Fatigue is one of the most common side effects of cancer treatment. For some people, fatigue is mild and temporary. For others, it can last months – even after treatment – and can make going about daily activities impossible. Some women find they can only do one or two things before feeling exhausted when they would usually have been able to do many more tasks in a day. This can be very frustrating.
Fatigue might be caused by:
- side effects of treatment such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery
- anaemia (low amount of red blood cells in blood)
- coping with pain or other symptoms
- travelling for various treatments
- the stress of living with cancer
- the cancer
- poor sleep.
People usually describe fatigue as feeling tired, weak or exhausted. Yet it’s a different kind of tiredness – one that doesn’t go away after a good rest or nap.
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