Chemotherapy Side Effects

The chemicals used in chemotherapy to treat breast cancer are powerful -- strong enough to kill cancer cells. That's a good thing, but they also seem to have a little-understood effect on the brain, causing cognitive problems such as memory lapses and loss of concentration.

When your parent is undergoing chemotherapy to treat cancer, a lot hinges on the blood test results that precede each chemotherapy session. Low counts can indicate serious side effects, including fatigue, bruising, and vulnerability to infection -- and can also mean that treatment must be postponed while your parent's body heals...

Neuropathy is the medical term for nerve damage, usually to the peripheral nerves in the hands, feet, arms, and legs. Chemotherapy drugs commonly use in breast cancer treatment are toxic to healthy nerve cells as well as to cancer cells. When those nerves begin to stop working, the result is tingling...

The drugs used to destroy cancer cells are also toxic to healthy cells in the digestive tract. Chemo also causes chemicals to be released in the digestive tract that eventually stimulate the portion of the brain that controls vomiting and nausea.

One of the lesser-known side effects from chemotherapy is a skin reaction known as hand-foot syndrome, in which the palms of the hands and soles of the feet become red and painful, and the skin may peel, blister, or develop sores. The official name of this condition is palmar-plantar toxicity, though doctors may also call it erythrodysesthesia or erythema...

Mouth sores are one of the most common side effects of chemotherapy for breast cancer. Radiation therapy of the head and neck area for metastatic breast cancer can cause mouth sores as well. Known to doctors as mucositis, they can actually occur anywhere in the mouth, throat, or vaginal area and develop...

Fatigue is one of the biggest complaints of cancer patients, and one of the most common causes is anemia, which occurs when chemotherapy or radiation causes your parent's red blood cell count (RBC) to drop. Here's how to help your parent cope -- and feel better -- when his RBC is low, and when to seek further treatment...