Introduction
The therapy of haematological diseases/diseases in the blood can be very simple on the one hand, but on the other hand it can be very complex. In the context of iron deficiency anaemia, for example, iron is substituted in order to eliminate the deficiency and thus support the natural formation of haemoglobin. Vitamin deficiencies can also be remedied by substitution therapy, thus reducing anaemia.
In contrast, the therapy of complex haematological diseases such as leukaemia and lymphomas can be used. For blood diseases, chemotherapeutic agents are mainly used, which are often applied in the form of very complex regimens that specify exactly when and how much of which chemotherapeutic agent should be given. These regimens are scientifically tested in clinical trials and serve to achieve the best possible therapeutic success.
Such a therapy scheme consists of a number of chemotherapeutic agents that have different modes of action and therefore complement each other. This form of chemotherapy is also called polychemotherapy. Chemotherapeutics are drugs that intervene in the natural cell growth and interrupt it in a variety of ways.
The aim of chemotherapy is of course to cure the cancer/tumour, but also primarily to stop it and its growth. Chemotherapy also destroys not only the cancer cells, but also the healthy body tissue, which causes it to grow:
- Hair lossDiseases gastrointestinal tract (internal medicine)
- Gastrointestinal disturbances,
- Renal damage
- Heart damage
- Liver damage
- And much more can come. In particular, blood formation is impaired, which can lead to global bone marrow insufficiency.
This means that the formation of healthy immune cells is also inhibited, which can lead to serious infections. In many cases, this immunosuppression requires a supportive antibiotic therapy to kill possible germs. The therapy of leukaemias can in some cases be supplemented by a bone marrow transplant.
Bone marrow transplantation is a curative therapeutic approach, the aim of which is to restore normal blood formation. For this purpose, the patient’s own or external donations are used, which are to serve as transplants. Since leukaemia cells are still present in the autologous transplant, they must first be irradiated or pre-treated to prevent a relapse.
In the case of a foreign donation, special care must be taken to ensure that the cell characteristics of the donor and recipient match to a high degree so that the likelihood of a rejection reaction is minimised. Within the framework of lymphoma therapy, radiation therapy is sometimes also used to further destroy the tumour and above all to prevent tumour enlargement. Here one would speak of a combined radiochemotherapy.
As a rule, the course of chemotherapy is based on a fixed scheme. It usually begins with the so-called induction therapy. Induction therapy serves to destroy the tumour cells quickly and effectively.
If this was effective, it is continued with consolidation therapy to prevent tumour recurrence. In some cases, induction therapy must be carried out several times in order to achieve the desired effect. In addition, the intensity of the chemotherapy can be varied, whereby higher concentrations of the chemotherapeutic agents are often used.
Recurrence is the term used to describe the recurrence of a tumour disease. The haematologist / oncologist distinguishes between different types of recurrence, which enable him to observe the course of the tumour more closely and, if necessary, to start chemotherapy again in good time. The earlier a recurrence is detected, the greater the likelihood of successfully treating the recurrent cancer.
All in all, chemotherapy is very stressful for the patient. The side effects of chemotherapy are often very severe and lead to a severe reduction in quality of life. It is important that patient and doctor agree on the further procedure and that a joint decision is made in the interest of the patient.
