Chemical treatment. What is chemotherapy - a list of drugs and a scheme for conducting. Contraindications for chemotherapy

Content

Chemotherapy is part of the complex therapy of oncological lesions. The method of treatment involves the use of potent drugs. They destroy tumor cells and prevent their reproduction. Chemotherapy is a highly toxic treatment method. Accompanied by many side effects, adverse effects.

When is chemotherapy prescribed?

The use of systemic chemotherapy is indicated in addition to radiation and surgical treatment of oncology or as an independent method of tumor elimination. Treatment is prescribed in the following cases:

• the presence of malignant tumors;
• the rapid development of metastases or the prevention of their appearance in cancer;
• acute leukemia;
• remission of oncological diseases;
• high risk of metastasis;
• hemoblastosis;
• to increase the effectiveness of radiation therapy, surgical treatment;
• the need to reduce the size of the tumor before surgery.

How treatment works on the body

Anticancer drugs damage cells as they divide.

Chemotherapy destroys, damages the gene material of the nucleus. There is a gradual disintegration of the tumor, metastases. Healthy cells at rest are not affected.

For effective treatment, a complex of drugs is prescribed, as a result, cells are destroyed at all stages of division. This approach to therapy shows maximum effectiveness.

Types of chemotherapy

Anticancer treatment is carried out with one (monotherapy) or several (polytherapy) drugs. Additionally, anti-inflammatory drugs, immunomodulators, vitamins, antioxidants can be prescribed. In oncology, there are several types of chemotherapy:

• Neoadjuvant. It is used to reduce the size of a neoplasm before surgery. Significantly reduces the risk of metastasis. The cost of 1 course is from 3600 rubles.
• adjuvant. Indicated after surgical removal of cancer. Prevents the development of a tumor, eliminates hidden foci of oncology. Serves as a prevention of the appearance of metastases. Effective for any type of cancer. The average price is 3900 rubles.
• induction. It is used for inoperable cancer (lymphoma, leukemia, ovarian germ cell tumor, etc.). Effective with increased susceptibility of tumor cells to anticancer drugs. It is used for palliative therapy in the last stages of the disease. The cost of 1 course is from 12,000 rubles.
• Hyperthermic (hot). Assumes the impact on cancer cells through high temperatures of drugs (41 ° C). Effective for large tumors, metastases to the lymph nodes, bone tissue, peritoneum. Hot chemotherapy is less toxic. The average price is 6900 rubles.
• Platinum. It involves the use of drugs with platinum (Phenantriplatin, Cisplatin). It is used when other means are ineffective. Approximate cost - 8300 rubles.
• Target. It is carried out with the use of special drugs that act on genetic disorders in cells. Drugs act at the molecular level. Targeted therapy helps to stop the growth of atypical cells, start the processes of their self-destruction. Differs in unexpressed side effects. The cost is from 8400 rubles per course.
• Sparing. Less aggressive drugs with few side effects are used. Effective for small tumors without metastases. The advantage of gentle therapy is a small number of side effects. The cost of 1 course is from 9500 rubles.
• High dose. A method of treating cancer with increased doses of chemotherapy drugs. It is prescribed primarily for the elimination of lymphomas. High-dose chemotherapy destroys malignant cells in a short time. Rarely used due to high toxicity to the body. Differs in the development of adverse side effects, consequences. The average price is 5400 rubles.
• Palliative. Indicated in the terminal stage of the disease. The method is aimed at relieving pain, reducing further tumor growth and toxic effects from taking drugs. The average price is 5100 rubles.

Chemotherapeutic drugs

According to the mechanism of action on the tumor, chemotherapy drugs are divided into two main groups:

• Cytotoxic - destroy pathological tissues and cells. The drugs affect the structure of enzymes, DNA, which leads to the death of the tumor cell. Cytotoxic drugs include daunorubicin, doxorubicin, and carminomycin. The lack of drugs is non-selectivity to tumor cells. Drugs disrupt the digestive system, hematopoiesis.
• Cytostatic - enzymes that act by stopping the division of cancer cells. They disrupt vital activity and cause tumor necrosis. The most common groups of cytostatics are anthracyclines, mitomycins, mitoxantrone.

Preparation for treatment

Before treatment with anticancer drugs, physical activity should be reduced. A moderate diet is recommended. It is important to completely eliminate smoking and alcohol. Before chemotherapy, you need to prepare:

• Treat concomitant diseases or achieve their stable remission.
• Cleanse the body of toxins.
• Take drugs that protect vital organs from the effects of poisonous chemotherapy.

How is chemotherapy done?

Anticancer drugs are administered intravenously by infusion through a catheter or by injection. Sometimes chemotherapy is given orally in the form of tablets or capsules. It is possible to introduce locally into the pleura, spinal fluid, abdominal cavity. Treatment is carried out in a special department of an oncological hospital or on an outpatient basis.

