Treatment FAQ

what is the cancer treatment people call the red devil

by Icie Cronin Published 3 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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The chemotherapy (“chemo”) drug “The Red Devil” is doxorubicin (Adriamycin). It is an intravenous cancer medicine with a clear, bright red color, which is how it got its nickname.Dec 7, 2021

Is Red Devil the strongest chemo?

Is Red Devil the strongest chemo? They have antibiotic properties but also proved to be some of the most potent chemotherapies ever found; anthracyclines are used to treat 1 million cancer patients each year, particularly those with leukemia and breast cancer.

What are the side effects of Red Devil chemotherapy?

The bag included essentials like:

  • lotion
  • hand sanitizing wipes
  • chapstick
  • magazines
  • blanket
  • snacks
  • water bottle

What is the Red Devil treatment for cancer?

The Long-Term Side Effects of Doxorubicin

  • Side Effects. Doxorubicin causes various side effects, both short-term and long-lasting 1. ...
  • Cardiac Toxicity. Doxorubicin can be toxic to the heart and cause heart damage which can appear years after treatment has ended 1.
  • Chemo Brain. ...

What is the chemo drug called the Red Devil?

Doxorubicin, known as the red devil for its color and toxicity, is widely used for adult and childhood cancers. Can the red devil be defanged? Doxorubicin, an old chemotherapy drug that carries this unusual moniker because of its distinctive hue and fearsome toxicity, remains a key treatment for many cancer patients.

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What is the Red Devil chemo called?

Can the red devil be defanged? Doxorubicin, an old chemotherapy drug that carries this unusual moniker because of its distinctive hue and fearsome toxicity, remains a key treatment for many cancer patients.

What are the long term effects of Red Devil chemo?

Long-term gastrointestinal side effects that have been reported with Adriamycin include: Gastric ulcers or erosions. Hyperpigmentation of the tongue or oral mucosa (rare) Ulceration and necrosis of the colon, especially the cecum (rare).

How does Red Devil Chemo make you feel?

My oncologist and chemotherapy nurse had warned me of the side effects from the two drugs: nausea, vomiting, mouth sores, low white or red blood cell counts, a metallic taste in my mouth, fatigue and the one very visible sign of chemotherapy: complete hair loss.

Which is the most serious side effect of doxorubicin?

This medicine may cause irreversible heart muscle damage, leading to heart failure. This is more likely to occur if you have other heart problems, have had or currently receiving radiation therapy to your chest, or have received other cancer medicines.

Do you lose your hair with doxorubicin?

Your hair may become thin, brittle, or may fall out. This typically begins two to three weeks after treatment starts. This hair loss can be all body hair, including pubic, underarm, legs/arms, eyelashes, and nose hairs.

How do you feel after doxorubicin?

The following side effects are common (occurring in greater than 30%) for patients taking Doxorubicin:Pain along the site where the medication was given.Nausea or vomiting (You will be pretreated for this side effect)Later Side Effects: (within two weeks after treatment begins)

What are the long term effects of doxorubicin?

One notable example is heart damage following treatment with Adriamycin (doxorubicin). With this drug, a possible long-term side effect is weakening of the heart muscle, resulting in heart failure (a decreased ability to pump blood through the body).

How long does doxorubicin take to work?

Liposomal doxorubicin is a light red liquid that you have through a drip (infusion) into your bloodstream. It usually takes between 30 to 90 minutes each time you have it.

What cancers does doxorubicin treat?

Doxorubicin hydrochloride is approved to be used alone or with other drugs to treat:Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).Acute myeloid leukemia (AML).Breast cancer. ... Gastric (stomach) cancer that is metastatic.Hodgkin lymphoma.Neuroblastoma that is metastatic.Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.More items...•

Is doxorubicin the strongest chemo?

Official answer. Doxorubicin is considered one of the strongest chemotherapy drugs for breast cancer ever invented. It can kill cancer cells at every point in their life cycle, and it's used to treat a wide variety of cancers, not just breast cancer.

How many cycles of doxorubicin can you have?

You may have 4-6 cycles given over 3-4 months. Your doctor or nurse will tell you how many cycles you are likely to have. Ifosfamide and doxorubicin can be given in different ways.

