Chemotherapy is treatment with cancer-killing drugs that may be given intravenously (injected into a vein) or by mouth. The drugs travel through the bloodstream to reach cancer cells in most parts of the body. The chemotherapy is given in cycles, with each period of treatment followed by a recovery period. Treatment usually lasts for several months.
When is chemotherapy used?
There are several situations in which chemotherapy may be recommended.
Adjuvant chemotherapy: Systemic therapy given to patients after surgery who have no evidence of cancer spread is called adjuvant therapy. When used as adjuvant therapy after breast-conserving surgery or mastectomy, chemotherapy reduces the risk of breast cancer coming back.
Even in the early stages of the disease, cancer cells may break away from the primary breast tumor and spread through the bloodstream. These cells don’t cause symptoms, they don’t show up on imaging tests, and they can’t be felt during a physical exam. But if they are allowed to grow, they can establish new tumors in other places in the body. The goal of adjuvant chemotherapy is to kill undetected cells that have traveled from the breast.
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy: Chemotherapy given before surgery is called neoadjuvant therapy. The major benefit of neoadjuvant chemotherapy is that it can shrink large cancers
post by santan.., 21st.., july......
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