.
Mitoxantrone is given in the form of injection at either
the doctor’s office or at home. Patients taking
mitoxantrone at home must carefully follow their doctor’s
instructions. Mitoxantrone is sometimes taken with corticosteroids,
such as prednisone.
Prednisone is used to treat inflammation and has shown
to be useful for patients with bone metastasis. Vinblastine
is another type of antineoplastic. This chemotherapy
is given by injection through a cannula, which is a
fine tube inserted directly into the vein. Antineoplastics
may also be called anti-tumor antibiotics.
Drugs from the taxane
group used to treat prostate cancer
are paclitaxel
and docetaxel.
Taxanes work by locking the microtubules that make up
the cells cytoskeleton into place, so the cell dies
when it tries to divide. Paclitaxel is administered
as an infusion drip through a cannula. Docetaxel is
administered by injections either every three hours,
every week, or every three weeks depending on the doctor’s
prescriptions.
Chemotherapy drugs can cause serious
and even dangerous side effects. Patients who are considering
chemotherapy should speak with their doctors about which
drug will benefit them the most as well as what results
and side effects can be expected with each drug.
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