Toxicities Associated With Subcutaneous Administration of Ethyol (Amifostine) for the Prevention of Radiation-Induced Toxicities

Dry mouth occurs very often in patients who receive radiation treatment. Amifostine is a drug approved to reduce the short and long-term occurrence of dry mouth when patients receive radiation treatment for head and neck cancer. Some studies have shown that Amifostine reduces the side effects of radiation treatment for lung cancer. The use of Amifostine is still being investigated in lung malignancies. Amifostine is found to be a protectant from radiation side effects of such normal tissues as bone marrow, skin, oral mucosal, esophagus, kidney and testes. Patients that receive radiation treatments for lung cancer may experience side effects involving the esophagus. It is hoped that patients will benefit from the protection of their esophagus and avoid delays in radiation treatment due to side effects of the radiation.