How to quickly increase leukocytes in the blood after chemotherapy: products and drugs

Chemotherapy is one of the non-surgical ways to fight cancer. Treatment is based on the introduction into the patient’s body of drugs that contain toxins and poisons that inhibit or completely stop the growth of a malignant tumor. Chemotherapy causes enormous damage to the human body. As a result of exposure to poisons and toxins, not only atypical cells are damaged and die, but also healthy ones, the liver, kidneys and other systems are affected. Therefore, after chemotherapy, a person needs treatment - comprehensive, professional, which will help cope with the side effects, get better and fully recover.

When is chemotherapy indicated?

The decision on drug treatment of oncology is made by the attending physician, based on the results of tests and hardware studies. As a rule, chemotherapy is used in the following cases:

1. Type of cancer. The choice of surgical or conservative treatment depends on the type of malignant tumor, its size and stage of development. Chemotherapy is always given after surgery to destroy remaining cancer cells and possible metastases.
2. Features of the patient's body. If a cancer patient is elderly and most likely will not survive the operation, or for other reasons (the tumor is localized in a place inaccessible to surgery, poor general condition, chronic diseases), he is prescribed chemotherapy as treatment. In this case, the emphasis is on inhibiting the growth of cancer cells and increasing the life expectancy of a person with cancer.

Most often, drug therapy for oncology is prescribed to prevent metastasis of previously removed tumors, as well as to treat blood cancer (leukemia, hemoblastosis) and other rare types of malignant neoplasms (choriocarcinoma, rhabdomyosarcoma). Chemotherapy is also used to prepare the tumor for surgery so that the surgeon can completely remove it without leaving a single cancer cell.

What should you avoid?

In addition to including foods from the above groups in the diet, it is also necessary to ensure the exclusion of foods that cause a decrease in white blood cells. These include:

1. duck meat, beef, broilers, partridge;
2. liver of various animals and fish - despite the abundant iron content and beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system, excessive consumption of liver has a negative effect on the level of white blood cells. In addition, the liver acts as a filter and only the liver of an animal raised on natural feed in an ecologically clean area can be eaten;
3. alcohol - despite the fact that cognac and dry red wine in limited quantities can have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system, excessive amounts of it nullify all efforts to improve health;
4. sweets, baked goods - sugar has an extremely negative effect on the overall picture of blood composition;
5. other foods high in carbohydrates.

It is also worth giving up fast food, excessively fatty and salty foods. You should also not eat meat from animals and birds raised with artificial feed additives.

Which chemotherapy drugs are used for which tumors?

These are 2 groups of drugs for conservative treatment of cancer - cytostatics and cytotoxins. The first ones penetrate an atypical cell, disrupt its DNA, starting the process of self-destruction. Most often, the following cytostatics are used for treatment: Hydroxyurea, Fluorouracil, Cyclophosphamide, platinum preparations.

Cytotoxins destroy cells, both cancerous and healthy, causing severe side effects in the body of cancer patients. Among these drugs there are several groups:

• anthracyclines (Daunomycin, Doxorubicin, Zavedos, Farmorubicin);
• bleomycins – antitumor antibiotics (Bleocin, Blenoxan);
• mitosans (Mitomycin is a cytotoxic antibiotic);
• targeted therapy drugs - drugs with targeted action (for example, Avastin blocks the growth of blood vessels that feed a malignant tumor).

Cytostatics and cytotoxins have the most side effects. Therefore, treatment after chemotherapy is an integral part of the process of getting rid of cancer. It allows you to speed up the restoration of body cells, alleviate the patient’s condition and improve his quality of life.

Why is it so important to keep your white blood cell count normal?

Leukocytes have a common main function - ensuring the stable functioning of the body's immune defense. It’s worth talking separately about each faction, because each of them has its own task:

• neutrophils fight foreign bacteria and microscopic fungi;
• basophils help trigger the immune response to the penetration of foreign agents;
• eosinophils fight infections caused by parasites that have entered the human body;
• monocytes destroy and participate in the removal of pathogenic microorganisms, as well as dead cells of the body;
• lymphocytes provide an immune response when a virus enters the body. They are the basis of the immune system.

A decrease in the level of leukocytes entails unpleasant consequences, such as:

• exacerbation of chronic diseases, in particular respiratory tract infections;
• enlarged tonsils and spleen;
• bleeding gums and ulcers on the oral mucosa;
• fungal infections;
• skin infections;
• disruption of the gastrointestinal tract.

With a critical decrease in the level of leukocytes, the body ceases to resist any infections, and therefore even a simple cold can become fatal for the patient.

Side effects of chemotherapy

Cancer is a serious disease that requires considerable physical and emotional strength from the patient for treatment. Side effects, including not only physiological, but also psychological suffering, unsettle many, forcing them to withdraw and isolate themselves from the outside world. This often leads to a deterioration in the general condition of cancer patients.

