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Jekyll and Hyde of chemotherapy treatment: Method for patient‐specific dosing of chemotherapy medications
Author(s) -
Tatlow Dean
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
clinical and experimental pharmacology and physiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1440-1681
pISSN - 0305-1870
DOI - 10.1111/1440-1681.12885
Subject(s) - chemotherapy , dosing , medicine , albumin , drug , renal function , side effect (computer science) , intensive care medicine , surgery , anesthesia , pharmacology , computer science , programming language
Summary Currently chemotherapy dosing is determined by a patient's weight, height and renal function. Dosing chemotherapy based on these parameters is generally effective, assuming all other physiological conditions are normal. In hypoalbuminaemia patients a decrease in albumin often results in more severe side‐effects, since this may lead to higher chemotherapy free drug levels. A new method to dose chemotherapy based on a patients albumin will maintain the same effective free drug levels as in patients with normal albumin. This can reduce the severity of chemotherapy side‐effects and may: ensure better outcomes for patients since it allows them to complete their course of chemotherapy without interruption, decrease the cost and complications associated with severe side‐effects, and will allow for enhanced treatment options.