What does doxorubicin do to the body?

Doxorubicin is a type of chemotherapy drug called an anthracycline. It slows or stops the growth of cancer cells by blocking an enzyme called topo isomerase 2. Cancer cells need this enzyme to divide and grow.

What is the red Devil in cancer?

The “red devil”, as breast cancer patients often call the toxic fluid, was one of the two drugs I received as part of chemotherapy for breast cancer. It is so caustic that it could cause severe burns if it touches the skin.

Who is the Red Devil?

WITNESS: Living with breast cancer: The "Red Devil". Deborah Charles has worked for Reuters as a correspondent around the world since 1990 with postings in Argentina, Canada, Thailand and Spain. She was appointed to cover the White House in 1999 and switched to the security and justice beat in Washington after the 9/11 attacks in 2001.

What kind of cancer did Charles have?

An active cyclist and outdoor enthusiast, Charles, 42, was diagnosed with breast cancer in November last year. She has just finished treatment. In the following story, she describes how the discovery that she had breast cancer and treatment has affected her life and those around her.

What is the Red Devil?

Adriamycin (also known as The Red Devil) is the tough chemo that people hear about. It causes complete hair loss, excessive nausea, fatigue…. you name it. I was not looking forward to it, and I knew I had a long winter ahead of me.

Is chemotherapy rough?

Chemo is rough, but just stay in constant communication with your nurse. My oncology nurse told me her goal was zero side effects. She was great about trying to fix any tiny side effect I was feeling. Just remember that they can change your nausea meds so don’t suffer if they aren’t working for you.

What did Tanya feel when she was on chemo?

But during a training session at work she started to feel light-headed with a migraine and nausea. “I couldn’t quite comprehend what was said to me, it was as if my head was in a bubble.”. Tanya went home and called her oncologist.

What cancer did Tanya Da Silva Ferreira have?

Tanya Da Silva Ferreira remembers the exact day she received her cancer diagnosis – invasive, oestrogen-receptorpositive, premenopausal metastatic ductal carcinoma breast cancer. “It was Monday 27 August 2012 ...

How long did Tanya have chemotherapy?

Fighting cancer. Her treatment plan consisted of six sessions of chemotherapy over a period of six months prior to surgery to shrink the tumour and contain the cancer. Tanya’s first four chemotherapy sessions over four months consisted of an Adriamycin Cytoxan chemotherapy cocktail mix. “It’s also known as the ‘red devil’ because it is red in ...

What is the drug used for cancer?

The potent drug is a part of a class of compounds known as anthracyclines and is used to treat an estimated one million cancer patients each year.

What is the name of the drug that removes histones without breaking DNA?

In the new research from the Netherlands, the team tested two anthracycline variants that remove histones without breaking DNA and created a new cancer drug called aclarubicin and another tweaked version of doxorubicin they call diMe-Doxo.

Does doxorubicin kill cancer cells?

But the researchers found doxorubicin also kills cancer cells by dislodging histones, the spherical proteins that DNA coils around like a spool to form a structure known as chromatin. This chromatin damage appears to interfere with the transcription of genes into proteins and other cell processes.

Is doxorubicin safe for tumors?

But research suggests that there may be a way to reduce the drug’s toxicity without blunting its ability to attack tumors. An academic team in the Netherlands plans to test two potentially safer versions of doxorubicin’s drug class in people.

Can cancer be treated with drugs?

In addition, many childhood cancers are treated with high doses of the drugs, but cardiac problems sometimes haunt survivors later in life, along with a risk of new tumors, which doctors have attributed to DNA damage from the drug.

Is a red devil a drug?

While it’s a powerful drug, it’s also very toxic. That and its red hue has given it the unflattering nickname the “ Red Devil.”. It’s known to punish the cardiac system while it treats cancer, a dangerous side effect.

Is Doxil safe for breast cancer?

Roohi Ismail-Khan, a medical oncologist who serves as the co-director of Moffitt Cancer Center ’s Cardio-Oncology Program, a safer form of the drug called Doxil is already used to treat various cancers, especially gyn ecologic and breast cancers.

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