If you’re about to begin chemotherapy, it’s natural to be worried about the toll the treatment may take on you. In addition to the expected hair loss, you may experience other problematic side effects such as fatigue, nausea, mouth sores, and diarrhea or constipation.

Chemotherapy treatments may make it more difficult for the body to fight disease. These drugs are designed to attack fast-growing cancer cells but typically also kill fast-growing healthy cells, including immune cells.

Before your chemotherapy, you may want to consider these three goals as you prepare to start your cancer treatment:

• Take the necessary steps to prevent interactions from affecting your treatment’s effectiveness.
• Reduce or prevent unpleasant side effects as much as possible.
• Protect your health while your immune system is compromised.

Just as important as the precautions your doctor will tell you to take while on chemotherapy treatment, there are the things you should avoid.

Read more from City of Hope to explore eight things to avoid while on chemotherapy, including:

• Exposing yourself to infections
• Eating undercooked or raw foods
• Drinking alcohol
• Consuming acidic or spicy foods and drinks
• Overexerting yourself
• Smoking
• Exposing yourself to ultraviolet light
• Contacting or touching chemotherapy drugs or bodily fluids

About City of Hope
Cancer Treatment Centers of America^® (CTCA) is now City of Hope^®.  To expand patient access to personalized, leading-edge cancer care, City of Hope® acquired Cancer Treatment Centers of America® (CTCA) last year, uniting our shared vision, values and commitment to high-quality, compassionate care that puts patients first. Today, we aren’t just part of City of Hope; we are City of Hope

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