Major sufferings of advanced cancer patients and countermeasures

   Many patients with advanced cancer have obvious and painful symptoms.  The main symptoms are as follows: 1. Nausea and vomiting: it is a common symptom of advanced cancer patients and is often more distressing than cancer pain. Nausea and vomiting can be side effects of treatment; they can also be caused by cancer invading digestive or nervous system; or they can be psychological effects such as anxiety. They should generally be treated symptomatically for different reasons of patients.  2. Loss of appetite: It may be related to general discomfort or emotional depression, tension and worry as well as gastrointestinal candidiasis and constipation, etc. It may also be caused by the tumor itself, where the patient lacks interest in food or even becomes nauseous at the mention of food. Family members and medical personnel should help patients to find ways to stimulate appetite: such as paying attention to the color, aroma, taste and shape of food, having small and frequent meals, drinking a small amount of aperitif or beverage before meals, having someone to accompany meals, etc. The most effective medication is corticosteroid. The most effective drug is corticosteroid.  3.Constipation: The reduced activities of advanced cancer patients, less and too fine food and lack of fiber are also the causes of constipation; mental tension will aggravate constipation. The treatment method is to eat more fiber-rich fruits and vegetables, and more importantly, to prevent the occurrence of constipation. While using morphine-based painkillers, laxatives should be used, and the commonly used laxatives, stool softeners and drugs to stimulate intestinal peristalsis are: senna, magnesium hydroxide, liquid paraffin, magnesium sulfate and fructose lactate, etc.; the dose is gradually increased; when the patient’s rectum is full of feces and laxatives are ineffective, open cork Suppositories, enemas or fingers to pull out the stool.  4, diarrhea: chemotherapy, lower abdominal radiation therapy or intestinal surgery caused by malabsorption can cause diarrhea, bacterial infection, fat absorption difficulties, allergies to special foods, psychological factors may be the cause of diarrhea. Mild diarrhea can be relieved by dietary adjustment; prolonged diarrhea can be treated with secret agents or other intestinal sedatives; rectal cancer causing diarrhea can be treated with colostomy or radiotherapy or laser treatment; for severe cases, morphine-containing narcotic drug compound can be used; long-term diarrhea patients need to supplement nutrition and potassium.  5, erratic: often caused by tumors of the stomach, lower esophagus or liver stimulating the diaphragm. Inhalation of carbon dioxide can temporarily control the symptoms; chlorpromazine, Valium and methotrexate can relieve the symptoms; corticosteroids can help reduce the pressure of the diaphragm, and furosemide is sometimes effective. Phrenic neurectomy is feasible for recalcitrant eruptions.  6. Dyspnea: It is one of the more difficult symptoms for advanced cancer patients and should be treated according to different reasons: for example, bronchodilators can treat dyspnea caused by bronchospasm; dyspnea caused by lung infection can be treated with sensitive antibiotics; dyspnea caused by poor heart function can be controlled by diuretics to control heart failure and prevent the occurrence of pulmonary edema; dyspnea caused by superior vena cava obstruction can be controlled by dexamethasone, which can be used to prevent pulmonary edema. Dyspnea caused by superior vena cava obstruction can be controlled with dexamethasone and emergency radiotherapy. Instructing patients to maintain normal respiratory movements is more important than any treatment. Severe dyspnea tends to cause fear, which itself aggravates dyspnea, and patients should be allowed to express their fears and given appropriate sparing and sedative medications. Some patients have dyspnea due to extensive lung invasion, secondary metastases or cancerous lymphangitis.