Bowel cancer, also known as colorectal cancer, can affect any part of the colon or rectum; it may also be referred to as colon cancer or rectal cancer, depending on where the cancer is located.
Bowel cancer screening is for people who do not already have bowel cancer, symptoms of bowel cancer, or any reason to have a high risk of bowel cancer.
Patient-centred care is healthcare that is respectful of, and responsive to, the preferences, needs and values of patients and consumers.
Bowel Cancer Australia provides essential support services uniquely designed for bowel cancer patients via our confidential Helpline with specialist telehealth support, as well as a national Peer-to-Peer Support Network and Buddy Program.
Bowel Cancer Australia funds research that has the potential to improve survival and/or help build a path toward a cure and integrates published research into our awareness, advocacy, and support strategies.
Bowel Cancer Australia relies upon donations and the support of hard working and enthusiastic fundraisers across the country to continue our life saving work. We raise funds to continue our life-saving work and inspire others to do the same, so everyone affected by bowel cancer can live their best life.
Chemotherapy is a cancer treatment that uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing.
When chemotherapy is taken by mouth or injected into a vein or muscle, the drugs enter the bloodstream and can reach cancer cells throughout the body (systemic chemotherapy).
When chemotherapy is placed directly into the cerebrospinal fluid, an organ, or a body cavity such as the abdomen, the drugs mainly affect cancer cells in those areas (regional chemotherapy).
Chemoembolisation of the hepatic artery may be used to treat cancer that has spread to the liver. This involves blocking the hepatic artery (the main artery that supplies blood to the liver) and injecting anticancer drugs between the blockage and the liver.
The liver’s arteries then deliver the drugs throughout the liver. Only a small amount of the drug reaches other parts of the body. The blockage may be temporary or permanent, depending on what is used to block the artery. The liver continues to receive some blood from the hepatic portal vein, which carries blood from the stomach and intestine.
The way the chemotherapy is given depends on the type and stage of the bowel cancer being treated.
If your oncologist believes you will benefit from chemotherapy, they will discuss the best treatment plan options with you.
You may be prescribed one drug or a combination of drugs.
Depending on the stage of your bowel cancer, you may also be recommended treatment with targeted therapies.
The chemotherapy drugs approved by the Therapeutic Drugs Administration (TGA) in Australia for the treatment of bowel cancer are:
A combination of two or more drugs is common, for example:
Each drug dose is calculated initially according to your body surface area.
Each drug has certain characteristic side-effects to be aware of. These side-effects can be ‘risk assessed’ for likelihood by your oncologist, and dosages can be altered to suit your own circumstances.
These standard drugs are considered to have a moderate risk for developing common side-effects associated with bowel cancer chemotherapy, including nausea and vomiting, diarrhoea and febrile neutropaenia (fever).
Before any new pharmaceutical drug, diagnostic test, medical device, surgically implanted prostheses, medical procedure, or public health intervention becomes available in Australia, it must undergo health technology assessment (HTA).
At what stage is this treatment used?
Is this drug available via the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) as a subsidised treatment?
Download the Consumer Medicine Information (CMI) for fluorouracil injection
Download the Consumer Medicine Information (CMI) for Camptosar.
Download the Consumer Medicine Information (CMI) for Eloxatin.
AND
OR
Download the Consumer Medicine Information (CMI) for Lonsurf.
Download the Consumer Medicine Information (CMI) for Tomudex.
Nausea and vomiting are two side-effects of cancer treatment that people often worry about the most.
Around 50 percent of people who undergo chemotherapy for bowel cancer experience nausea and vomiting, which might also cause dehydration, fatigue, loss of appetite and difficulty concentrating.
Some patients are more vulnerable to CINV than others. These include women (even more so if they experienced these symptoms during pregnancy), young people under age 50, and patients who have received previous chemotherapy treatments.
Other risks include a personal history of motion sickness, or anxiety.
Many new medications are available to control CINV and it can now be prevented in the majority of people by carefully assessing your risk of developing these side-effects before you start treatment.
The prescribing and dispensing of medicinal cannabis products under specific circumstances is legal in Australia.
The cultivation and manufacture of medicinal cannabis products have been legalised by the Commonwealth, and in some cases, State and Territory governments.
Until more scientific evidence is available however, medicinal cannabis should be used only when approved treatments have been tried and failed to manage conditions and symptoms.
There is no evidence that medicinal cannabis has any anti-cancer activity in human studies or that it can slow the progression of these conditions.
The products will be available for use by bowel cancer patients for the prevention and management of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, and in palliative care, but only after standard treatments have failed.
While medicinal cannabis products can be used to treat nausea and vomiting due to chemotherapy, there is little evidence of any benefit to metastatic cancer patients with chronic pain.
As there are few studies on medicinal cannabis treatment in palliative care, it is possible that it will interact with chemotherapy and other medications used in palliative care.
It should be used only after standard treatments have failed.
Like all prescription medicines, medicinal cannabis products can have side effects.
Side effects vary and depend on the medicinal cannabis product type used and the patient being treated.
The known side-effects from medicinal cannabis treatment (both CBD and THC) include fatigue and sedation, vertigo, nausea and vomiting, fever, decreased or increased appetite, dry mouth, and diarrhoea.
THC (and products high in THC) have been associated with convulsions, feeling high or feeling dissatisfied, depression, confusion, hallucinations, paranoid delusions, psychosis, and cognitive distortion (having thoughts that are not true).
Medicinal cannabis products can only be prescribed by a registered medical practitioner.
With the exception of nabiximols, medicinal cannabis products are not registered medicines in Australia, so they must be accessed through special pathways available for unapproved medicines.
For further information, please download the Therapeutic Good Administration’s Guidance for the use of medicine cannabis in Australia.
Infection at any time during your bowel cancer treatment can have a significant effect on how well you tolerate your treatment and can slow down your recovery times.
Neutropaenic sepsis – or febrile neutropaenia – means that you have a fever caused by infection linked to low levels of neutrophils (white blood cells) in the blood.
This is a serious condition, and one of the potential side-effects of chemotherapy for cancer. Chemotherapy for bowel cancer carries a moderate risk of neutropaenia.
Infection as a result of side-effects of chemotherapy – when the body is already compromised – is considered to be a medical emergency which often results in hospital admission for treatment with antibiotic intravenous (IV) infusions.
It is possible to assess your personal risk of developing this side effect before starting a new treatment.
You can manage your personal risk actively by careful attention to personal hygiene and limiting contact with other potential sources of infection: other people, pets, food and washing hands after touching hard surfaces (especially in busy, communal areas).
People most at risk of developing this serious problem are often older patients (over 65 years) who also have poor general health and other underlying health issues with heart, kidney or other problems with major organs.
Other factors known to increase risk of infection include a low baseline blood cell count as a result of previous chemotherapy treatments, along with current chemotherapy regimes that are being given in high doses.
That is why you will have your blood levels checked before each new cycle of treatment.
Your pretreatment assessment should also include checking your temperature and blood pressure as these can also help to identify potential problems ahead, as will picking up undiagnosed, underlying respiratory infections, and other local infections at the site of IV ports, for example.
Your chemotherapy team should give you a special card with the signs and symptoms to look out for, and an emergency contact number to call if you notice any problems or have any concerns.
Where the personal risk is considered to be high, specialised medications can be prescribed to increase the production of these white cells where necessary, supporting the body and helping it to recover more quickly from the chemotherapy treatments.
Bowel Cancer Australia’s essential support services are uniquely designed for you.
Email, call of video chat confidentially with one of our friendly nurses, nutritionists, or psychosocial support worker, plus access our resources, peer-to-peer buddy program, support group or podcast.