Chemotherapy can result in premature menopause and infertility in young women. Pretreatment fertility counseling followed by appropriate action may prevent some of these undesirable consequences.

Several currently available antiemetic drugs can prevent vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy. Anticancer drugs that cause vomiting are listed in the table below.

A variety of cancer chemotherapy drugs are used, mostly in combination, for treatment of locally advanced and metastatic esophageal, gastric and colorectal cancers. The mechanism of action, indications and adverse effects of some of these drugs are discussed in thei article.

The most important prognostic variable in early breast cancer is axillary lymph node involvement. Based on past experience, after 10 years about 70% of node-negative patients will be alive and apparently free of disease; about 30% will have relapsed or died. Patients with positive nodes may have a 30% to 60% relapse rate, depending on the number of positive nodes and other prognostic factors, such as the presence of estrogen receptors (IC Henderson et al, in VT DeVita, Jr et al, eds, Cancer: Principles and Practice of Oncology, 3rd ed, Philadelphia:Lippincott, 1989, p 1197). Which of...

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved use of recombinant human interleukin 11 (rhIL-11; oprelvekin; Neumega - Genetics Institute) to increase platelet counts and decrease the need for platelet transfusions in patients with severe thrombocytopenia caused by chemotherapy for nonmyeloid malignancies.

Granisetron, a serotonin (5-HT) antagonist similar to ondansetron, was recently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for prevention of nausea and vomiting due to cancer chemotherapy. Although available in an oral formulation in other countries, granisetron is available here only for intravenous (IV) use.

Ondansetron (on dan' se tron; Zofran - Glaxo), a serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine) antagonist, was recently marketed in the USA for intravenous use to prevent nausea and vomiting due to cancer chemotherapy. An oral formulation is available in many other countries.

Nabilone, an oral synthetic cannabinoid similar to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient in marijuana, has recently been reintroduced to the US market (Cesamet - Valeant) after a 17-year absence. The previous manufacturer discontinued marketing of the drug for commercial reasons. Nabilone is classified as a Schedule II controlled substance.

The FDA has approved trilaciclib (Cosela – G1 Therapeutics), a cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 inhibitor, to decrease the incidence of chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression in adults receiving a platinum/etoposide- or topotecan-containing regimen for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC). Trilaciclib is the first myeloprotective drug to be approved in the US for administration before chemotherapy.