2000 Oncology Nursing Drug Handbook Fourth Edition
 | Editors: Gail M. Wilkes, RN, MS, AOCN; Karen Ingwersen, RN, MSN, OCN; Margaret Barton-Burke, RN, MS, AOCN OncoLink Rating:   |
The editors of this book are all certified oncology nurses. Gail M. Wilkes is an oncology nurse practitioner at Boston Medical Center; Karen Ingwersen is a clinical nurse IV at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center; Margaret Barton-Burke is an oncology nursing consultant in West Roxbury Massachusetts. They crafted this textbook with the help of years of oncology nursing experience. This book is written for nurses who are interested in becoming actively involved in all phases of the cancer continuum, including pharmacologic management, symptom management, and management of complications of disease and treatment.
Unlike other generic chemotherapy drug books, this all-inclusive reference centers on the nursing process. This makes the reference an easy read for nurses concerned with obtaining a background for assessment, intervention, and patient education.
The 2000 edition of "Oncology Nursing Drug Handbook" includes the very newest chemotherapy drugs and those used in symptom management. The book also gives easy to use drug information for the practicing oncology nurse to use in areas such as the management of pain, and chemotherapy administration. Also helpful are the book's many resources such as a quick reference table for drugs used in the management of HIV infections, and drug interactions, the body surface area nomogram, and the key to abbreviations.
The book begins with a "nurse friendly" introduction to chemotherapy drugs, including an overview of the mechanism of action of major chemotherapy agents. Then there is the complete overview of drugs used in the management of patients with cancer this chapter includes the all- important nursing interventions necessary for each and every potential toxicity. The chapter called "Cancer Treatment Strategies: New Frontiers", describes recent advances including fusion proteins, modulators of multidrug resistance, signal transduction inhibitors, angiogenesis inhibitors, the matrix metalloprotease inhibitors, and retinoids.
One interesting section is Chapter 14, "Polypharmacy." This chapter offers a summary of potential drug interactions and a model that may be used to keep track of potential drug interactions in clinical practice. Finally there are two very useful appendices offered by the editors. Appendix I is the OSHA Recommendation for Safe Handling of Hazardous Drugs. Appendix II is the NCI Common Toxicity Criteria.
This textbook is a very helpful reference guide to any nurse interested in cancer therapies. It covers a substantial number of topics, but does so in a concise and clear manner. The "by nurses, for nurses" style in which the information is presented makes this a valuable resource for novice to advanced practicing oncology nurses. It receives OncoLink's highest recommendation.