Therapy regimen

There are several schemes (protocols) for chemotherapy. The choice of method and specific drugs depends on the type of neoplasm, its location, and the severity of the patient's condition.

Course duration

The duration of therapy is determined individually depending on the type of tumor and its sensitivity to drugs. Chemistry in oncology is carried out in cycles. One cycle lasts up to 14 days, while the drugs are administered daily, every 6-8 days or once for the entire period.

The duration of administration of one drug is from 2-3 hours to several days. The interval between procedures is determined by the treatment regimen. The dosage of the drug is calculated by the height, weight of the patient, the state of the urinary system, liver and the stage of oncology.

The total number of cycles is from 4 to 8, the treatment time is up to 9-12 months. Sometimes repeated therapy is required to prevent relapse. In this case, the duration of treatment increases to 1.5 years. Postoperative chemotherapy for cancer is carried out 28-30 days after removal of the neoplasm.

Do's and Don'ts after the procedure

Permitted and prohibited actions after chemotherapy depend on the stage of oncology, type, duration of treatment, developed complications. After completion of treatment, you can:

• drive a car (in the absence of clouding of consciousness, convulsions);
• engage in light sports;
• To do a massage;
• work in easy mode.

Upon completion of the course of treatment with anticancer drugs, it is undesirable:

• visit the bath, sauna;
• engage in heavy physical labor;
• long time to be in the sun;
• take hot baths;
• undergo physical therapy.

Nutrition after chemotherapy

The diet during and after chemotherapy should be nutritious, high in calories. It is recommended to consume a lot of protein, high-quality animal fats, carbohydrates. Nutrition can be adjusted depending on the severity of side effects, the general condition of the patient. Dishes should be stewed, boiled and baked. Among the allowed products:

• poultry meat, rabbit meat;
• beef, pork;
• offal (liver, kidneys, lungs);
• fresh vegetables;
• suluguni cheese, cheese, feta;
• marine, freshwater fish;
• whole wheat bread;
• legumes;
• eggs;
• dairy products;
• cereals;
• nuts;
• dried fruits;
• butter, vegetable oil;
• cookie;
• marshmallow;
• paste.

Alcohol, fried, fatty fast food should be completely excluded from the diet. It is forbidden to use:

• smoked meats;
• canned food;
• coffee;
• hot peppers;
• carbonated drinks;
• fatty cheeses;
• crisps;
• salo.

The diet after chemotherapy is aimed at stopping side effects, restoring the body's strength. Inadequate, poor nutrition can worsen the patient's condition. It is recommended to take food in small portions every 2-3 hours to prevent attacks of nausea and vomiting. The recommended daily calorie content is from 2100 to 2300 kcal.

Side effects of chemotherapy in oncology

After a course of chemotherapy treatment, there is a pronounced deterioration in the functioning of the body. The composition of the blood changes, the quantity and quality of structural changes in the blood decrease. Immunity is reduced, infectious diseases are exacerbated. Side effects include:

• noise in ears;
• lack of coordination;
• deterioration of hearing, vision;
• lack of appetite;
• hair loss up to complete baldness;
• constipation;
• diarrhea;
• vomit;
• osteoporosis.

After chemotherapy, patients complain of a strong deterioration in well-being: weakness, fatigue, drowsiness, depression. In some patients, hands, face, legs swell, signs of varicose veins, thrombophlebitis appear. Perhaps numbness of the extremities, increased bleeding of the mucous membranes of the nose, mouth, esophagus.

Chemotherapy drugs have a negative effect on the immune system. Frequent complications are allergic reactions: urticaria, angioedema, anaphylactic shock. Hypersensitivity reactions are caused by the breakdown products of drugs, their metabolites.

Often, anticancer treatment causes pain in the skin, burning. There is a strong feeling of dryness, tightness, peeling, cracks. Nails become brittle and brittle. With an increase in body temperature to 38-39 ° C, indomitable vomiting, bloody diarrhea, you should consult a doctor.

Consequences of treatment

The harm of chemistry to the body is compensated by high efficiency in eliminating cancer. Complications are associated with systemic intoxication of all body tissues. Individual selection of a treatment regimen, constant medical supervision reduce the risk of developing adverse complications. The effects of chemotherapy include:

• pneumonia;
• lowered immunity;
• total baldness;
• leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, anemia;
• bleeding;
• anorectal infections;
• inflammation of the blind part of the large intestine (typhlitis).

Contraindications

The decision on the possibility of such treatment is made by the oncologist. Chemotherapy for oncology is prescribed after a series of examinations. Contraindications include:

• the presence of metastases in the brain, liver;
• high levels of bilirubin in the blood;
• cachexia;
• organic intoxication.

