ABSTRACT
The psychological status of the prospective adoptive cellular immunotherapy (ACI) patient merits special consideration, especially when formulating a patient management strategy; anxiety, stress, depression, fear, anger, and especially ignorance of the pertinent details of the ACI therapy can alter the effectiveness of the treatment. With these ACI challenges in mind, the role of nurses, technicians, and other support personnel takes on added importance. Laboratory members of an ACI team should also bear in mind the unique needs of the clinical team and the patient. From the nursing perspective, six areas pertinent to caring for ACI patients will be discussed. These areas include assessment; emotional support; cytapheresis, administration of treatments, management of adverse effects, and documentation. During lymphokine-activated killer- interleukin-2 therapy the gastrointestinal side effects may be directly related to dose administration, but they do vary from patient to patient. The musculoskeletal assessment consists of a general assessment of range and joint motion, muscle tone, and muscle strength.
