Clavulanate potassium is an antibiotic used to fight specific bacterial infections of the lungs, urinary tract, ear, sinuses and skin. It may be used alone or in combination with another antibacterial medication. Lung cancer is primarily caused by cigarette smoking, but can develop from environmental exposure to radon gas, and certain industrial chemicals and metals. It is not caused by bacteria and, therefore, cannot be treated with antibiotics such as clavulanate potassium.
Clavulanate Potassium
There are specific proteins that bacteria must have to make and keep their cell wall suitable for survival, as explained in "Antimicrobial Chemotherapy." Some antibiotics have a structure that can fit into these proteins and prevent them from functioning. As a result, the bacteria are destroyed. Many bacteria, however, have other proteins that can prevent the antibiotics from working; they are not able to stop clavulanate from destroying them, however.
Uses of Clavulanate Potassium
The combination of amoxicillin and clavulanate potassium is used to increase the amount of time that amoxicillin stays active in your system. They are both antibiotics that specifically treat E. coli, H. influenzae, staphylococci and gonococci, according to "Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics." They treat various skin infections, sinus infections, the ear infection otitis media, urinary tract infections and pneumonia. Bacteria do not cause lung cancer, so clavulanate is not effective against lung cancer.
Lung Cancer Causes
As of 2007, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 203,536 people had lung cancer, which is overwhelmingly caused by cigarette smoking. Other risk factors include exposure to secondhand smoke, asbestos, nickel, chromium, arsenic, iron oxide, and an industrial chemical called bis-chloromethyl ether. A family history of this disease is also a risk factor, as well as certain lung diseases. Having an exposure to radon gas is the No. 2 cause of lung cancer; radon gas develops from the natural breakdown of uranium, and it is in the soil, air, rocks, possibly water, and can enter buildings and houses through cracks.
Treatment
There are two main categories of lung cancer. There is small cell lung cancer, and then there is non-small cell lung cancer which includes squamous cell carcinoma, large cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. The specific treatment will depend upon the stage of the cancer, the type of cells involved, nutrition status, condition of the heart, physical status and the existence of any other disease, explains "The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals." The treatment does not include clavulanate potassium, but may include chemotherapy, surgery and radiation therapy.
References
- "Antimicrobial Chemotherapy"; B. E. Nardell, Ph.D.; 2002
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Lung Cancer
- "Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics"; Laurence Brunton, Ph.D.; 2011
- "MD Anderson Manual of Medical Oncology"; Hagop Kantarjian, M.D., Robert Wolff, M.D., Charles Koller, M.D.; 2006
- "The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals"; Lung Carcinoma; Waun Ki Hong, M.D.; 2008
- "The Washington Manual of Medical Therapeutics"; Gopa Green, M.D., Ian Harris, M.D., Grace Lin, M.D., Kyle Moylan, M.D.; 2004
