1. ANSWER C. Complications of Hodgkin’s are pancytopenia, nausea, and infection. Cardiac involvement usually doesn’t occur.
2. ANSWER C. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia shows a proliferation of small abnormal mature B lymphocytes and decreased antibody response. Thrombocytopenia also is often present. Uncontrolled proliferation of granulocytes occurs in myelogenous leukemia.
3. ANSWER D. At the time of diagnosis, a painless cervical lesion is often present. The back, chest, and groin areas aren’t involved.
4. ANSWER C. Stage II involves two or more lymph node regions. Stage I only involves one lymph node region; stage III involves nodes on both sides of the diaphragm; and stage IV involves extralymphatic organs or tissues.
5. ANSWER C. The faster the cell grows, the more susceptible it is to chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Slow-growing and non-dividing cells are less susceptible to chemotherapy. Repeated cycles of chemotherapy are used to destroy nondividing cells as they begin active cell division.
6. ANSWER B. A low-bacteria diet would be indicated with excludes raw fruits and vegetables.
7. ANSWER D. Pneumonia, both viral and fungal, is a common cause of death in clients with neutropenia, so frequent assessment of respiratory rate and breath sounds is required. Although assessing blood pressure, bowel sounds, and heart sounds is important, it won’t help detect pneumonia.
8. ANSWER D. Multiple myeloma is more common in middle-aged and older clients (the median age at diagnosis is 60 years) and is twice as common in Blacks as Whites. It occurs most often in Black men.
9. ANSWER A. MM is characterized by malignant plasma cells that produce an increased amount of immunoglobin that isn’t functional. As more malignant plasma cells are produced, there’s less space in the bone marrow for RBC production. In late stages, platelets and WBC’s are reduced as the bone marrow is infiltrated by malignant plasma cells.
10. ANSWER A. Calcium is released when the bone is destroyed. This causes an increase in serum calcium levels. MM doesn’t affect potassium, sodium, or magnesium levels.
11. ANSWER D. Clients with ovarian cancer are at increased risk for breast cancer. Breast self-examination supports early detection and treatment and is very important.
12. ANSWER D. Increase in breast size or vascularity is consistent with cancer of the breast. Early menarche as well as late menopause or a history of anovulatory cycles are associated with fibrocystic disease. Masses associated with fibrocystic disease of the breast are firm, most often located in the upper outer quadrant of the breast, and increase in size prior to menstruation. They may be bilateral in a mirror image and are typically well demarcated and freely moveable.
13. ANSWER C. Squamous cell carcinoma is a slow-growing, rarely metastasizing type of cancer. Adenocarcinoma is the next best lung cancer to have in terms of prognosis. Oat cell and small cell carcinoma are the same. Small cell carcinoma grows rapidly and is quick to metastasize.
14. ANSWER D. Recurring episodes of pleural effusions can be caused by the tumor and should be investigated. Dizziness, generalized weakness, and hypotension aren’t typically considered warning signals, but may occur in advanced stages of cancer.
15. ANSWER A. Centrally located pulmonary tumors are found in the upper airway (vocal cords) and usually obstruct airflow, producing such symptoms as coughing, wheezing, and stridor. Small cell tumors tend to be located in the lower airways and often cause hemoptysis. As the tumor invades the pleural space, it may cause pleuritic pain. Pancoast tumors that occur in the apices may cause shoulder pain.
16. ANSWER B. Early detection of cancer when the cells may be premalignant and potentially curable would be most beneficial. However, a tumor must be 1 cm in diameter before it’s detectable on a chest x-ray, so this is difficult. A bronchoscopy may help identify cell type but may not increase survival rate. High-dose chemotherapy has minimal effect on long-term survival. Smoking cessation won’t reverse the process but may help prevent further decompensation.
17. ANSWER C. A small area of tissue close to the surface of the lung is removed in a wedge resection. An entire lung is removed in a pneumonectomy. A segment of the lung is removed in a segmental resection and a lobe is removed in a lobectomy.
18. ANSWER D. The remaining lobe or lobes overexpand slightly to fill the space previously occupied by the removed tissue. The diaphragm is carried higher on the operative side to further reduce the empty space. The space can’t remain “empty” because truly empty would imply a vacuum, which would interfere with the intrathoracic pressure changes that allow breathing. The surgeon doesn’t use a gel to fill the space. Serous fluid overproduction would compress the remaining lobes, diminish their function and possibly, cause a mediastinal shift.
19. ANSWER B. The goal of surgical resection is to remove the lung tissue that has a tumor in it while saving as much surrounding tissue as possible. It may be necessary to remove alveoli and bronchioles, but care is taken to make sure only what’s absolutely necessary is removed.
20. ANSWER D. If the client’s preexisting pulmonary disease is restrictive and advanced, it may be impossible to remove the tumor, and the client may have to be treated with on;t chemotherapy and radiation.