Hmm, good question. I would think you would still query to see if possibly related to treatment but if 6 months ago, chances are it is likely due to the disease process.
Hmm, good question. I would think you would still query to see if possibly related to treatment but if 6 months ago, chances are it is likely due to the disease process.
I occasionally review oncology cases and when I have an onc case who received chemo (even remotely) I look up the drug(s) and their nadirs (if available: usually about 7-10 days with most agents) and all their previous counts (if available). With the timeframe examples given, I might be inclined to clarify if patient had chemo 6 weeks ago, less inclined to ask if 6 months ago (from my very limited experience, most counts recover by about 4 weeks after last chemo given). Also, I am in pediatrics so not sure if that makes a difference.
Comments
Jackie Touch, MSN, RN, CCM
When abstracting blood transfusions the standard time frame for chemo treatment is 60 days. Just a thought.