Breast Cancer Chemotherapy

Home Our Experts Terms and Conditions Site Map


CHEMOTHERAPY FOR BREAST CANCER

PAGE 1

Written by : Dr.M.D.Mazumdar, MD

Chemotherapy is the process in which cancer-killing drugs are either injected into the body or are given as oral pills. Chemotherapy usually follows surgery for breast cancer. Sometimes it may be given together with surgery as well as radiotherapy. Hormone therapy may be used as a follow-up treatment.

Drugs used in chemotherapy for breast cancer are similar to other cancers but the protocol for giving them may vary. The doctor decides the treatment plan for each individual. He/she will also determine how long and how often chemotherapy treatments must continue.

Chemotherapy, often shortened to just "chemo," is a systemic therapy which affects the whole body since the drugs pass through the blood. It affects both normal cells as well as cancer cells.

Generally, chemotherapy is given in cycles - which means that the drugs are given for 4-6 weeks and then a rest period of a few weeks is allowed. Then the treatment is repeated.

Specific treatment is based on:

  • Overall health of the patient.
  • Age
  • The type and stage of the cancer.
  • Whether the patient is still menstruating.
  • Reactions to and tolerance of specific drugs.

Types of Chemotherapy: There are three types of chemotherapy:

  • Neoadjuvent Chemotherapy: This is a type of chemotherapy which is given before surgery to shrink the tumors and make the operation easier for both the surgeon as well as the patient.

  • Adjuvent Chemotherapy: In this case, chemotherapy is given after the surgery to treat any cancer cells which may still be present in the body in the chest wall of lymph nodes or which has spread elsewhere in the body.

  • Palliative Chemotherapy: It is used to control (but not cure) the cancer in women in whom the cancer has spread beyond the breast and localized lymph nodes. It helps to control various symptoms like pain etc, and makes the remaining years of the life of the patient somewhat easier.



This site is a Question and Answer Site on Breast Cancer . Here you can ask any medical health question you like from the privacy of your home. And our online gynecologist Our Experts will reply within 24 hours.

The advantage of online consultation is that you can ask your question from the privacy of your home at any time you want - morning, day or midnight. You can plan out what you want to ask or even prepare a questionnaire about your concerns. Our expert would be glad to answer every detail.

We charge a nominal fee of USD 20 ($20) per question to help keep this site up and running. All payments are made through the third-party Paypal credit card processing system to ensure absolute credit card security and reliability.

The procedure of asking a question is quite simple. Clicking on the link below takes you to the Paypal website where the payment is made. After the payment goes through, you will be directed back to this website where you can ask your question.

And rest assured, you will get your answer within 24 hours. And usually, even sooner.

Bookmark and Share

Custom Search

MORE TOPICS ON BREAST CANCER :


Bookmark this page
Digg! Digg it! del.icio.us StumbleUpon Stumbleupon

Custom Search


Home Our Experts Terms and Conditions

Consultations on this website are by E-mail only. Our doctors answer each and every medical health question personally. Under no circumstances are E-mail addresses provided to anyone else. A fee of USD 20.00 is charged for each question. This fee helps to keep the website up and running.Payment is through the third party Paypal credit card processing system. This ensures absolute security and reliability.

Please read the Terms and Conditions before using this site.

eXTReMe Tracker