Overview
For many patients, chemotherapy is an important part of cancer treatment and has improved the survival rates of a significant numbers of cancers. Since chemotherapy drugs have some short- and long-term side effects, physicians have to make sure that there are not conditions present in the patient with cancer that would make chemotherapy more dangerous or even life-threatening. There are certain contraindications to chemotherapy; the presence of these conditions suggests that chemotherapy treatment should be delayed or perhaps not given at all.
First Trimester Pregnancy
Because of the high potential of birth defects and other adverse events, the first trimester of pregnancy is generally a contraindication to chemotherapy drugs, according to a study published in the March 1992 issue of the "Archives of Internal Medicine." However, some types of chemotherapy drugs are safe to administer during the second and third trimester of pregnancy, although there is still an increased risk of stillbirth and intrauterine growth restriction. If the patient does not want to terminate the pregnancy, the doctor will generally wait until the second trimester to begin chemotherapy.