Side effects of oral chemotherapy are inevitable. However, if the patient sticks to the prescription and schedule given by the doctor it is possible to treat the cancer and overcome the side effects. Oral chemotherapy is administered orally as a tablet, capsule or liquid. Since this can be self-administered, it can be done sitting comfortably at home and without any pain. However, the disadvantage of this treatment is that a patient might skip taking a drug accidentally or purposely.

Certain tests are mandatory for patients undergoing oral chemotherapy. Some of these tests are blood tests at regular intervals, blood cultures, CT scans, chest x-rays, etc. They are done to check the progress and monitor how the tumor is reacting to the treatment. At times, blood transfusion could be required in case of low blood counts. In general, oral chemotherapy requires most of the monitoring and follow-up tests that all other forms of chemotherapy require.

Most of the chemotherapy drugs are administered intravenously. However, there are some oral chemotherapeutic drugs, which are equally effective like any other drug administered intravenously. There are many risks associated with side effects or oral chemotherapy. All these oral drugs have a different schedule and the doctor would prescribe it to you. Some of these drugs and their side effects are-

Capecitabine

This drug is used to treat breast cancer, colon and colorectal cancers. The side effects include nausea and vomiting, numbness or tingling, fatigue, skin irritation and mouth sores.

Oral Cyclophosphamide

This drug is used for a variety of cancers like breast cancer, leukemia, cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, lung cancer, multiple myeloma and ovarian cancer. This drug causes hair loss, nausea and vomiting, mouth sores and loss of appetite.

Etoposide

This drug is used for the treatment of prostate cancer, Kaposi’s sarcoma, small cell lung cancer and lymphoma. The side effects are increased risk of infection, hair loss, loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting.

Idarubicin

This drug is used to treat breast cancer and acute non-lymphocytic leukemia. The side effects of this drug are increased risk of infection, nausea and vomiting, skin rash and hair loss.

Vinorelbine

Vinorelbine chemotherapy is used to treat non-small cell lung cancer and breast cancer. The side effects are constipation, fatigue and weakness, increased risk of infection and nausea and vomiting.

Imatinib

This drug is used to treat chronic myeloid leukemia. This drug leads to weight gain, diarrhea, muscle aches, fatigue, stomach pain and skin rash.

After beginning an oral chemotherapy, there are certain side effects the patient would have to fight back. The patient would experience unusual fatigue, diarrhea, nausea, hair loss and decreased appetite. Other side effects due to oral chemotherapy are joint pain, pain from the nerves that leads to weakness and tingling. It also causes a dry and cracked skin. Sexual problems like vaginal dryness and erectile dysfunction arise due to oral chemotherapy. A patient experiences mood swings leading to sadness, depression and memory loss.

Myelosuppression as a side effect of chemotherapy is also evident among patients. The doctors usually monitor the blood count of the patients and give them time to recover from the effect of the drugs. If you have any questions related to chemotherapy treatment, then do ask them to your oncologist.

Although there are many side effects of oral chemotherapy, it has its own pros and cons. The main disadvantage is that after experiencing the side effects, patients might find it difficult to stick to the given schedule. If the patient has side effects, it is important to have strong emotional support from family and friends to be able to tackle them. Otherwise, the patient might just stop taking the pills, which could lead to adverse effects because cancer is not like any other chronic infection wherein if you skip one pill you can get away with it. Some cancers grow very quickly in a very short period of time and some become resistant to chemotherapy. Hence, if a pill is missed or taken only occasionally the patient enhances the chances of the tumor becoming resistant to the drug. However, if followed meticulously oral chemotherapy can reap great benefits.