Remedies for Joint Pain From Chemotherapy

The treatments needed to rid your body of cancer can cause intense physical pain. Some forms of chemotherapy have an adverse effect on your joints---they become inflamed and stiff, leading to painful movements and reduced range of motion. Take steps to treat your joint pain, keeping your body strong to continue its fight against cancer.

Gloucosamine and Chondroitin

• Take a combination of glucosamine and chondroitin to reduce your pain greatly. These two supplements come in two forms---a vitamin supplement and a liquid. In recent years, the health industry has developed a juice drink that your body can absorb more quickly than the pills and that goes easier on your system.

Prescription Drugs

• If supplements alone fail to relieve your joint pain, try a prescription drug such as Morphine or Oxycodone.

  Morphine,a strong and highly addictive pain reliever, comes in several forms including patches and shots. If you receive chemotherapy in a hospital, you will most likely receive shots of morphine intravenously. Upon your release, your doctor may set you up with a morphine patch to help with any residual pain. Follow your doctor's instructions carefully when taking this highly addictive drug.

  Your doctor may alternately prescribe oxycodone, an opioid used to treat pain. This highly classified narcotic treats severe pain associated with chemotherapy. Oxycodone will allow you to relax and the medication to work, often causing you to spend a lot of time sleeping. Oxycodone is the most highly addictive pain killer available; only use it when all other pain relief forms stop working.

Tips

• If nothing works to take away the pain totally, take comfort knowing that it will eventually dissipate. As with all medications, do not attempt to start or stop taking any medication without first consulting your health-care professional.