Treatments for Cancer
Cancer is a disease in which cells multiply out of control and gradually build a mass of tissue called a tumor. There has been a large amount of research dedicated to the treatment and cure of cancer. Several types of treatments have been developed. The following are just some of the major examples of cancer therapy: surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, biologic therapy, biorhythms, unconventional treatments, and hyperthermia. Each type of treatment is discussed in detail below.
Surgery is the oldest type of treatment for cancer. In its earlier use, surgery was not as successful as it is today. This was due to the difficulties involved with the anesthesias, excessive blood loss,
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Therefore, dose and duration of treatment is limited, which in turn limits the amount of normal and tumor cell death. A second mechanism is the suppression of cancer cells for variable periods of time without cell death. This mechanism is referred to as remission. Unfortunately, the cancer can return at any time, and it is sometimes stronger. Here another limitation is introduced. Some tumor cells can develop resistance to a particular chemical agent, or several chemical agents, limiting the types of chemotherapeutic agents available for effective use. The last mechanism is cell differentiation, which helps the immune system learn to recognize and fight tumor cells (1).
Radiation therapy is the ionization of atoms in tissues resulting in formation of highly reactive radicals in a well-defined, restricted volume (1). In other words, ionizing radiations are used to eradicate tumors and at the same time preserve structure and function of normal tissue. A limitation is prevented from being a problem. If bone marrow or neuronal cells are destroyed or injured, they do not regenerate. However, with radiation therapy, these cells are often saved from injury or destruction, unless the tumor is infecting bone marrow or neuronal cells. Today, radiation therapy is the most popular type of cancer therapy in use. It is used to treat one-half to two-thirds of all cancers, which translates to more than ten percent of the population
Cancer is defined as the abnormal, uncontrolled division of cells in the body. This uncontrollable growth causes a growth or tumour on the body. The tumours that are formed can either be benign or malignant. Malignant tumours can attack other cells and destroy them. Cancer has been around for ages and millions of people have died from cancer. There are many types of cancer and there are different reasons why people get cancer. Luckily, there are many treatments in place to help people who have cancer. Some popular options for treating cancer would be surgically removing the tumour or growth, or undergoing radiation therapy or chemotherapy. These treatments are commonly used amongst patients who have cancer. Alternatively there is another treatment that could be used to cure cancer, Proton Therapy. Proton Therapy works by directing a strong dose of radiation to the cancerous tumour (Advanced Particle Therapy, n.d.). In this essay, the advantages and disadvantages of Proton Therapy will be discussed in
From surgery to radium exposure to such extremes as radiation therapy, as doctors’ knowledge of the varying types of cancer, and the expansion of medical research regarding cancer has changed, so has the preferred method of treatment. Doctors and researchers dedicated to studying cancer have led to a greater understanding of cancer development; consequently the development of treatments and cures that are more effective, less harmful, have fewer side effects, and in some cases serve to prevent the spread of cancer.
There are many different type of cancers, there are also many different types of treatments. One of the most known types of treatments would be chemotherapy. Chemotherapy can be used for a wide range of different types of cancers and diseases, and each of the different types of cancers or diseases require a different group, and sometimes order, of chemicals to properly treat the cancer or disease. These chemicals include: Alkylating agents, Antimetabolites, Anthracyclines, Topoisomerase inhibitors, mitotic inhibitors, corticosteroids, and more. Each of these drugs previously listed have its own cancer type(s) or disease(s) that it can assist in treating. Some of these cancers include: Leukemia, Lymphoma, Hodgkin disease, multiple
Radiotherapy is a form of treatment where the use of radiation energy is employed to destroy cancerous cells, stop the progression of cancer, and/or to encourage remission. This kind of therapy is usually combined with cancer medication to increase the aggressiveness and effectiveness of the treatment (Desantis et al., 2014). Radiotherapy is introduced at different stages of cancer depending on its type. For instance, in breast cancer, radiotherapy is used simultaneously with chemotherapy as soon as the diagnosis is made. Surgery can also be recommended in many cases and use as a combination of treatments. Surgery could be use not only as a treatment option, but also for diagnosis, staging and prevention (ACS,
Cancer is a well-known disease where abnormal cells divide uncontrollably and destroy body tissue. Scientist have not found a way to cure cancer, but they have found ways to eliminate the cancer from the body. Other than surgery, a person can do chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Chemo therapy is a chemical that is injected into the blood stream to eliminate the cancer that has spread beyond a tissue or organ (What is the difference between chemotherapy and radiation therapy?). Radiation therapy targets one specific area. Radiation therapy uses a high powered x-ray and focuses on one spot that the cancer is taking over. These two therapies can be done separately or at the same time. When done at the same time, the bad side effects that are
In the early 1900's, most doctors believed surgery could eradicate cancer. In recent years, doctors have discovered several less invasive treatment options. When surgery is unavoidable, the medical team will remove a small amount of tissue. Today, surgeons aim to remove tumors without damaging the healthy organs and nerves.
