TeachableMedicalNews article 12202019
Teachable moment in classrooms:
- cellular basis of life chapter – formation of cancer cells
- cellular basis of life chapter – DNA and mitosis
- blood chapter – formation of white blood cells in red bone marrow
- immune system chapter – immune protection by white blood cells
The news item: The pharmaceutical Neulasta was in the news recently:
It’s been nearly two years since the pharmaceutical giant took tremendous heat for the rising cost of EpiPens
The article mentions that a new company will be making a similar and cheaper drug to Neulasta, and that Neulasta is used to reduce infections in patients during cancer treatment.
So, Why Do I Care?? Cancer patients are frequently treated with drugs to kills the cancer cells. Such chemotherapy drugs are used to treat most of the 1.7 million new cancer cases each year in the USA. Chemotherapy treatments have many damaging side effects on the patients. Minimizing of those side effects improves patient comfort, survival, and the success of the chemotherapy treatment.
Plain English, Please!!! First, let’s; talk about chemotherapy. Cancers grow by cells dividing faster than normal cells of the body, and the chemotherapy drugs are used to stop or slow the division of cancer cells. One side effect of chemotherapy treatment is that normal cells are also stopped from dividing. One of those normally quickly dividing group of cells is located in the red bone marrow.
Second, let’s talk about red bone marrow. This red, toothpaste-like mush of cells is trapped inside our spongy bones, like breastbone, pelvic bone, and others. Millions of new red and white blood cells are created by cell division in the red bone marrow every day. Picture cell division as a car driving at normal speed; you have to keep your foot on the gas pedal. Chemotherapy drugs are like a foot on the brake pedal; as they slow down cell division, they slow down red and white blood cell production in the bone marrow.
Third, let’s talk about white blood cells. The white blood cells defend our bodies against bacteria, viruses and fungi. Every day we lose thousands of white blood cells during that defense, so we need constant replacement. When the cell division in the red bone marrow is slowed by chemotherapy drugs, the replacement of white blood cells slows down, and bacteria and virus infections can get a foothold in the body. Neulasta (and similar drugs) speeds up white blood cell creation; they step on the gas pedal of cell division in the bone marrow even during chemotherapy treatment. That provides enough white blood cells to defend the body better against invaders during chemotherapy treatment.
