Nasopharyngeal cancer chemotherapy side effects

Drugs affect people in different ways. Not all patients have the same side effects with the same drug. Some people have very few side effects. It’s not possible to tell how you will react until you have had that particular drug.

Side effects that are common with many chemotherapy drugs include

• A fall in the number of blood cells
• Feeling sick
• Diarrhoea
• Sore mouth and mouth ulcers
• Hair loss or thinning
• Feeling tired and run down

The links above will take you to more information about these side effects and how to manage them.

Not all these side effects happen with every drug. All the drugs have different side effects. Ask your doctor or nurse which side effects are most common with the chemotherapy drugs you will be having. 

Cisplatin is the most commonly used chemotherapy drug for nasopharyngeal cancer. There is more about the side effects of cisplatin and more about the side effects of cancer drugs in the cancer drugs section.

You will have regular blood tests to check the levels of your blood cells. If you are low on white blood cells, you are more at risk of picking up infections.

Remember – contact your doctor or chemotherapy nurse straight away if you think you have an infection. If you have a temperature of 38 degrees or more, let the hospital know straight away.

If your blood cell counts are low, you may have antibiotics to try to prevent infection. You will always have blood tests just before you have chemotherapy. If your blood cell counts are too low, your doctor may delay your next chemotherapy treatment until your cells have recovered. If you are low on red blood cells, you may need a blood transfusion.

One of the possible side effects of cisplatin chemotherapy is kidney damage. You will have blood tests before each treatment to check how well your kidneys are working. To help prevent damage, you will have fluid through a drip before and after you have treatment. Your doctor will also encourage you to drink plenty of water.

Many people are able to carry on almost as normal when they are having chemotherapy. But many others become very tired. The further through your course of chemotherapy treatment you are, the more likely you are to feel tired and run down. If this is happening to you, try to take things more slowly. If you feel like having a lie down or putting your feet up, then you probably need to do just that. You might find that you need to rest and take things easy at times. If you find it difficult to do household jobs you could try asking friends or family for help. Or the staff at the hospital can arrange for you to see a social worker.

Remember – all these side effects will begin to get better as soon as the treatment is over. Remembering that the side effects are temporary may make them easier to cope with at the time.

Chemoradiation or synchronous therapy means having a course of radiotherapy at the same time as a course of chemotherapy. The side effects of this treatment are the same as for radiotherapy alone and chemotherapy alone. But some are likely to be more severe. There is more information about the side effects of combination treatment on the page about chemoradiation.