HSNS364 Assignment: Case Study of Betty Hill and Colorectal Cancer

This case study presents the case of Betty Hill, a 62-year-old woman diagnosed with colorectal cancer. The assignment discusses the pathophysiology of cancer tumors, including the uncontrolled growth and division of cancer cells, and specifically addresses colorectal cancer, its origins, and its impact on the digestive system. The case study follows Betty's symptoms, diagnosis through biopsy, and treatment with chemotherapy, highlighting the side effects such as nausea, vomiting, and potential infections. The assignment explores different chemotherapy approaches, including adjuvant chemotherapy, and considers its application in Betty's case, emphasizing the importance of careful monitoring and preventive measures. The case study also covers the critical discussion of assessments, assessment tools, and the roles of healthcare professionals involved in Betty's care, providing insights into the comprehensive management of cancer patients.

Running head: CASE STUDY
CASE STUDY
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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CASE STUDY
Cancer is regarded as one of the life-threatening diseases and that happen to anyone.
The disease does not occur biologically but can also occur due to environmental pollution.
The primary aim of the essay is to discuss the pathophysiology of cancer tumor as well as
colorectal cancer and what therapies can be used to cure the disease.
Response 1
Pathophysiology of cancer tumor is the unregulated increase of cancer cells in the
body of an individual. Cancer cells grow as well as divide uncontrollably that ultimately
leads to tumor cells, the growth of tumor cells also leads to a lot of abnormalities within the
body (Sykes et al., 2016). A tumor is the abnormal accumulation of cells that can be both
benign as well as malignant. A benign tumor remains in its original location and does not
invade the surrounding tissue, whereas a malignant tumor invades the surrounding tissues and
spreads throughout the body (Quer et al., 2017). It is these types of tumors that are known as
cancer cells since they have the capacity to harm the body of the person and cause
abnormalities. The progression of the tumor cells continues due to the additional mutation of
cells within the body. Hormones especially estrogens are responsible for the development of
tumor cells in the body (Cabral et al., 2016). Similarly chemicals as well as radiation can also
be the reason behind the development of cancer cells within the body. In the pathophysiology
of cancer tumor the latter continues to move once it comes in contact with the neighbouring
cells and thus begins to grow in a disorderly manner (Rajpoot et al., 2018). Thus the
pathogenesis of cancer tumor may be defined as the process of transforming the normal ratio
of the cell into a tumor cell. They have unrestrained growth and work independently. These
tumors can take place in any part of the body and gradually affect the other organs that might
lead to many organ failure (Rajpoot et al., 2018).
Colorectal Cancer

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CASE STUDY
Colorectal cancer primarily originates from the epithelial cells that lines either the colon or
the rectum of the gastrointestinal tract. Thus type of cancer mainly arises due to two kinds of
polyps- conventional adenomas and the serrated adenomas. This cancer affects the digestive
system of the body as it develops in the tracts of the digestive system (Siegel et al., 2017).
The polyps that has been mentioned above initially remains benign but soon transforms into
cancerous tumors (Siegel et al., 2017). The same has happened with the case of Betty where
due to colorectal cancer she is suffering from problems in her bowel system as well as
diarrhea. After Betty goes through a series of tests it is confirmed after her biopsy that she is
suffering from adenomcarcinoma of the descending colon. Oncological treatment begins for
Betty where she has to attend the treatment in intervals. Chemotherapy is advised for Betty
after which she suffers from severe vomiting and nausea. She also checks her temperature
regularly to keep the infection in check. Due an infection her temperature rises significantly
that might further affect her health. When she further undergoes test it is found that she has
urinary infections too (Clarke et al., 2016). This may have happened after the biopsy report
where she had to take intensive chemotherapy sessions that may have caused neutropenic
sepsis (Clarke et al., 2016). Therefore, Betty became vulnerable to infection and health
deteriorated. In this type of situation rectal examination should be avoided and this is why
Betty was advised to take a course of antibiotics under close monitoring so that her
chemotheraphy sessions can start soon (Clarke et al., 2016). All this has happened because
the colorectal cancer had spread a lot.
Chemotherapy
From the case study it is clear that Betty’s health is deteriorating after taking the
chemotherapy and she is also suffering from urinary infection which means she cannot go
forward with the same type of chemotherapy as it has already taken a toll on her. Thus one
chemotherapy that can applied in the case of Betty is adjuvant chemotherapy (Grothey et al.,

