Prostate cancer is an uncontrolled proliferation of cells within the prostate gland, a part of the male reproductive system that secretes fluid that makes up a component of semen. Prostate cancer begins with a tumor localized within the prostate gland, but as the cancer develops the prostate cancer can spread into neighboring tissues and throughout the body. Some cases of prostate cancer, especially cases where the cancer has spread, are treated with chemotherapy, which damages and kills the cancer cells. The use of chemotherapy to treat prostate cancer can have a range of side effects, as other cells within the body are affected by the drugs.
Skin Reactions
Chemotherapy drugs are not generally targeted specifically at prostate cancer cells, but instead circulate throughout the body and attack populations of fast-dividing cells. This can affect the skin, since populations of skin precursor cells proliferate rapidly. Under normal conditions, a small population of stem cells is located in each hair follicle. These stem cells are able to turn into skin cells and help with wound healing and maintaining the integrity of the skin.
Chemotherapy often kills the skin stem cells, so the numbers of cells that maintain the skin are severely diminished. As a result, Chemocare reports that patients will often experience skin rashes since the skin is less equipped to repair itself. A number of therapeutics have been developed to counteract this side effect of chemotherapy, which may help alleviate symptoms.
Impotence
One of the chemotherapy treatments that may be used to treat prostate cancer is androgen-blocking therapy. Androgens are male-circulating hormones that signal to prostate cancer cells and tell them to divide, so androgen-blocking therapies help fight the growth of prostate cancer. Unfortunately, a number of cells in the body rely on androgen signaling, so blocking androgen signaling has a number of side effects, including impotence.
Impotence occurs when a man is unable to achieve or maintain an erection. In a 2006 study published in the "Journal of Sexual Medicine," Dr. A. Traish reported that androgens are required for the maintenance of an erection. Using androgen blockers inhibits this process, so patients using hormone treatment for prostate cancer will often experience impotence.
Bleeding Problems
Prostate cancer patients taking chemotherapy agents may experience blood problems. This is because the stem cells that give rise to blood cells continually divide within the bone marrow, so they are targeted by chemotherapy agents. One side effect of decreased blood cell numbers is clotting problems, which occur due to a decrease in blood cells called platelets. Under normal conditions, platelets respond to injury to form aggregates called blood clots. Without sufficient numbers of platelets in the blood, the body cannot easily form clots. A patient with a bleeding disorder will bleed easily, and may experience prolonged bleeding after injury.
According to the Mayo Clinic, low platelet counts as a result of chemotherapy can be treated by blood transfusions or medication. If platelet counts are extremely low, stopping chemotherapy treatment may be required to increase the number of platelets.
