Radiation versus Chemotherapy in the Elderly with Breast Cancer
In clinical practice today the population is increasing in the number of elderly patients, as is the occurrence of breast cancer in women 60 years of age and older. According to Tang et al. (2011) the occurrence of breast cancer in women 65 years old and older is greater than “400 cases per 100, 000 women” (p. 3). The appropriate treatment options for the elderly are not as standard as those for a younger generation related to the effects the aging process has on the body. Secondary conditions such as congestive heart failure (CHF), diabetes mellitus (DM), Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and the effects of treatment on functionality are also considered when deciding treatment as well as polypharmacy with the elderly patients. According to Jones, Leak, Muss (2012) treatment options of elderly breast cancer patients requires determine if cancer is the primary illness related to the existing co-illnesses impact on breast cancer and survival rate.
The American Society of Clinical Oncology (2012) recommend not basing the decisions on the course of treatment of cancer age alone. To factor in areas such as type of cancer and metastasis as well as the patients’ opinions on the goals of treatment and quality of life. Also to factor in on the emotional, social, and financial limitations. Consistent with Tang et al., (2011) life expectancies for a 65 year old woman can be up to 20 more years and for an 80 year old woman nearly 9 years. According to Yadav et al. (2010) most treatment plans are based off of the treatment of the younger generation mainly due to the elderly receiving a less aggressive treatment strategy as well as the elderly being exploited...
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...helly, PharmD., Snyder, Julie S., M.S.N, R.N.-B.C., (2014). Pharmacology and the Nursing Process. Saint Louis, MO: Mosby
Susan G. Komen for the Cure, (2009). Radiation Therapy and Side Effects. Susan G. Koman for the Cure. Retrieved from:
http://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/SideEffectsofRadiationTherapy.html
Tang, S. -., Parker, H., Winterbottom, L., Hassell, K., Ellis, I. O., Morgan, D. A. L., & Cheung, K. L. (2011). Early primary breast cancer in the elderly - pattern of presentation and treatment. Surgical Oncology, 20(1), 7-12. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.suronc.2009.07.004
Yadav, B. S., Sharma, S. C., Menu, G., Mohmad, A., Patel, F. D., Nisar, K., & Sushmita, G. (2010). Pattern of care and survival in older women with breast cancer in india. Journal of Radiotherapy in Practice, 9(4), 237-245. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S1460396909990239
Rachel was 40 years old when she moved from India to USA with her husband and four kids to fulfill their American dreams. She knew little english and had great difficulty fitting into the new environment in America. She was unable to work because she had to take care of her 10- month-old daughter. Her husband, who was a lawyer in India, was now working at Forman Mills for minimum wage. Recently, Rachel was diagnosed with stage II breast cancer. Her doctors said her tumor is almost seven years old and if she has routine check ups, her survival rate will be higher. Rachel did not have a health insurance and because of this, she postponed necessary care and avoided preventive care. Even though she gets basic treatments from Public Healthcare Center it is not enough for this chronic disease. Her family is helpless; if her husband took insurance coverage from workplace there would be little money left for their daily expenses after paying for insurance premiums. Her husband is now planning to take another job so he can take workplace insurance and save his wife.
At this day in age we are constantly trying to improve the field of medicine in any way that we possibly can. We cherish every birthday and continually try to prolong life. Not only through every field of medicine, especially in terms of cancer. The American Cancer Society is “the official sponsor of birthdays” and is making leaps and bounds in the types of care that cancer patients receive. One of these many breakthroughs is the practice of Stereotactic (Body) Radiotherapy or S(B)RT. SBRT and other radiation therapies have the ability to greatly improve the way that we treat the issue of cancer and the variation of treatment options; however, they have raised the concerns of long term effects from radiation and cost-effectiveness. As research has begun to show, radiation therapies are having great success in curing cancer.
Breast cancer is most commonly diagnosed in Stage I and Stage II, where the size of the tumor is less than five centimeters in diameter. In these situations, surgery is often the second treatment option after chemotherapy and radiation therapy, both of which are used to shrink the tumor to a manageable size first. If the patient chooses to, the ...
Every day there is a constant trust adhered to many different people in the profession of Nursing—the decision of what will help patients in terms of medicine, and the confidence to make these decisions. One false act or one slight misdiagnoses of medication to a patient could be the prime factor in whether the patient lives or dies. Nurses in hospitals across the country are spread thin, and thus makes the probability of mistakes higher. If a medicinal dose is off by even one decimal a patient could die, so the only real answer is for nurses to not be afraid to ask for assistance, always follow procedure and voice opinion is they feel something is wrong.
