Nursing Assignment

Nursing Assignment 1
Nursing Assignment
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Nursing Assignment 2
Q.3 In the case of Nigel, Docetaxel is used to treat his non-small cell lung cancer
stage Docetaxel falls under the group of antineoplastic or cytotoxic medicines (TGA 2018). It
is also known as chemotherapy medicines (TGA 2018). Docetaxel inhibits the growth and
spreading of cancer cells (TGA 2018). Because Nigel’s lung cancer has spread over the
lungs, it will require for a certain uptake of chemotherapy administration for it to be effective.
The kind of the drugs that will be administered to Nigel are those that will inhibit and prevent
growth of the cancerous cells (Gilden et al. 2017, pp 152). The right form of chemotherapy is
the one that will be at the verge of destroying every kind of cancerous cells that tries to rise
itself up. In so doing, it will give Nigel’s body the right lung conditions that he requires for
normal working and operations. Giving room for the growth of these cancerous cells will
result to growth tumors that will eventually pose and cause a risk in loss of life because, one,
the cancerous tumors are at a higher probability of blocking some of the pathways of the lung
that facilitate breathing. This could be the reason why Nigel was experiencing shortness of
breath and difficulty in breathing. It is therefore imperative that the right form of
chemotherapy that he should receive is that one which will call for destroying and breaking
down of the cancer cells and tumors in the lungs to at least enhance normal operation of the
lungs. Nigel’s non-small cancer is widespread all over the lungs, it will call for him to meet a
certain criterion and thus, a targeted therapeutically drugs like necitumumab, bevacizumab
and ramucirumab may be added as well in his treatment apart from his present treatment
medication of cisplatin, Morphine IV, ondansetron and Dexamethasone (Wu et al. 2018, pp
467). He should be given chemo in cycles that follows the period of treatment (is normally 1
to three days) preceded by a period of rest to allow the recovery of the body from the
previous chemo. Some of the chemo drugs, however shoud be administered every day in his
medication. The cycles for this chemo should last roughly about three to four weeks.

Nursing Assignment 3
Additionally, the initial chemo combination for Nigel should be administered for four to six
cycles. However, it can also be given beyond that period accompanied by a single chemo or a
targeted drug now that Nigel did not have a good response in initial chemotherapy. It is
therefore essential that Nigel be taken trough what we call the maintenance check for the
chemotherapy to effectively work well. The maintenance therapy, will help keep the cancer
in check and facilitate living a long life. And just in case the initial chemo therapy for Nigel
does not completely work, it is essential that a recommendation of the second line drugs
having a single chemo drug like docetaxel or permetrexed, or still accompanied with a
targeted therapy or the immunotherapy drug can be initiated. On average nevertheless, Nigel
would require a single chemo drugs. According to Huang et al. (2017), adding a third chemo
does not add much difference except that it will increase the side effects. Single drug chemo
is most of the time used for people who might not be at a position to tolerate a combination
therapy. Example of such kind of group of people is those who are elderly and in overall poor
general health. For this case, Nigel falls in this category of individuals and therefore it would
be effective for him to be enrolled on a single drug chemo.
Q.4 Mechanism of action of his current medication acts directly on the cancerous
tumors in the lungs and associated parts while the other mechanism of action like using of
nivolumab treats an individual by acting on the immune system. The latter mechanism of
action can both activate a stronger immune response than normal in the body and similarly
teach an individual’s immune system on how to identify and destroy cancer cells. The two
forms of mechanism of action are also different in that the current medication will act by
destroying all the rapidly dividing cells that it locates within the body to destroy the
cancerous tumors. This kind of action may include destroying the normal cells and the
cancerous cells like the hair follicles and the gut lining. The attack of this kind of mechanism
of action is what eventually bring about effects of hair loss and nausea like the ones Nigel is