Radiation treatment is by using radiation to kill of the cancer cells. Doctors use small amounts of radiation to aim at the tumor at a specific location. However the cancer can spread at different locations and the cancer can die but later a new cancer can form.
In general cancer therapy included surgical intervention, chemotherapy/hormonal therapy and radiation . Each therapy is usually accompanied with oral complications.
This drug is used after the surgery because if it is used before the surgery it may cause the distraction to the some of the cells in the body. The cells affected are mainly in the regions of neck and head. These two regions consist of squamous cells which are mainly prognoses in patient who is suffering from the cancer. A case study have shown that the patients who are suffering from the squamous cells Cancer are medicated with this drug before the surgery then it is resulted in the significantly and potentially beneficial in the person suffering and cause good
The exact cause or reason of cancer is still Unknown , So there are different modalities that helps in treating cancer like chemotherapy, immunotherapy and radiotherapy, which will be discussed .
Incurable and slowly deteriorating billions of bodies worldwide, Cancer is one of the biggest killers in the world. Sometimes going undetected, Cancer causes cells to divide uncontrollably and if gone undetected or if treatment fails, is extremely deadly to both humans and animals. Cancer can be located almost anywhere in the body and is able to spread everywhere if uncontained. The treatments most often used to treat Cancer are chemotherapy and radiation. Chemotherapy is a treatment that uses different medication and chemicals, inserted through I.V and pills, to rid of any Cancer in the body. Radiation is the use of radiation to target and obliterate cancer cells. Radiation can be done externally by machine or internally through the use
Radiotherapy is a treatment which uses high-energy beams of radiation which are focused on cancerous tissue. This kills cancer cells, or stops cancer cells from multiplying. The types available are:
The goal of radiation therapy is to send high doses of concentrated radiation to cancerous cells that are dividing abnormally fast. The radiation is meant to disrupt the DNA within the cancerous cells, this makes it difficult for the affected cells to grow and divide and they usually die as a result. Since radiation therapy is a very localized cancer treatment, the number of healthy cells that are affected is relatively low and most that are exposed to the radiation return to normal functionality after a brief time. Although commonalities are shared, there are different types of radiation therapy.
Patients in the early stages of cancer, prior to metastasis, can often be cured by surgically removing the tumor. On the other hand, patients with advanced cancer that has already metastasized must be treated with systemic therapies. Common therapies used today are radiation and chemotherapy. Although in some cases these treatments are effective at removing tumors, they are not selective against cells within the tumor and are frequently toxic to the patient. A relatively new approach towards cancer treatment is targeted therapy: drugs that inhibit specific molecules involved in tumor development. These drugs are more specific towards tumor cells and less damaging to normal cells [1]. Although initial therapeutic responses to targeted therapy drugs are promising, many patients will experience regrowth and progression of the tumor within several months following treatment [1, 2]. Typical detectable metastatic lesions are expected to contain hundreds of cells resistant to the drug before the start of treatment. These cells likely expand during treatment, repopulate the tumor, and cause treatment failure [1]. Along with preexisting mutations, these targeted therapies put massive selective pressure on the diverse cell populations of the tumor, which then drive the tumor cells to select for mutations that cause resistance. This resistance can result from several different processes, which can include genetic alternation in the drug targets
Over the years, cancer has proved to be a menace and a threat to livelihood. It is a class of diseases that have given doctors a hard time to manage. Cancer is characterized by cell growth that is out of control. The disease manifests itself in over 100 types, and each type is recognized with the type of cell it affected initially. The ugly aspect of cancer is that it causes wreckage to the body when cells divide uncontrollably when damaged and forms tumors (lumps of tissue). The case of leukemia is a bit different since cancer prohibits blood from functioning normally by anomalous cell division. When tumors grow, they can alter the functioning of the circulatory and nervous systems and even instigate abnormal release of hormones that can make the body function differently. This paper examines the diagnosis and staging of cancer and discusses the complications and side effects of treatment of the disease. The paper will also explore the various methods of lessening physical and psychological effects of cancer.