Jan 10, 2009 8:49 am US/Eastern
Coping With Chemotherapy's Affect On Blood Cells
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Chemotherapy for breast cancer affects all the rapidly dividing cells in your body, including bone marrow cells, which make platelets
CBS
If you are having chemotherapy, your blood cell count will go down for a time, because chemotherapy affects the entire body.
It kills malignant cancer cells, but it can also destroy beneficial cells such as bone marrow.
Each type of blood cell has a special function. The primary job of red blood cells, for instance, is to carry oxygen to all the cells of your body. White blood cells are important in preventing and fighting off infections. Platelets play a big part in stopping bleeding.
Dr. Elisabeth McKeen, an oncologist in South Florida, explained, "Chemotherapy affects all living cells. And the part of the body that's actively dividing on a day-to-day basis is the bone marrow, where the white cells, the red cells, and the platelets are produced. The platelets are involved in clotting and they are what keeps you from bleeding."
Platelets clump together to form a plug if bleeding occurs. Then they release other chemicals that help the blood to clot and the blood vessel to be repaired.
Dr. McKeen explains that destruction of bone marrow can lead to a drop in platelets, explaining that "Gemcitabine or Gemzar, Carboplatin, these are drugs that tend to lower the platelet counts and they're now being used in breast cancer patients. So we are seeing some breast cancer patients with low platelets."
Chemotherapy can make a patient become very short of platelets. When the platelet amount falls below 20,000, people spontaneously bleed. If you do, you may get nose bleeds, or notice a red rash on your skin like tiny bruises. Your doctor may then want you to have a platelet transfusion.
Dr. McKeen added, "Basically the thing we do is give transfusions if the platelet count gets low."
Some of the other symptoms of low platelets are fatigue, bruises, bleeding gums or nosebleeds, headaches and bloody stool or urine - symptoms breast cancer patients should not ignore.
The good news is that researchers have found a way to counter the platelet problem.
Dr. McKeen said, "New drugs are coming out now that will be better at elevating the platelet count, just like we have drugs that help with red and white count."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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