Chemotherapy is a treatment for cancer that aims to kill or injure cancer cells. At the same time, it frequently affects healthy cells, resulting in undesirable side effects. The majority of these adverse effects are minor and curable.
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It works by keeping the cancer cells from growing and dividing to make more cells. Because cancer cells usually grow and divide faster than normal cells, chemotherapy has a greater effect on cancer cells. However, the drugs used for chemotherapy are powerful, and they can still cause damage to healthy cells.
You may receive chemotherapy in cycles. A cycle is a period of chemotherapy treatment followed by a period of rest. For instance, you might receive chemotherapy every day for 1 week followed by 3 weeks with no chemotherapy.
These medicines are often given more than one time. This gives the chemotherapy the best chance to kill as many cells as possible. They may be given in “divided doses” or given multiple times.
They may recommend combining chemotherapy with other options, such as radiation therapy or surgery. Factors determining the type of chemotherapy and how well it will work include the location, type, and stage of the cancer and a person’s age, overall health, and any existing medical conditions.
Here are some of the more common side effects caused by chemotherapy:Fatigue.Hair loss.Easy bruising and bleeding.Infection.Anemia (low red blood cell counts)Nausea and vomiting.Appetite changes.Constipation.More items...•
Chemotherapy is a cancer treatment where medicine is used to kill cancer cells. There are many different types of chemotherapy medicine, but they all work in a similar way. They stop cancer cells reproducing, which prevents them from growing and spreading in the body.
A course of chemotherapy usually takes between 3 to 6 months, although it can be more or less than that. The treatment will include one or more chemotherapy drugs. You may have the chemotherapy into a vein (intravenous drugs), or as tablets or capsules.
A person's bone marrow stem cells can be damaged by cancer treatments known as alkylating agents, the first class of chemotherapy agents used. These agents increase the risk for myelodysplastic syndrome or AML. In some cases, myelodysplastic syndrome develops and later transforms into AML.
Chemotherapy can cause fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, bowel issues such as constipation or diarrhoea, hair loss, mouth sores, skin and nail problems. You may have trouble concentrating or remembering things. There can also be nerve and muscle effects and hearing changes.
Chemotherapy is used to kill cancer cells in people with cancer. There are a variety of settings in which chemotherapy may be used in people with cancer: To cure the cancer without other treatments. Chemotherapy can be used as the primary or sole treatment for cancer.
(kors ... TREET-ment) A treatment plan made up of several cycles of treatment. For example, treatment given for one week followed by three weeks of rest (no treatment) is one treatment cycle. When a treatment cycle is repeated multiple times on a regular schedule, it makes up a course of treatment.
The most commonly reported side effect after receiving chemotherapy is fatigue. 7 Give yourself time for extra rest and sleep in the days after a session. Tell your healthcare provider if your fatigue begins to affect your ability to function or complete basic tasks, like bathing.
The "normal" cells will grow back and be healthy but in the meantime, side effects occur. The "normal" cells most commonly affected by chemotherapy are the blood cells, the cells in the mouth, stomach and bowel, and the hair follicles; resulting in low blood counts, mouth sores, nausea, diarrhea, and/or hair loss.
The fast-growing normal cells most likely to be affected by chemotherapy are blood cells forming in the bone marrow, and cells in the digestive tract, reproductive system, and hair follicles. Common side effects of chemotherapy include fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, mouth sores, hair loss, and anemia.
How does chemotherapy work? Tumor cells, which make up cancer, grow and reproduce (multiply) very quickly. Normal, healthy cells know to stop reproducing and growing when they touch other cells. Cancer cells keep growing, not knowing when to stop. RNA and DNA in the cell tell it how to grow and reproduce.
Your treatment may include more than one type of therapy (surgery, radiation, chemo, etc.). Common terms used to describe chemotherapy treatments: Adjuvant Therapy: chemotherapy given after surgery to reduce the chance of your cancer coming back (recurrence). Neo-adjuvant Therapy: chemotherapy given before surgery to shrink the tumor.
They may be given in “divided doses” or given multiple times. For example, once a day for 5 days, or every 3 hours for 4 doses. They can also be given as a nonstop infusion. This is an infusion that runs for several hours or more. Some chemotherapy infusions are given over several days.
A combination is given because different chemotherapies can work well together. Regimens can be given “nicknames” based on the chemotherapies used in them. For example, the regimen called “CHOP” contains the medications C ytoxan, H ydroxydaunorubicin (also called Adriamycin), O ncovin, and P rednisone.
Neo-adjuvant Therapy: chemotherapy given before surgery to shrink the tumor. This is to help the surgery be more successful. Concurrent Therapy: when 2 or more therapies (radiation and chemo) are given together.
Surgery and radiation are called “local” therapies because they treat only a certain part of the body. Chemotherapy can be given to a patient in a number of ways: Orally (by mouth, in pill form).
Curing the cancer. Stopping the cancer from going to other parts of the body. Slowing the growth of the cancer. Killing cancer cells in areas of metastases ( other parts of the body that the cancer has spread to). Ease symptoms that the cancer is causing to make you more comfortable (palliative).
The doctor will make a plan with an individual that specifies when treatment sessions will occur and how many sessions the individual will need.
Blood tests assess a person’s health and ensure that they will be able to cope with possible side effects.
Nausea and vomiting are typical side effects. Doctors may prescribe antiemetic drugs to help reduce the symptoms.
Chemotherapy drugs attack fast-growing cells, such as hair cells. This may cause some people to experience hair loss or cause their hair to become thin or brittle a few weeks after starting their treatment.
Fatigue is among the most frequent side effects of chemotherapy. A person may experience this most of the time or only after certain activities.
The toxins in some types of chemotherapy can affect the nervous system, leading to:
WBCs help protect the body from infection. Chemotherapy can cause the number of WBCs to fall, weakening the immune system and increasing the risk of infections.
The side effects of chemotherapy could be severe. Each medication has its own set of antagonistic effects, and not all drugs produce all of them. Consult your doctor about the potential side effects of the medicines you’ll be taking.
You and your doctor can coordinate to analyze the factors and develop the optimal treatment plan for you. Chemotherapy is usually delivered as a tablet or as an injection or IV directly into the veins. Several methods can administer chemotherapy. These include:
Chemotherapy can help you live longer and manage your symptoms by shrinking or slowing the growth of your cancer.
Chemotherapy is a treatment for cancer that aims to kill or injure cancer cells. At the same time, it frequently affects healthy cells, resulting in undesirable side effects. The majority of these adverse effects are minor and curable.