Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: UMLS:C0024623 (gastric cancer)
 36,219 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Steroids are commonly used for fatigue relief in terminally ill cancer patients. However, steroid-induced adverse effects including depression, myopathy, and hyperglycemia may contribute to fatigue. We report our experiences with aggravation of fatigue with steroid use in three cases. Case 1 was a 65-year-old man with advanced gastric cancer. He was started on betamethasone (2 mg/d) for fatigue, but the fatigue worsened due to steroid-induced depression. Discontinuation of steroids and initiation of an antidepressant ameliorated the fatigue. Case 2 was a 68-year-old man with advanced lung cancer. He complained of fatigue. Betamethasone (1 mg/d) was started and alleviated the fatigue. However, when the betamethasone dose was increased to 2 mg/d, the fatigue, with muscle weakness and myalgia, worsened due to steroid-induced myopathy. We therefore switched from betamethasone (2 mg/d) to prednisolone (10 mg /d). The fatigue resolved and the patient returned to his previous condition. Case 3 was a 73-year-old man with recurrent bile duct cancer. He also had diabetes mellitus. He developed fatigue, anorexia and fever. We started betamethasone (1.5 mg/d) for these symptoms, but the fatigue and anorexia worsened due to steroid-induced hyperglycemia. Blood glucose rose to 532 mg/dL. Therefore, insulin therapy was started, and the dose of betamethasone was reduced to 0.5 mg/d. His glucose level decreased to less than 320 mg/dL and he recovered from the fatigue while achieving moderate oral intake. In conclusion, the possibility of steroid-induced secondary fatigue in terminally ill cancer patients should be taken into consideration.
...
PMID:Aggravation of fatigue by steroid therapy in terminally ill patients with cancer. 2358 76

Paclitaxel and docetaxel are antineoplastic drugs derived from the yew tree, Taxus brevifolia. They are the members of the taxane family and act by inhibiting mitotic activity due to the suppression of microtubule depolymerization. They are used in the treatment of ovarian cancer, breast cancer, gastric cancer, small cell lung cancer, and head and neck cancer. In addition to side effects such as cardiotoxicity, neutropenia, arthralgia, and myalgia, they may also cause alopecia, urticaria, mucositis, acral erythema, pustular dermatitis, erythema multiforme, and scleroderma-like mucocutaneous lesions. Scleroderma is among the uncommon side effects of taxane antineoplastic agents. As was the case in few cases in literature, it usually begins with edematous changes in the proximal aspect of the extremities, and subsequently, sclerosis is developed in the skin. Scleroderma, which usually regresses with the discontinuation of the drug and with steroid therapy, may lead to severe contractions that require physical therapy and rehabilitation in some patients. In this paper, we presented a 60-year-old female patient in whom scleroderma developed because docetaxel chemotherapy for breast cancer because it is encountered rarely.
 ...
PMID:Docetaxel-induced Scleroderma in A Breast Cancer Patient: A Case Report. 2833


<< Previous 1 2