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CASE STUDY
2018). However, initially the chemotherapy should be combined with radiation that also helps
in treating cancer. It is primarily used to treat just the tumor that is present in the body
therefore, it has its affect on only that part of the body (Verheij et al., 2016). Radiation
oncolologists use this therapy to treat the cancer cells and slow the growth of tumor present
within the body. Sometimes it is applied after the person has undergone a surgery or a session
of chemotherapy. This is known as adjuvant chemotherapy (Woodward & Amos 2016). As
Betty has undergone a surgery as well as chemotherapy sessions she can be given adjuvant
therapy that targets the cells that are left after the treatment. Adjuvant chemotherapy
decreases the recurrence of the tumor cells and also prevents infection that Betty is already
going through. Adjuvant chemotherapy can be given through injection or a pill that can be
taken by the mouth. It should be noted that Adjuvant chemotherapy is not recommended for
all times (Galsky et al., 2016). It can only be applied in acute situations like that of Betty as
she is already going through a lot of problems due to which her chemotherapy sessions could
not be completed.
Therefore to conclude it must be noted that cancer can occur at any stage of life and
though chemotherapy can help in curing patients it can also lead to long-term serious
consequences. The latter can also lead to infection within the body therefore, patients as well
as the doctors should be careful and take preventive measures before taking and giving the
session.

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CASE STUDY
References
Cabral, V. D., Cerski, M. R., Brito, I. T. S., & Kliemann, L. M. (2016). p14 expression
differences in ovarian benign, borderline and malignant epithelial tumors. Journal of
ovarian research, 9(1), 69.
Clarke, R. T., Jenyon, T., van Hamel Parsons, V., & King, A. J. (2013). Neutropenic sepsis:
management and complications. Clinical medicine, 13(2), 185.
Galsky, M. D., Stensland, K. D., Moshier, E., Sfakianos, J. P., McBride, R. B., Tsao, C. K., ...
& Wisnivesky, J. P. (2016). Effectiveness of adjuvant chemotherapy for locally
advanced bladder cancer. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 34(8), 825-832.
Grothey, A., Sobrero, A. F., Shields, A. F., Yoshino, T., Paul, J., Taieb, J., ... & Meyerhardt,
J. A. (2018). Duration of adjuvant chemotherapy for stage III colon cancer. New
England Journal of Medicine, 378(13), 1177-1188.
Quer, M., Vander Poorten, V., Takes, R. P., Silver, C. E., Boedeker, C. C., de Bree, R., ... &
Zbären, P. (2017). Surgical options in benign parotid tumors: a proposal for
classification. European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, 274(11), 3825-3836.
Rajpoot, M., Sharma, A. K., Sharma, A., & Gupta, G. K. (2018, October). Understanding the
microbiome: emerging biomarkers for exploiting the microbiota for personalized
medicine against cancer. In Seminars in cancer biology (Vol. 52, pp. 1-8). Academic
Press.

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Siegel, R. L., Miller, K. D., Fedewa, S. A., Ahnen, D. J., Meester, R. G., Barzi, A., & Jemal,
A. (2017). Colorectal cancer statistics, 2017. CA: a cancer journal for
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Sykes, E. A., Dai, Q., Sarsons, C. D., Chen, J., Rocheleau, J. V., Hwang, D. M., ... & Chan,
W. C. (2016). Tailoring nanoparticle designs to target cancer based on tumor
pathophysiology. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(9), E1142-
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Verheij, M., Jansen, E. P., Cats, A., van Grieken, N. C., Aaronson, N. K., Boot, H., ... & Trip,
A. K. (2016). A multicenter randomized phase III trial of neo-adjuvant chemotherapy
followed by surgery and chemotherapy or by surgery and chemoradiotherapy in
resectable gastric cancer: First results from the CRITICS study.
Woodward, W. A., & Amos, R. A. (2016). Proton radiation biology considerations for
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