The most common side effects during chemotherapy treatment:

• nausea, vomiting, diarrhea/constipation;
• dizziness, weakness, apathy;
• impaired coordination of movements;
• alopecia (hair loss), damage to the nail plates;
• skin diseases;
• leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, erythropenia;
• changes in taste or complete loss of appetite;
• diseases of the oral cavity (stomatitis, mucositis);
• numbness of the limbs;
• problems with urination;
• bleeding;
• neuroses, stress, depression.

These are only a small part of the side effects of cancer treatment with chemotherapy. The body's reaction depends not only on its individuality, but also on the means used. If a cancer patient is prescribed targeted therapy for treatment, then most likely there will be no problems with the gastrointestinal tract. Such patients have almost no nausea, vomiting, heartburn, diarrhea or constipation. Pre-treatment preparation also plays an important role, which allows for rehabilitation of most chronic diseases. This helps to avoid their exacerbation after chemotherapy and to recover faster.

What is recommended for patients who have developed this complication?

1) If your body temperature rises, immediately take a blood test. Inform your doctor about the results of the test.

If there is a critically low level of leukocytes and neutrophils, the next administration of chemotherapy will be postponed until complete recovery.

2) Try to stick to a complete diet, exclude raw foods (that is, meat, fish, eggs, fruits and vegetables) - all foods, without exception, must be thermally processed.

3) Follow a work and rest schedule, do not overload yourself, give your body the opportunity to replenish its strength and energy for a speedy recovery.

4) Maintain personal hygiene carefully, because any infection can cause the condition to worsen.

5) Do not visit crowded places unless necessary. Maintain self-isolation. This is relevant not only during the current pandemic, because the risks of infections during febrile neutropenia are enormous - even your household can pose a danger, let alone a large number of strangers, for example, in stores.

6) If you are forced to visit a place with a large number of people, for example, to take a blood test, then be sure to wear a protective mask. Try to keep your distance from others.

The main drugs used in the treatment of febrile netropenia include antibiotics; specialized drugs are also used to stimulate an increase in the level of leukocytes and neutrophils - these are colony-stimulating factors (G-CSF).

These drugs are used to accelerate the formation, maturation and release of neutrophils from the bone marrow into the peripheral blood, where they begin to perform their functions and protect the body.

Treatment of cancer patients after drug therapy for cancer

The use of drugs to stop a malignant process has many positive aspects, with the exception of one – side effects. However, they can be managed if treatment is started promptly after cancer chemotherapy.

It is prescribed by the attending physician, based on the results of the latest tests, hardware studies and the patient’s complaints. Treatment includes:

• diet;
• immunomodulators;
• symptomatic medications;
• psychological help.

Diet after cancer treatment

One of the common reactions of the body to therapy with drugs containing poisons and toxins is nausea and loss of appetite. You can’t refuse food, because it gives you strength to recover, but you’ll have to reconsider your diet.

Basic nutritional recommendations for cancer patients recovering from chemotherapy treatment:

1. Eat small meals, but often. Invite your friends; having a meal with them is much more pleasant than alone.
2. Include new foods in your diet (check with your doctor first).
3. If you feel a metallic taste in your mouth, replace your usual cutlery with plastic ones.

Recommendations for the diet itself concern not only food, but also the preparation of various dishes:

1. Steam or bake food in the oven. This way it will retain more nutrients.
2. Eat more proteins - turkey, skinless chicken breast, sea fish (preferably red), fish caviar (any).
3. Add dairy products - sour cream, cottage cheese, fermented baked milk, yogurt, whole milk.
4. Prepare salads from greens and vegetables using sunflower, flaxseed, and olive oil.
5. Introduce cheese, butter, eggs, and legumes into your diet.
6. For a snack, use nuts, wheat germ, and fruit smoothies.
7. For first courses, prepare cream soups and puree soups, including black bean and lentil soups.
8. Freshly squeezed vegetable, fruit, and berry juices are beneficial.
9. As a side dish, eat porridge - buckwheat, rolled oats, barley, rice.

A cancer patient undergoing treatment after exposure to chemotherapy needs to drink about one and a half liters of fluid per day. It is recommended to consult a doctor on this issue. If there is an accumulation of fluid in the peritoneum, lungs or pleural cavity, its amount is limited.

Immunomodulators in post-cancer treatment

Chemotherapy is extremely stressful for the human body. The bone marrow responsible for blood is most damaged. After treatment, her indicators deteriorate significantly, showing a lack of basic components - leukocytes, erythrocytes and platelets, which causes leukopenia, erythropenia, thrombocytopenia.

The lack of white blood cells in the body affects the immune system - it becomes so weak that the patient can catch any infection or virus to which he was previously immune. To correct the condition of cancer patients, treatment after chemotherapy always includes immunomodulator drugs that stimulate hematopoiesis (the process of hematopoiesis in the bone marrow):

• Derinat;
• Granocyte;
• Leucomax;
• Glutoxim;
• Lycopid;
• Galavit;
• Neupogen;
• Deoxynate.

Immunomodulatory drugs are used to improve the quality of life of patients with cancer. Their effectiveness has been proven by more than 30 years of use in cancer patients during chemotherapy and during the recovery period.

