| 26 | Case Study/Series |
Management of fungating tumors Authors: Christina Barrows, RN, BSN, CWCN TOPIC/PURPOSE: A fungating lesion develops when an underlying tumor extends through the epithelium, leaving a visible marker of the malignant disease and its advancement. Vessels, such as capillaries, rupture with resultant tissue necrosis, infection, and odor. Fungating lesions require complex management strategies, especially when odor, excess exudate, friable tissue and pain are involved. The lack of effective management can have a tremendous negative psychosocial impact on the patient. OBJECTIVE: The primary wound management goals are to provide a topical dressing that will assist in the reduction of pain, manage exudate and odor, and minimize trauma to the friable wound bed and fragile periwound tissue. This poster will review 3 cases that illustrate effective management strategies utilizing a topical antimicrobial product, hemostatic fillers and soft silicone dressings. CONCLUSION: The wound care team developed a dressing selection approach for fungating lesions which combined topical antimicrobial for odor as needed, calcium alginate to assist with hemostasis, soft silicone mesh* or transfer^ dressings to minimize trauma and pain during dressing changes and absorptive gauze to manage exudate. Implementing this system of wound management provided a strategy to manage the wound exudate and odor, decrease occurrences of capillary bleeding and, minimize trauma and pain to the wound and periwound. The most important outcome to this strategy was the significant improvement in the quality of life for the 3 patients. |
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