Some risk factors cannot be changed such as age, race, and gender. A person 's risk increases as they get older. Approximately 1 out of 8 women are at risk of developing breast cancer are younger than 55. Approximately 2 out of 3 women are at risk of developing breast cancer who are older than 55 (American Cancer Society, 2014). To decrease this rate, women need more timely follow ups and access to high quality treatments (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). Men can develop breast cancer, but this disease is more common among women than men. (American Cancer Society, 2015).
Most people can live their near-normal life span or die. Women tend to have a better outlook than men, but 20% undergoes rapid progression and another 20% still experience symptoms. There are different treatment options available, which include 10 FDA-approved disease-modifying drugs that slow the progression of the disease by reducing the number of ne...
Tzeng, H., Yin, C., & Schneider, T. E. (2013). Medication Error-Related Issues In Nursing Practice. MEDSURG Nursing, 22(1), 13-50.
Drug administration forms a major part of the clinical nurse’s role. Medicines are prescribed by the doctor and dispensed by the pharmacist but responsibility for correct administration rests with the registered nurse (O'Shea 1999). So as a student nurse this has become my duty and something that I need to practice and become competent in carrying it out. Each registered nurse is accountable for his/her practice. This practice includes preparing, checking and administering medications, updating knowledge of medications, monitoring the effectiveness of treatment, reporting adverse drug reactions and teaching patients about the drugs that they receive (NMC 2008). Accountability also goes for students, if at any point I felt I was not competent enough to dispensing a certain drug it would be my responsibility in speaking up and let the registered nurses know, so that I could shadow them and have the opportunity to learn help me in future practice and administration.
The term “breast cancer” refers to a malignant tumor that has developed from cells in the breast. Usually breast cancer either begins in the cells of the lobules, which are the milk-producing glands, or the ducts, the passages that drain milk from the lobules to the nipple. Less commonly, breast cancer can begin in the stromal tissues, which include the fatty and fibrous connective tissues of the breast.
Breast Cancer Treatment Only lung cancer kills more women each year in the United States than breast cancer does. The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates that over 184,000 new cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in women in 1996 (ACS Breast). Although these statistics are alarming, there are a number of treatment options available for those diagnosed with breast cancer. The best way to treat any disease is to prevent it. Since little is known about breast cancer, there are no established rules for prevention.
Firstly, nurses are expected to practice evidence-based health care hence a mastery of information about the essential and safe dose of drugs for a patient is very important for a nurse. Consequently, it could be the determinant between the life and the death of the patient. Pharmacology is a discipline which is mandatory for the nurse to excel in to be efficient in discharging his/her duties. Understanding which drug to use, the right dosage, the expected side effects which may occur and the contra-indications of the various drugs are key in the preservation of
Potter, P. A., & Perry, A. G. (2009). Fundamentals of nursing (Seventh ed.). St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby Elsevier.
The aim of this study was to determine the needs of geriatric care in older women with breast cancer. It is an epidemiological cross-sectional study by self completed survey that included 60 women with breast cancer treated at a cancer hospital. The variables included were, besides comorbidities present, various parameters sociodemographic and health status characteristics. ............ .The Analysis showed comorbidity in older women with cancer may involve a greater degree their physical and emotional health, affecting their quality of life. It is important to assess the state of physical, functional, social and mental of all women with breast cancer health. The scientific studies show that the comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) can
Breast Cancer affects and enter in the lives of women and it stays there for ever, in case you noitced early that you have the cancer maybe it can be removed . This type of cancer kills the majority of the women that do not take care of their selves. When a malignant tumor gets bigger, it affects the organ where this tumor is growing. When more than one tumor starts growing in one organ, the organ get infected and your body will not resist and you wil die. If you do not take care of yourself cancer can affect a lot of organs in your body, for example: Pancreas, Lungs, Liver , Brain, etc. To start preventing breast cancer it is truly important to go and have diagnostics of your body with your doctor.
Pharmacists often work together in a team with other healthcare professional like physicians and nurses. In the process, pharmacists will give advice to them on the selection of medication, by providing the evidences based on the dosage form, the side effects and possible interaction with food of the medication. On the other hand, pharmacists also take part in research and clinical studies. Recently, pharmacists are recruited to conduct pharmacy-based research in pharmacies. (Swanson, 2005)