Radiation therapy is used on cancers, including sarcomas, where there is a selective ability for the radiation to destroy the cancer cells while allowing the nearby adjacent normal cells to repair themselves from the injury. Nurses work in the hospital setting as well as the outpatient clinic and doctor's office settings. Oncology nurses have specialized training in delivering chemotherapy, handling intravenous lines, managing side effects from treatment, managing pain and providing counseling and education. Most of the time it is the nurse who delivers the chemotherapy and other medications ordered by your oncologists. Nurses have a wide variety of skills and expertise and are often the members of the healthcare time that patients have the most access to during their treatments.
Nurses are valuable resources and can answer many questions.
Therefore, it is vitally important that the pathologist has special training and skill in the evaluation of sarcomas. It is crucial that one of these nationally recognized consultants reviews your case to render a second opinion. If the pathology diagnosis is incorrect or inaccurate, the therapy you receive may be less than optimal. In addition to preparing medications, pharmacists have a tremendous amount of information on how drugs work, their side effects and potential interactions. Pharmacists can instruct you on the proper and optimal way to take medications and how to manage side effects.