Hypercalcemia (PDQ®): Supportive care - Patient Information [NCI]

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Prevention

Patients at risk of developing hypercalcemia may be the first to recognize its symptoms, such as fatigue. Measures to prevent hypercalcemia include drinking enough fluids, controlling nausea and vomiting, walking and being active, and cautious use or elimination of drugs that can contribute to the development of hypercalcemia or affect its treatment. Calcium in the diet should not be reduced or eliminated, however, because the body's absorption of calcium is reduced in patients with hypercalcemia.

Managing hypercalcemia

Fluids are given to treat dehydration. Medication is given to stop the breakdown of bone. The cancer causing the hypercalcemia should be treated effectively.

The severity of the hypercalcemia determines the amount of treatment necessary. Severe hypercalcemia should be treated immediately and aggressively. Less severe hypercalcemia should be treated according to the symptoms. Response to treatment is shown by the disappearance of the symptoms of hypercalcemia and a decrease in the level of calcium in the blood.

Mild hypercalcemia does not usually need to be treated aggressively. Patients with mild hypercalcemia and central nervous system symptoms are harder to treat. Younger patients are especially difficult to treat because they tolerate hypercalcemia better. Other causes of the central nervous system symptoms should be ruled out before deciding that they are caused by hypercalcemia alone.

Treatment for hypercalcemia can improve symptoms. Increased urination and thirst, central nervous system symptoms, nausea, vomiting, and constipation improve with treatment more easily than other symptoms, such as loss of appetite, and tiredness. Pain may be more easily controlled once calcium levels are normal. Effective therapy that lowers calcium usually improves symptoms, enhances the quality of life, and may allow the patient to leave the hospital.

After calcium levels return to normal, urine and blood should continue to be checked often to make sure the treatment is still working.

Mild hypercalcemia

Giving fluids by vein and observing the patient is an accepted treatment for patients with mild hypercalcemia (but no symptoms) and who also have cancer that responds well to anticancer treatment (such as lymphoma, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, head and neck cancers, or multiple myeloma). If the patient has symptoms, or has a cancer that is expected to respond slowly to treatment, then drugs to treat the hypercalcemia should be started. Other treatments should focus on controlling nausea, vomiting, and fever, encouraging continued activity, and limiting use of drugs that cause sleepiness.

Moderate to severe hypercalcemia

Replacing fluids is the first and most important step in treating moderate or severe hypercalcemia. Replacing fluids will not restore normal calcium levels in all patients, but it is still important to do first. The patient's mental state should improve, and nausea and vomiting should decrease within the first 24 hours, but this improvement is only temporary. If cancer therapy (surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy) is not able to be started immediately, then drugs to lower the calcium levels must be used to control the hypercalcemia.

Drugs that may help stop the breakdown of bone include calcitonin, plicamycin (mithramycin), bisphosphonates (etidronate, pamidronate, and clodronate), and gallium nitrate. Steroids and phosphate may also be used to treat hypercalcemia. Dialysis is used as a treatment for hypercalcemia in patients with kidney failure. Other drugs are currently being studied as possible treatments for hypercalcemia. Combinations of drugs may also be used.

Patient and family education

Because hypercalcemia affects quality of life and can be life-threatening if not treated, patients and their caregivers should be aware of the symptoms. They should also learn how to prevent hypercalcemia, what can make it worse, and when to see the doctor.

Supportive care

Even with improved treatment for hypercalcemia, many patients do not survive this complication of cancer. Only effective anticancer therapy improves the patient's chances for long-term survival.

Supportive care includes measures to provide the patient with protection from injury, prevention of fractures, and treatment of symptoms.

Treatment of symptoms is important, especially the prevention of accidental or self-inflicted injury if a patient is confused. Nausea, vomiting, and constipation may also need to be controlled until calcium levels go down. Broken bones may occur due to weakening, so patients need to be moved gently, and falling must be prevented. Activity and weight-bearing exercises should be encouraged. Any new bone pain should be reported so that it can be evaluated for possible fractures.

Supportive care to comfort terminally ill patients and their family members becomes necessary in the last stages of the disease. Changes in the patient's thinking and behavior may especially upset the family.

Psychosocial management

Usually, treatment of the hypercalcemia will eliminate delirium, agitation, or mental changes, but some patients may need other medications to treat these symptoms. (See the PDQ summary on Cognitive Disorders and Delirium for more information.) Mental changes may take some time to get better, even after calcium levels return to normal.

Lethargy (mental and physical sluggishness) is often a symptom of hypercalcemia. Family members (and sometimes medical staff) may think that the patient is depressed until the actual cause is determined. Most patients will not have symptoms of depression (such as hopelessness, helplessness, guilt, worthlessness, or thoughts of suicide) and instead will appear to be indifferent.

Patients and family members should report symptoms of hypercalcemia such as lethargy, fatigue, confusion, loss of appetite, nausea/vomiting, constipation, and excessive thirst to the health care provider.

Prognosis

Hypercalcemia usually develops as a late complication of cancer, and its appearance is very serious. However, it is not clear if death occurs due to a hypercalcemia crisis (uncontrolled or one that comes back and gets worse) or due to the advanced cancer.

PDQ is a comprehensive cancer database available on NCI's Web site.

PDQ is the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) comprehensive cancer information database. Most of the information contained in PDQ is available online at NCI's Web site. PDQ is provided as a service of the NCI. The NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health, the federal government's focal point for biomedical research.

PDQ contains cancer information summaries.

The PDQ database contains summaries of the latest published information on cancer prevention, detection, genetics, treatment, supportive care, and complementary and alternative medicine. Most summaries are available in two versions. The health professional versions provide detailed information written in technical language. The patient versions are written in easy-to-understand, nontechnical language. Both versions provide current and accurate cancer information.

The PDQ cancer information summaries are developed by cancer experts and reviewed regularly.

Editorial Boards made up of experts in oncology and related specialties are responsible for writing and maintaining the cancer information summaries. The summaries are reviewed regularly and changes are made as new information becomes available. The date on each summary ("Date Last Modified") indicates the time of the most recent change.

PDQ also contains information on clinical trials.

A clinical trial is a study to answer a scientific question, such as whether one method of treating symptoms is better than another. Trials are based on past studies and what has been learned in the laboratory. Each trial answers certain scientific questions in order to find new and better ways to help cancer patients. Some patients have symptoms caused by cancer treatment or by the cancer itself. During supportive care clinical trials, information is collected about how well new ways to treat symptoms of cancer work. The trials also study side effects of treatment and problems that come up during or after treatment. If a clinical trial shows that a new treatment is better than one currently being used, the new treatment may become "standard." Patients who have symptoms related to cancer treatment may want to think about taking part in a clinical trial.

Listings of clinical trials are included in PDQ and are available online at NCI's Web site. Descriptions of the trials are available in health professional and patient versions. Many cancer doctors who take part in clinical trials are also listed in PDQ. For more information, call the Cancer Information Service 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).

Last Revised: 2010-11-04

If you want to know more about cancer and how it is treated, or if you wish to know about clinical trials for your type of cancer, you can call the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-422-6237, toll free. A trained information specialist can talk with you and answer your questions.

© 1995-2011 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.

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