Cause of low blood potassium among cancer patients
Cause of low blood potassium among cancer patients
@healthbiztips by Arlene Gentallan | Health blog |
Low blood potassium level (medical term hypokalemia) can afflict cancer patients, but it's not always possible to point out a single root cause. Instead, multiple factors may be at play.
Physiologic effects of cancer progression as it affects the kidney and other internal organs or ongoing cancer treatment such as chemotherapy may directly or indirectly cause low blood potassium level. For instance, cancer patient may loose electrolytes from excessive vomiting or dysregulated renal loses through urination.
Another cause of low blood potassium among cancer patient is poor dietary intake of potassium rich foods. This can inevitably happen amongst those with loss of appetite and nausea.
Hypokalemia or low potassium level is a medical emergency since at can inadvertently lead to cardiac arrest or respiratory failure. This is because potassium plays an important role in muscle contractions and electrical transmission in the body.
