Cancer chemotherapeutic agents.

Abstract

Clinicians, in general, must understand the causes, methods of prevention, management principles, and complications of cancer therapy. They must recognize that patients with cancer require multidisciplinary treatment and coordination of care. The oncologist who manages the patient's care must involve the oral health care provider before the initiation of chemotherapy. The oral health care provider must recognize that cancer chemotherapeutic agents are not selectively tumoricidal and may produce adverse effects by direct toxicity at the cellular level or indirectly, characterized by myeloimmunosuppression, and has the obligation to deliver quality care, competently and timely before, during, and after cancer chemotherapy.