Video

Chemotherapy is widely used in modern medicine to combat malignant tumors. Many patients of oncology clinics ask themselves the question: how is chemotherapy carried out and how effective is the treatment?

The technique is based on the introduction into the patient's body of potent poisons that kill cancer cells. In many cases, treatment with chemotherapy for oncological tumors is the only chance to save the patient's life. In this article, we will take a closer look at how chemotherapy sessions are performed and what the possible consequences of treatment are.

Chemotherapy is a systemic technique aimed at combating malignant neoplasms. The oncologist prescribes special drugs to the patient that kill cancer cells.

Unfortunately, chemotherapy drugs affect not only malignant cells, but also healthy rapidly dividing cells (bone marrow, hair follicles, gastrointestinal tract, etc.). This causes unpleasant side effects.

Along with radiation therapy and surgery, a course of chemotherapy is considered one of the 3 effective methods of treating malignant neoplasms. Often these methods are combined together. If there are many metastases in the body, chemistry is considered the most effective way to help the patient.

Chemotherapy treatment allows:

• before the operation, reduce the size of the neoplasm;
• destroy malignant cells left after the operation;
• fight metastases;
• improve the effectiveness of treatment;
• prevent cancer recurrence.

The choice of technique depends on the location and type of neoplasm, as well as the stage of cancer. The most effective is the combination of several options at the same time.

Treatment with chemotherapy drugs, as the main method of fighting a cancerous tumor, is used for systemic oncological pathologies that affect several organs: blood cancer, malignant lymphoma, etc.

Also, chemotherapy, as the first stage of treatment, is indicated for patients with a tumor of considerable size, which is visualized during a diagnostic examination: sarcoma, carcinoma, etc.

Also, chemotherapy may be prescribed to the patient to prevent recurrence of cancer, improve treatment outcomes, or the absence of a visible neoplasm after surgery. If single nodules of a malignant nature are found in a patient, the course is prescribed in order to reduce their number and size.

According to the type of effect on the patient's body, chemotherapy drugs are divided into 2 groups:

1. Cytotoxic, destroying malignant cells.
2. Cytostatic - enzymes that disrupt the vital activity of pathological cells. Ultimately, tumor necrosis occurs.

Chemotherapy for oncology, most often, is carried out in courses - the administration of drugs is alternated with breaks in treatment so that the body can recover after the introduction of toxins. The oncologist or chemotherapist selects the most effective regimen based on the patient's history.

The following factors influence the choice of chemotherapy regimen:

• location and type of neoplasm;
• the patient's reaction to the introduction of certain drugs;
• the ultimate goal pursued by the oncologist (prevent recurrence, reduce neoplasm, completely kill cancer, etc.).

Thanks to diagnostic measures, the stage of the disease and the type of cancerous tumor are determined in the patient, and the state of health is assessed. Drugs are administered both in the hospital and on an outpatient basis. Some drugs are given intravenously, while others are given as tablets.

Some tumors are treated with an isolated infusion - a high dose of the drug is applied to the cancerous tumor, while the poison does not enter the body.

With an oncological process affecting the central nervous system, intrathecal chemotherapy is indicated: the drug is injected into the liquor of the spinal cord or brain.

The combination of some drugs depends on the type of cancer and the doctor's goal. The duration of the course of therapy and the timing of its implementation depend on the severity of the oncological process in the body. Chemotherapy is carried out from 14 days to 6 months. The oncologist constantly monitors the patient's health and adjusts treatment regimens.

How is chemotherapy done?

There are two types of chemotherapy practiced worldwide: polychemotherapy and monochemotherapy. Mono involves the introduction of a single drug into the patient's body, and poly - a group of drugs used in turn or simultaneously.

Scientists have found that a well-chosen polychemotherapy works much better than a single drug. Some types of medicines are suitable only for a certain type of neoplasm, others for all types of oncology.

A toxic agent is injected into the patient's body using a thin needle through a peripheral vein, or using a catheter into a central vein. In some cases, the drug is injected directly into the tumor through the artery. Some types of chemotherapy are injected under the skin or into muscles.

If the medicine should enter the patient's body slowly (in 2-3 days), a special pump is used to control the administration of medicines.
In each individual case, the treatment of an oncological tumor with the help of chemistry has its own individual characteristics. First of all, the type of therapy is selected based on the type of cancer process.

Duration of chemotherapy courses

The oncologist determines the number of chemotherapy courses and their duration. The patient can be prescribed daily medication, without interruption.
There are also weekly schemes, when the patient is prescribed medicine 1-2 times a week.

But the most common scheme is monthly. Medicines are administered for several days, and a month later the scheme is repeated. Based on the tests and diagnostic studies, the doctor determines which scheme is more suitable for the patient and how often to administer drugs.

