Toxic side effects of long-term radiotherapy in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma

For patients with advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma, radiochemotherapy is the first choice. With the continuous maturity of medical technology and the increasing accumulation of clinical experience, the survival rate of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients after radiotherapy has greatly improved. People have begun to pay attention to the quality of life after radiotherapy. So what are the side effects of long-term chemotherapy?

Damage to the skull base, brain stem, spinal cord, eyes

The nasopharynx is close to important organs such as the skull base, brainstem, spinal cord, and eyes. Its main metastasis mode is lymphatic metastasis. According to statistics, more than 60% of patients seek medical treatment for neck lumps, so it is easier to invade our neck. The most common sequelae after radiotherapy are dry mouth caused by parotid gland damage, difficulty opening the mouth due to damage to the masticatory muscles and temporomandibular joints, and difficulty swallowing caused by radiation damage to swallowing structures such as the throat and esophagus. The dysfunction of these tissues seriously affects the quality of life of patients.

Can cause brain damage

Long-term chemotherapy can cause brain damage, such as diffuse leukoencephalopathy, cerebrovascular disease, etc. Patients may experience personality changes, amnesia, mental dullness, transient loss of consciousness, etc. Some people also have increased intracranial pressure, and the consequences are relatively serious.

Causes difficulty swallowing

Dysphagia is a common symptom in the late stage of nasopharyngeal carcinoma. It is also one of the major complications after long-term radiotherapy, with an incidence rate of 70% to 80%. Severe patients can only take liquid food, resulting in malnutrition, weight loss, and serious impact on disease recovery; aspiration pneumonia caused by dysphagia is also a major cause of death after radiotherapy.

Damage to the auditory system

Because my country's current radiotherapy technology is not yet perfect, the areas near the ear, temporal area and brainstem cannot be completely avoided during radiotherapy. This part will be affected by radiation, mainly causing damage to the auditory system, causing otitis media, auditory nerve damage or mixed deafness, etc.