Chemotherapy

chemotherapy

What is chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy is a type of cancer treatment. Also called “chemo,” it’s one of several cancer treatments that use drugs against various types of cancer. Other drug therapies include:

  • Hormone therapy: Drugs that prevent certain cancers from getting the hormones they need to grow.
  • Immunotherapy: Drugs that help your immune system fight cancer.
  • Targeted therapy: Drugs that change how cancer cells multiply and behave.

A medical oncologist oversees treatment. These healthcare providers specialize in chemotherapy and other cancer-fighting drugs. Chemotherapy may get used with surgery or radiation therapy to treat cancer.

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Side effects that occur during chemotherapy treatment

Common side effects of chemotherapy drugs include:

  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Hair loss
  • Loss of appetite
  • Fatigue
  • Fever
  • Mouth sores
  • Pain
  • Constipation
  • Easy bruising
  • Bleeding

How does chemotherapy work?

Cancer cells grow and divide uncontrollably. Chemotherapy destroys the cancer cells and prevents them from multiplying.

Your oncologist may use chemotherapy in different ways:

  • Adjuvant therapy: Chemotherapy destroys cancer cells after surgery or radiation therapy.
  • Curative therapy: Chemotherapy (which may also include radiation and/or surgery) eliminates the cancer, and it doesn't return.
  • Neoadjuvant therapy: Chemotherapy shrinks a tumor before surgery or radiation therapy.
  • Palliative therapy: Chemotherapy shrinks tumors and lessens symptoms but doesn't cure the cancer.
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What types of cancer can chemotherapy treat?

Chemotherapy can treat a wide range of cancers, including:

  • Primary cancer: Cancer that hasn’t spread to other areas of your body.
  • Metastatic cancer: Cancer that’s spread to other areas of your body.

The type of chemotherapy you receive depends on several factors:

  • Location of the cancer.
  • Stage of the cancer, or how advanced it is.
  • Your overall health.