Research nurses play key role in monitoring side effects of treatment

Brief

A critical component of cancer care is to monitor and treat symptoms that may arise from the side effects of therapy. Research nurse Kathy Lilleby documented the important role that nurses play in this effort in a case study featured in the June issue of Oncology News International.

The study focused on a patient undergoing therapy with a new drug called Velcade (bortezomib), which was approved last year by the United States Food and Drug Administration for treatment of patients with advanced multiple myeloma. Clinical trials show that more than 25 percent of multiple myeloma patients treated with Velcade experience an improvement in their condition. The drug can cause nausea and diarrhea of moderate severity, side effects that cause some patients to discontinue treatment.

"Nurses see the patients more than the doctor, and nurses need to be aware of these different side effects and really question the patient about their symptoms so that we can provide interventions to help them feel better and allow them to stay with their treatment," Lilleby said.

In a case study presented last May at the Annual Congress of the Oncology Nursing Society, Lilleby described an example of how careful monitoring of treatment side effects helped to alleviate these symptoms in a multiple-myeloma patient undergoing treatment at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. The patient under her care experienced diarrhea, nausea, anorexia and dehydration. Because of her careful monitoring — which included asking detailed questions of the patient's symptoms — Lilleby was able to provide drugs and additional fluids that alleviated the side effects and allowed the patient to continue cancer therapy.

Lilleby said that in addition to providing care in the clinic, nurses can also educate patients about strategies for managing their symptoms at home.

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