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Chemotherapy

What is Chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy is a common type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherapy may be given with a curative intent or it may aim to prolong life or to reduce symptoms.

It is a drug treatment that uses powerful chemicals to kill fast-growing cells in your body. Chemotherapy is most often used to treat cancer, since cancer cells grow and multiply much more quickly than most cells in the body.

Many different chemotherapy drugs are available. Chemotherapy is one of the major categories of the medical discipline specifically devoted to pharmacotherapy for cancer, which is called medical oncology.

If your treatment plan includes traditional or standard chemotherapy, knowing how it works and what to expect can often help you prepare for treatment and make informed decisions about your care.

Chemotherapy is often used in combination with other therapies, such as surgery, radiation, or hormone therapy.

Some types of cancer where chemotherapy is commonly used:

  • Bone Cancer:Certain types of bone cancer, like osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma, are treated with chemotherapy.
  • Lung Cancer: Particularly in small cell lung cancer, chemotherapy is a primary treatment, but it is also used in non-small cell lung cancer.
  • Blood Cancer: Chemotherapy is the main treatment for various blood cancers. It is used to destroy cancer cells in the blood and bone marrow. For leukemia, it helps achieve remission; for lymphoma, it is used to shrink tumors and eliminate cancer cells. In myeloma, chemotherapy helps control the disease and manage symptoms.
  • Prostate Cancer: While not always the first line of treatment, chemotherapy can be used if the cancer is advanced or doesn’t respond to other treatments.
  • Ovarian Cancer: Chemotherapy is typically used after surgery and may also be used before surgery to shrink tumors.
  • Oral Cancer:Chemotherapy is used before surgery to shrink tumors, after surgery to eliminate remaining cancer cells, or combined with radiation therapy to enhance treatment effectiveness.

Side Effects of Chemotherapy

  • Immunosuppression
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Hair loss
  • Fatigue
  • Anemia

Types of Chemotherapy (Based on Purpose)

  • Curative chemotherapy
  • Adjuvant chemotherapy
  • Neoadjuvant chemotherapy
  • Palliative chemotherapy

Types of Chemotherapy (Based on Drug Action)

  • Alkylating agents
  • Antimetabolites
  • Antitumor antibiotics
  • Topoisomerase inhibitors
  • Mitotic inhibitors (plant alkaloids)

The Most Common Type of Chemotherapy

Alkylating agents were among the first anti-cancer drugs and are the most commonly used agents in chemotherapy today.

Alkylating agents act directly on DNA, causing cross-linking of DNA strands, abnormal base pairing, or DNA strand breaks, thus preventing the cell from dividing.