Abstract
Cancer treatment includes various medications and therapies, both alone or
in combination, such as surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy and
immunotherapy. During chemotherapy with different cytotoxic effects, the use of
supportive medications (such as antiemetic, antidiarrheal medicines, and granulocyte
colony-stimulating factors) can lead to polypharmacy. For this reason, it is necessary to
provide clinical pharmacy services to prevent and solve drug-related problems (DRPs).
On the other hand, since most cancer drugs are in the “hazardous drug” class,
pharmacists have important duties in the preparation, administration, storage and
disposal of wastes. In the mid-20th century, in line with these requirements in the field
of oncology, pharmacists started visiting oncology clinics, new courses were added,
and oncology pharmacy specialization emerged. In this section, we will discuss the role
of the clinical pharmacist in the oncology clinic, as well as examine the steps of
pharmaceutical care for the cancer patient.