Chemotherapy or chemo is a common treatment used in cancer. It is the use of cancer drugs or medicines in treating cancer. It is a systemic cancer therapy which means it affects the body by going into the bloodstream. Although it can be very effective, it is known for its chemotherapy side effects.

More than a hundred Chemo drugs are used in many combinations depending on the type and extent of the disease. A single drug may be used but mostly, drug combinations work better. This is called combination Chemo. It reduces the chance that cancer cells become resistant to a particular drug.

Before surgery, Chemotherapy is used to reduce tumor size and kill cancer cells. After surgery, chemotherapy works in the system to kill cancer cells that could have spread throughout the body.

Radiation

In contrast to Chemotherapy, radiation therapy is given with high dosage of radiation or high energy X-rays which is directed to the patient’s body. Cancer radiation therapy aims to kill cancer cells, keep them from growing and multiplying and shrink tumors. Radiation therapy treatment may be external using special machines or internally when a doctor places radioactive substances in the body. While killing cancer cells, radiotherapy may also damage normal cells. Good thing is that normal cells can recover from radiation.

During treatment, a patient is expected to experience side effects. Cells normally grow and die in controlled way, unlike cancer cells. Chemo drugs cause these cells to stop multiplying which might also harm healthy cells. This, then, causes side effects. Major side effects include Neutropenia or low white-blood cell count which will make patient vulnerable to infections, Thrombocytopenia or low platelet count which may cause bruising or excessive bleeding, and anemia or low red-blood cell count. Red blood cells contain hemoglobin which carries oxygen from the lungs to other body parts. Other common side effects are nausea, vomiting, tiredness, pain, and hair loss.

The chemical treatment course depends on the type of cancer a patient has, the drugs used and how the body responds. Treatment may also be daily, weekly, or monthly.

Advantages

Chemo is done to remove cancer cells that could have spread to another part of the body. Surgery and radiation therapy are used to kill or remove cancer cells in a particular area. Unlike radiotherapy, chemotherapy can kill cancer cells that have spread or metastasized to other body parts away from the primary tumor or origin. It is predominantly used for the internal organs and special therapies are designed for different cancer types  as for lung cancer.