Symptomatic treatment

The first priority is to eliminate or reduce pain in cancer patients. For these purposes, analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are used. They are often combined with sedatives and tranquilizers. Painkillers are prescribed according to a scheme from weak to strong with a gradual increase in effect. If the pain is severe or the disease is advanced (inoperable stages of cancer controlled by chemotherapy), the doctor prescribes narcotic analgesics. However, such means are resorted to only as a last resort and for a short period of time (up to 3 days).

Treatment of gastrointestinal disorders

The first thing the doctor does is determine the cause of the condition. Nausea and vomiting occur not only from poisoning of the body of a cancer patient during treatment with toxic anticancer drugs. This often occurs as a result of intestinal obstruction - mechanical or dynamic (cerebral edema, hypercalcemia). If nothing serious is found, the cancer patient is prescribed Cerucal or Dexamethasone for treatment; if they are weak, Zofran, Navobane, and Osetron may be prescribed.

Constipation is one of the side effects of chemotherapy in particularly severe patients. Here, the doctor’s recommendations are exclusively individual. If there is no question of surgical treatment of constipation, step-by-step therapy is carried out:

1. Cleansing or oil enema (at night).
2. Orally castor or vaseline oil.
3. Laxative – Guttalax, senna leaf, Bisacodyl.

Diarrhea occurs either as a functional impairment or as a neuropsychiatric complication after cancer chemotherapy. Treatment includes:

• diet;
• antidiarrheal drugs (Loperamide);
• saline solutions to replenish water-salt and electrolyte balance (Regidron);
• medications that restore intestinal microflora (Linex, Bifidumbacterin, Lactofiltrum - an enterosorbent that restores intestinal microflora);
• Enterosorbents - activated carbon, Diosmectite, Polyphepan, Polysorb and others.

If tests reveal that the diarrhea is infectious, antibiotics are prescribed to treat the condition.

Liver and kidneys

Both organs are involved in filtration, and therefore are more affected than others during cancer treatment. To restore the liver, you first need to cleanse it of harmful substances accumulated in it. For this purpose, Legalon is used, a preparation based on milk thistle seeds. After cleansing, the main task is to restore the liver cells damaged by chemotherapy, so that the organ works correctly again and begins to fulfill its direct function - to cleanse the blood of harmful substances. For treatment, dietary supplements are used - Essentiale Forte, Karsil, Flor Essence.

The kidneys are a little more complicated. Aggressive exposure to toxic/poisonous drugs can cause uric acid nephropathy and kidney failure. To restore proper kidney function, use:

• Nephrin, Canephron, Chofitol, Nephrofit.
• Collections from medicinal herbs (corn silk, kidney tea, borage and others).

If inflammatory diseases of the kidneys and urinary tract are diagnosed, antibacterial drugs are prescribed for treatment - Nitroxoline, Furadonin.

They need urgent help

Chemotherapy exposes the body to enormous stress. It significantly affects the circulatory system and actually changes the formula and structural composition of the blood. The number of leukocytes and hemoglobin decreases. These changes lead to a sharp decrease in immunity. The patient becomes more susceptible to infections than usual. The patient feels general weakness and gets tired quickly.

That is why after chemotherapy it is necessary to seriously increase hemoglobin and leukocytes in the blood. How to do this?

We increase leukocytes

If you choose the path of drug-induced increase in leukocytes, then you should pay attention to the following list of drugs that are usually prescribed for these purposes after chemotherapy: granacite, neupogen, which belong to the group of strong drugs. Leukogen is considered a less powerful drug.

And gentle drugs include imunofal and polyoxidonium.

Attention!!! We provide this list of drugs in this article so that you understand the purpose of the drug prescribed to you by your doctor! Under no circumstances should you “prescribe” these medications for yourself! Self-medication is extremely dangerous!

However, in addition to tablets and drops, it is possible to help the body through nutritional correction.

To raise white blood cells, you need to eat mussels, chicken and beef broths, vegetables, stewed or baked fish, beets, carrots, pumpkin and zucchini.

A simple dish: buckwheat with kefir (in the evening the cereal is poured, and in the morning it is ready to eat) – it very effectively increases white blood cells, it is useful for everyone who has undergone a course of chemotherapy.

Honey, as people say, contains the entire periodic table and is very useful in principle. Therefore, if you are not allergic to it, we highly recommend consuming it before meals; 40-60 grams is quite enough.

Consume a tablespoon of sprouted chicory and lentils twice a day and this will also significantly help the body and increase its immunity.

Among the delicacies, red fish and caviar, as well as light red wine in small quantities, will help improve blood composition and increase the body’s resistance. Experts recommend eating red vegetables, berries and fruits. For example, apples, currants, peppers, beets, etc.

A decoction of barley has literally miraculous properties. It is prepared like this: take one and a half glasses of grain for 2 liters of water. The broth is brought to a boil. Then let it bubble over low heat until the water has evaporated by 50%. The decoction is ready. It should be taken 3 times 50 ml during the day. The broth will only become more healing if you add honey or a little sea salt to it.