Chemotherapy/ Personalised Medicine Flashcards

1
Q

What therapy is typically used for breast cancer?

A

Hormone therapy

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What is thyroid cancer sensitive to?

A

Radioactive Iodine

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is photodynamic therapy?

A

Using light to active anti-cancer drugs when they are applied topically in regards to skin cancer

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Why is chemotherapy given?

A
To cure cancer 
To increase the success of other treatments e.g. surgery for ovarian patients 
Reduce risk of recurrence 
Treat metastatic disease 
Palliative setting to relieve symptoms
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Give an example of when chemotherapy is used for maintenance?

A

In breast cancer
Use of Tamoxifen
Can be taken for 5 years after surgery
Relatively non-toxic

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Name some curable cancers

A
Teratoma 
Seminoma 
Highgrade non-hodgkin's lymphoma 
Wilm's tumour 
Myeloma
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Name some cancers with a clear survival benefit

A
colorectal cancer 
Small cell lung cancer 
Oesphageal cancer 
Ovarian cancer 
Breast cancer 
Cervical cancer 
Low-grad lymphoma 
Non-small cell lung cancer
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Name some cancer with a modest survival benefit

A
Pancreatic cancer 
Gastric cancer 
Hepatoma 
Sarcoma 
Bladder cancer 
Primary brain cancer 
Nasopharyngeal cancer
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Name some cancers with no survival gain from chemotherapy

A

Melanoma
Renal Cancer
Cholangiocarcinoma

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What does melanoma respond to?

A

Immunotherapies

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What was the first chemotherapy drugs derived from?

A

Mustard gas

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

How do antimetabolites work?

A

They look similar to DNA bases, the body recognises them as a subtle change to DNA modification of the DNA bases so can be taken up and since something is missing, it blocks transcription

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

How many patients typically receive an inadequate chemotherapy dose?

A

~30%

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

How many patients receive a chemotherapy dose which is too high?

A

~10%

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What calculation is used to determine the dose of drug given to a patient?

A

Body surface area calculation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Common side effects of chemotherapy

A

myelosuppression (decreased production of blood cells)
Immunosuppression
Anaemia
Mucositis (inflammation of the lining of the GI tract)
Alopecia (hair loss)
Fatigue

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Why does chemotherapy cause these side effects?

A

It targets highly proliferating cells

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What are the routes for administration of chemotherapy?

A

IV
Oral
Topical

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

How is tamoxifen administered?

A

Orally

20
Q

What kind of cancers can use topical administration?

A

Non-melanoma skin cancer

21
Q

How long for IV administered chemotherapy take to work?

A

A few hours

22
Q

After chemotherapy, when is the white cell count lowest?

A

7-14 days post chemo

23
Q

When is the recovery time for chemo?

A

18-28 days post chemo

24
Q

When are chemo regimens scheduled?

A

every 21-28 days

25
Q

How long will chemotherapy treatment last?

A

4-12 months

26
Q

At what point in the cell cycle to cells respond best to treatment?

A

S and M phases

27
Q

Why is the location of the tumour important for the success of chemotherapy?

A

The chemotherapy needs a blood supply to work and therefore the further away the tumour is, the less effective it’ll be

28
Q

Give examples of chemotherapy supportive drugs

A

Anti-emetics
Steroids
Mineral supplementation
Diuretics

29
Q

What is the average number of drugs a cancer patient is receiving?

A

14

30
Q

What chemotherapy works best for ovarian cancer?

A

Platinum drugs

31
Q

What does the choice of chemotherapy depend on?

A
Disease site 
Stage/ grade of cancer 
Metastatic disease?
Individual patient issues e.g. their general health 
Curative or palliative intent
Differences in metabolism/ drug targets
32
Q

What metabolising tamoxifen?

A

CYP2D6

33
Q

What monoclonal antibody targets EGFR?

A

Cetuximab

34
Q

What targets Raf?

A

Vemurafenib

35
Q

When should patients not receive cetuximab?

A

If they have a Kras mutation

36
Q

An example drug which targets BCR:Abl

A

Imatinib

37
Q

An example drug which targets ErbB2

A

Lapatanib

38
Q

An example drug which targets VEGFR

A

Sorafenib

39
Q

Name an example PARP inhibitor

A

Olaparib

40
Q

When is Olaparib used?

A

In ovarian and breast cancer patients with BRCA1/2 mutations

41
Q

What types of cancer is Rituximab used in?

A

Non-hodgkins lymphoma

B cell lymphoma

42
Q

What types of cancer is herceptin used in?

A

ErbB2 positive breast cancer

43
Q

When cancers is cetuximab used in?

A

CRC, head and neck

44
Q

What does bevacizumab target?

A

VEGF

45
Q

What cancers is bevacizumab used in?

A

CRC and ovarian cancer

46
Q

How responsive is immunotherapy?

A

~50% response rate

47
Q

How much does immunotherapy cost?

A

Up to £10,000/ month