Side effects related to the circulation of blood through the body including the heart, arteries and blood vessels.
easily fatigued
loss of energy
unusually rapid heartbeat particularly with exercise
shortness of breath and headache particularly with exercise
difficulty concentrating
dizziness
pale skin
leg cramps
insomnia
bruising that is red, purple or brown
a rash with small red or purple dots
nosebleeds
bleeding gums
bleeding from wounds that lasts a prolonged period of time or doesn’t stop on its own
heavy menstrual bleeding
trouble breathing especially with physical exertion
tiredness
swelling in the ankles, feet, legs, abdomen, and veins in the neck
light-headedness
fainting during physical activity
irregular heartbeats or chest pain especially after physical exertion or heavy meal
extra or unusual sounds heard during a heartbeat
reduction in endurance and speed or rapid heartbeat
The following health professionals can help with Cardiovascular side effects. Follow the links below to learn more.
Acupuncture Therapist:
Acupuncture Therapists are people skilled in the practice of acupuncture, which is a family of procedures involving stimulation of anatomical locations on or in the skin by a variety of techniques.
Evidence:
Acupuncture creates a variety of health-improving effects, including alleviating pain, allowing for the reduction of pain medication and/or reduce its side effects, and improving the patient’s quality of life.
Cancer Exercise Therapist:
Cancer Exercise Therapist main role is to help people achieve optimal health by providing information and advice about exercise.
Evidence:
Breast cancer patients participating in an exercise intervention indicated that the chemotherapy-related muscle and joint pain was not aggravated by training.
Dietician:
Dieticians advise individuals on nutrition-related matters and can modify diets to treat or help manage chronic conditions, food allergies and food intolerances.
Evidence:
Dietitians can help offer strategies to manage various types of pain e.g. mouth, stomach, oesophagus such as avoiding certain foods or fluids, changing food texture and temperature.
Exercise Physiologist:
Exercise Physiologists are university qualified allied health professionals, who specialise in clinical exercise interventions for persons at high-risk of developing, or with existing chronic and complex medical conditions and injuries. These interventions are provided by exercise delivery including health and physical activity education, advice and support and lifestyle modification with a strong focus on achieving behavioural change.
Evidence:
Short-term physical activity programs reduce pain in cancer survivors.
Naturopath:
Naturopaths provide a complimentary medicine, by employing a wide array of “”natural”” treatments, including herbal medicine, diet and lifestyle counselling.
Evidence:
Chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy and neuropathic pain may be minimised by concurrent treatment with various nutritional supplements including vitamin E, vitamin B6, omega 3 fatty acids and acetyl-L-carnitine.
Nutritionist:
Nutritionists main role is to help people achieve optimal health by providing information and advice about health and food choices.
Evidence:
Honey significantly reduced the severity of mucositis associated pain and resulted in lesser treatment gaps and a decrease in overall radiotherapy treatment duration.
Oncology Massage Therapist:
Oncology Massage Therapists are nationally and internationally recognised.
Evidence:
It has been found that massage therapy significantly reduces the severity of the pain and improves the mood of patients with lung, breast, pancreas, prostate and colorectal cancers.
Physiotherapist:
Physiotherapists are health care professionals concerned with human function, movement and maximising potential. A physiotherapist aims to improve physical activity, confidence, well-being and quality of life by improving physical and functional independence, refining movement, offering support and restoring a measure of control. They are comprehensively skilled to analyse, promote, maintain and restore the needs of the whole person.
Evidence:
Studies show that transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation can be safely used for the reduction of pain and is effective on patients with advanced lung cancer.
Pilates Instructor:
Pilates Instructors teach and coach groups or individuals in the fitness program referred to as Pilates. An instructor helps his students use Pilates to promote overall health, improve muscle tone and strength, and achieve better posture. Typically, Pilates instructors know hundreds of different exercises and can teach them to a general group or modify them to fit the needs of particular types of students. These instructors may even work with students as they recover from injuries or struggle with chronic health problems.
Evidence:
Breast cancer patients participating in a multimodal exercise intervention indicate that chemotherapy-related muscle and joint pain was not aggravated by training.
Yoga Instructor:
Yoga Instructors teach a Hindu spiritual and ascetic discipline, a part of which, including breath control, simple meditation, and the adoption of specific bodily postures, is widely practised for health and relaxation.
Evidence:
According to a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience in April 2011, brain scans of this region demonstrated that mindfulness meditation can dramatically reduce sensitivity to pain-even more so than morphine.