Long-Term Effects of Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer
Chemotherapy does work, in most cases, to either cure cancer or put cancer into remission. However, it does have side effects. While most are short-term, some of them can become long-term or even permanent. Usually, however, the long-term effects of chemotherapy are still considered minor compared to the fact that without chemotherapy, the cancer would continue to spread and worsen.
Other People Are Reading
-
Types
-
Long-term effects of chemotherapy may include early menopause, weight gain and difficulty in losing the extra weight, the onset or worsening of heart conditions, the possibility of leukemia and decrease in cognitive function.
Some of these can be more serious than others, and some can even be life-threatening.
Effects
-
The effects of early menopause are the inability to bear children, and the fact that the ovaries no longer produce estrogen. When this occurs, symptoms occur, which include hot flashes, dry skin, vaginal dryness, loss or lowering of sexual desire and sometimes depression.
Because hormone replacement therapy is used to counteract the effects of menopause, but has been proven to increase the risk of cancer in some people, this is not an option for women who have entered early menopause because of chemotherapy.
Chemotherapy may also cause women to gain weight, rather than lose weight, as some would expect from chemotherapy. When this occurs, it may be very hard to lose the weight, and indeed, a woman may only be able to shed a few of the extra pounds.
Chemotherapy can cause heart conditions in women who previously may not have suffered from them, or may cause a worsening of those already present. However, usually starting heart medication or adjusting current medication can aid in treating this side effect, usually satisfactorily.
A heart condition may become life-threatening, but careful monitoring of the condition can prevent this. -
Leukemia
-
Leukemia is another long-term effect of chemotherapy. Leukemia is a cancer that occurs in the blood cells. When the leukemia is chemo-induced, the option of treating it with further chemotherapy may not be available.
One type of leukemia called chronic lymphocytic leukemia, is a very slow-growing type of this cancer. It is still leukemia however, because its onset and progression are much slower than other types of leukemia, it may not pose a threat of early mortality.
A decrease in cognitive function, sometimes known as "chemo brain" is another effect of chemotherapy. This is usually short-term, and usually improves once chemotherapy has stopped. It can sometimes remain.
Women who suffer from this may have trouble remembering things, and may find that they are no longer able to multitask, as they once were. Using memory tricks and keeping the brain active by working crossword and other puzzles can help improve this, and can keep it from worsening.
Considerations
-
The fact that cancer will continue to grow and spread, and could eventually lead to death is a consideration that must be weighed when a woman is wondering whether taking the treatments is worth the side effects. Advanced cancer is very painful, and sometimes results in a long, lingering death.
However, if a woman already suffers from a health condition, such as a heart condition, and it is evident that chemotherapy would worsen that condition to the point that it would become life-threatening, then that must be considered as well.
Benefits
-
The best long-term effect of chemotherapy is the cure or remission of the cancer, sometimes never to recur, and a woman is given extra years that she otherwise might not have had.
-
