Exam 103: Anticancer Drugs II: Hormonal Agents, Targeted Drugs, and Other Noncytotoxic Anticancer Drugs

A patient with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) begins treatment with imatinib [Gleevec]. Which statement by the patient indicates understanding of this medication?

The nurse would be correct to state that the purpose of angiogenesis inhibitors is to:

A patient will begin taking tamoxifen [Nolvadex] to treat breast cancer. The nurse performs a medication history and learns that the patient is taking sertraline [Zoloft] for depression. The nurse will tell the patient to contact her provider to ask about:

A patient with advanced cancer of the prostate begins treatment with leuprolide [Lupron Depot] injections and will receive 7.5 mg IM once per month. After the first injection, the patient experiences an increase in cancer symptoms. What will the nurse tell the patient?

A patient with colorectal cancer is admitted to the hospital oncology unit to receive cetuximab [Erbitux]. The nurse notes that the prescriber has not ordered any other medications. The nurse will contact the prescriber to request an order for which medication in order to minimize cetuximab's side effects?

The nurse is caring for a patient in the oncology unit who was recently diagnosed with advanced renal carcinoma. The nurse prepares to administer aldesleukin [Proleukin] as part of the treatment regimen. What is the primary adverse effect of this drug?

A patient with advanced prostate cancer will begin treatment with leuprolide [Lupron]. The provider has ordered flutamide to be given as adjunct therapy. The patient asks the nurse why both drugs are necessary. The nurse will tell the patient that:

A 45-year-old patient with a family history of breast cancer is considering using tamoxifen [Nolvadex] for cancer prevention. The nurse performs a health history and learns that the woman had a child when she was 35 years old, that she has not had a hysterectomy, and that she experienced DVT when she was pregnant. What will the nurse tell the patient?

A premenopausal woman has ER-positive breast cancer, and her prescriber has ordered tamoxifen [Nolvadex]. She asks the nurse if anastrozole [Arimidex] would work better for her. What will the nurse tell her?

A 43-year-old patient with a strong family history of breast cancer considers taking tamoxifen [Nolvadex] for cancer prevention. Which assessment finding is a possible contraindication?

A nurse is preparing to administer a second infusion of trastuzumab [Herceptin] to a patient who has breast cancer. The patient tells the nurse that she experienced chills, fever, pain, and nausea after her first infusion. What will the nurse do?

The nurse is preparing to administer a first dose of ado-trastuzumab emtansine [Kadcyla] to a patient who has metastatic breast cancer. Which nursing action is correct?

A nursing student asks the nurse what differentiates antiestrogen drugs from aromatase inhibitors in the treatment of breast cancer. What is the correct response by the nurse?