Chemotherapy
Anti-cancer drugs are a mainstay of modern treatment.
The term chemotherapy, which refers broadly to any drug-based
treatment for disease, tends to be used most often
to describe the drugs
that oncologists prescribe
to combat cancer. The
specific combination and
the way they’re delivered
depend on your individual
diagnosis and the
approach your doctor
believes will be the
most effective.
You may have chemotherapy
on its own or in
combination with another
therapy. For instance, you
may receive neo-adjuvant chemotherapy before
surgery or radiation to
shrink the tumor and
make your primary treatment more effective. Or
you may receive adjuvant,
or post-operative, chemotherapy
to attack any
undetected cancer cells
still remaining after
surgery and decrease the
chance of a recurrence.
Doctors also use adjuvant
chemotherapy to help
treat advanced or
aggressive cancers.
As new drugs become
available and doctors develop increasingly
sophisticated methods of prescribing these
medicines, advances in chemotherapy are
improving and prolonging many people’s lives.
Effective medicine
What chemotherapy drugs
all have in common is the ability
to destroy rapidly reproducing cells,
including cancer cells. But because cancer
cells are not foreign organisms, like bacteria,
it’s impossible to destroy cancer cells without
affecting some of your healthy cells as well.
For instance, the cells in your hair follicles,
gastrointestinal tract, bone marrow, and
mucous membranes normally reproduce
quickly. That’s why some people with cancer
experience side effects such as hair loss,
nausea, ulcers, and mouth sores during
treatment.
The good news is that healthy cells
can repair themselves faster than
cancerous ones. That’s because
cancer cells often lack the
internal repair mechanisms
that normal
cells have.
Getting better all the time
In some cases, new techniques
can help make chemotherapy
more effective while minimizing
side effects. For instance, with
metronomic chemotherapy, the
cancer-fighting drugs are
delivered in small amounts over
several days rather than one large
dose. This approach is designed
to make cancer cells inactive
while making the treatment
more tolerable.
Plus, there are a variety
of medicines and natural
therapies that can dramatically
lessen the severity of
nausea and other common
side effects of chemotherapy.
Some natural therapies may
even help make specific anticancer
drugs more powerful.
How chemotherapy works
Chemotherapy agents
work on a cellular level by
inhibiting the processes that
lead to cancer cell division
and reproduction.
One key element of
cellular division is known
as DNA replication — when
the genetic material in the
nucleus of a cell uncoils
to make an exact copy of
itself to pass on to an offspring
cell. Several classes
of chemotherapy drugs fight
the growth of cancer by
restricting this process:
- Alkalyting agents bind to the DNA in
the cell to prevent it from dividing.
- Antimetabolites replace the nutrients
required for DNA reproduction
with inactive substances.
- Antitumor antibiotics prevent DNA
from uncoiling and interferes with
DNA structure, causing cancer
cells to die.
Other classes of chemotherapy
drugs halt cell division in other ways.
For example:
- Hormonal drugs suppress hormone
processes that encourage the growth
of cancer cells.
- Plant alkaloids prevent cell division
by interfering with the internal
structure of the cell.
Weighting the risks and benefits
Some people have misgivings about
chemotherapy. Certain treatments
have long-term risks, including heart
and liver damage. However, chemotherapy
can not only be an important
tool in getting cancer under control,
but in some situations may also
dramatically reduce symptoms related
to the disease.
It’s important to investigate the
specific type of chemotherapy your
doctor is recommending. The side
effects you may experience, and their
severity, will depend on the drug, or
drugs, you’re taking, the dosage, and
the duration of your treatment. Ask
your doctor to discuss the risks and
benefits with you.