Secondary abstract: |
Diarrhea is defined as frequent passages of loose, unformed or liquid stool more than three times in 24 hours. It is one of the most common undesirable symptoms, which oncology patients face. Diarrhea can lead to dehydration, electrolytic and metabolic disorders, kidney failure and in severe cases also hemodynamic instability, which requires hospitalisation. The problem can affect the uninterrupted course of a specific cancer treatment and influence the quality of life of patients, reduce compliance to treatment and shorten the survival period. General recommendations for diarrhea in cancer treatment were first published in 1998, amended and adapted in 2004 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (1). So far there are no updated, internationally accepted instructions. The article summarises the recognised and generally adopted recommendations, with differences in treatments of diarrhea with cytostatic and target medications. |