The Hematologic System ATI Related

Review The Hematologic System ATI related questions and content

A 2-month-old girl is found to have a small, hard mass on her scalp. The mass increases in size over the next 4 weeks. A biopsy is performed that confirms a diagnosis of embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma. You initiate chemotherapy with vincristine, dactinomycin, and cyclophosphamide. The child presents to clinic for day 1 of cycle 3 of chemotherapy, and the mass on her scalp is smaller. She is afebrile, absolute neutrophil count is 1,405 cells/mcL, platelet count is 154,000/mcL, and total bilirubin is 0.8 mg/dL. Her mother reports she looks very tired because her eyelids have been 'very droopy,' and she thinks she has a sore throat because her cry is hoarse. Her last bowel movement was 2 days ago. What is the most appropriate chemotherapy plan?

  • A. Continue vincristine, dactinomycin, and cyclophosphamide at full dosage.
  • B. Do not administer any chemotherapy; rhabdomyosarcoma is progressing and she needs different therapy.
  • C. Administer dactinomycin and cyclophosphamide but hold the vincristine and reevaluate weekly. If the ptosis and hoarse cry resolve, vincristine can be resumed with a dose reduction and, if tolerated, re-escalated to the full dose in the future.
  • D. Administer dactinomycin and cyclophosphamide but discontinue vincristine permanently.
Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer is C because the child is showing signs of vincristine-induced neurotoxicity, which can manifest as droopy eyelids (ptosis) and hoarse cry. Holding vincristine and reevaluating weekly allows for monitoring of symptoms. If resolved, vincristine can be resumed with a dose reduction to prevent further neurotoxicity. Dactinomycin and cyclophosphamide are continued to maintain treatment efficacy. Continuing full-dose vincristine (choice A) can worsen neurotoxicity. With rhabdomyosarcoma responding to the current regimen, stopping all chemotherapy (choice B) is not appropriate. Discontinuing vincristine permanently (choice D) may compromise the treatment plan.