do oncologists care about collateral damage?

[cfuss247]

My oncologist didn't tell me about the cardiotoxicity / renal of my chemo. I developed cardio renal syndrome. I asked him why I was filling up with fluid, my blood pressure changing etc but he never told me the chemo was toxic to my heart/ kidney and could kill me before the cancer did. He let me suffer for 2 months before my bnp was so high he canceled my chemo. Is this standard practice, to ignore side effects, collateral damage. My cardiologist said oncologists are like that, they don't care about anything but killing cancer.

[HVAC]

Not all mine oncologists don't tell you. Mine warns me about all the drugs I I am on. She also monitors me closely. She informs me and lets me make the decisions.

My first oncologist did not tell me anything. So I read up on all the chemo I was on. They did give me hand outs with all that. I go to the websites of the drugs.

I read up on everything they put me on. I know if the cancer does not kill me at some point the chemo might.

I am going on the new drug the PARP inhibitor which can cause a Leukemia you need a bone marrow transplant for. I know the risk.

I agree patients should be told the risks.

Alex

[old_before_my_time]

I am sorry you had cancer and are now suffering from the nasty side effects of the chemo! Chemo drugs can be very toxic and from loved ones who have undergone cancer treatment (radiation and/or chemo), I have also seen that they do not do "full disclosure" of side effects. They have a lot of income to lose if they do. Oncologists can buy chemo drugs in the U.S. and then profit directly from selling/using them on their patients.

However, I have also seen the greed by doctors, hospitals, and clinics in other ways. I was grossly over-treated for a benign complex ovarian cyst. My surgeon removed both ovaries, my uterus, and tubes when all he should have removed was the benign cyst. I did not get "full disclosure" of all the short and long-term side effects of living without my sex organs. Since only 2% of hysterectomies and oophorectomies are done for a cancer diagnosis, the hysterectomy industry is obviously quite lucrative. Informing women of the medically documented adverse effects would severely hurt their business.