Studies have shown that the best result is achieved from the introduction of drugs once every 14 days. It is during this period of time that chemotherapy strikes at not yet fully formed cell membranes.

Side effects of chemotherapy

From the aggressive effect on the body of drugs used in chemotherapy, the body as a whole suffers: the gastrointestinal tract, skin, nails and hair, mucous membranes, etc.

The main side effects of the introduction of chemotherapy:

• Complete or partial hair loss. But, after the cessation of the introduction of aggressive drugs, hair growth on the head resumes again.
• Osteoporosis, manifested by the weakening of bone tissue.
• Vomiting, diarrhea and nausea are the effects of chemotherapy on the gastrointestinal tract.
• Infectious diseases that cause a general decrease in the body's immunity.
• Anemia, a concomitant factor of which is weakness and severe fatigue.
• Temporary or complete infertility.

If chemotherapy has compromised the immune system too much, severe consequences can occur: inflammation of the lungs (pneumonia), inflammation of the caecum (typhlitis), and anorectal infection.

Based on the above, before choosing a treatment regimen, the oncologist assesses the possible risks. If the side effects of the patient are not able to withstand, the doses of the drugs are reduced or the medicine is replaced with a more gentle one.

Can treatment be interrupted?

If there are severe side effects, many patients are interested in an oncologist - is it possible to interrupt therapy for a while to allow the body to recover?

As a rule, the answer is no. If therapy is interrupted, the course of the oncological process is aggravated, new tumors appear. The patient's condition deteriorates sharply, up to death.

Oncological disease, or cancer, is a malignant tumor that occurs quite often. The tumor appears due to the rapid reproduction or degeneration of epithelial cells. There are no borders for cancer. It can affect any organ, muscle and bone tissue.

The insidiousness of the disease lies in the fact that it does not begin to progress immediately, but gradually. No signs of the initial stage are detected. Education can be in the body for years and not make itself felt. Therefore, in most cases, chemotherapy procedures are performed in the treatment of cancer.

What is chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy is a special way to treat cancer. When chemotherapy is being treated, special anticancer drugs are injected into the body of a cancer patient, which have the ability to stop the formation of tumor cells or cause their irreversible damage and death. Chemotherapy for cancer falls into several categories. It all depends on what stage the person has cancer.

1. Monochemotherapy. Only one drug is used.
2. Polychemotherapy. Several drugs are used at once.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is a common treatment. It is mainly carried out before surgical treatment. It is able to reduce the size of the tumor, after which it will become possible to perform an operation, but save the affected organ. Some doctors recommend not to do chemotherapy immediately after surgery, as the body is weakened. The operation needs to be rescheduled.

To understand how chemotherapy is done, you should find out how certain drugs affect the body. Special chemotherapy drugs can have a detrimental effect on cancer cells. Quite quickly, cells begin to show sensitivity to the action of chemotherapy drugs, which divide rapidly and do not live long. In most cases, anti-cancer drugs are administered by intravenous drip. For each patient, the chemotherapy regimen will be individual.

How to prepare for chemotherapy and what are the side effects?

Before proceeding with the initial stages of treatment, a potential patient must undergo the necessary examination. Preparation for chemotherapy is required. Certain blood tests are to be carried out. After receiving the results of the tests, the attending doctor begins to make adjustments in the chemotherapy regimen. Thus, the dose of drugs will be determined. In some cases, doctors decide to postpone treatment for a while.

Chemotherapy has its own side effects. But if the choice is between death or life extension, then there is no doubt that the best option is chemotherapy. Common side effects include the following:

1. Deterioration of the general condition.
2. Constant nausea or vomiting.
3. Constant feeling of weakness.
4. Hair loss.
5. Failure of the digestive system.
6. Numbness of hands and feet.

If the side effects are pronounced, then you should not immediately stop the course of treatment. After a certain period of use of drugs, the body begins to recover.

In other cases, doctors prescribe or add another drug to a combination of existing drugs.

Basic principles of chemotherapy

There are several principles of chemotherapy. Let's outline the most important of them. The causative agent must always show sensitivity to AB. AB, in turn, must form a therapeutic concentration in the focus. An adequate dosage regimen has its own standards (the so-called dependence) on indicators: the pathogen, the dynamic clinical course of the infection, the location of the infection.

The principles also include consideration of factors:

1. Tolerance of chemotherapy drugs.
2. How do the liver and kidneys work?
3. Age and gender of the patient.
4. The severity of the general condition of the patient.

If you look in the chemotherapy manual, you will definitely find contraindications for it. There are a number of factors that prevent chemotherapy.

Contraindications to chemotherapy can be divided into 2 main categories:

1. Absolute (when there is chronic kidney disease, blockage of the bile ducts, severe general condition of the body, the presence of mental illness, ineffectiveness of the course of treatment).
2. Relative (when there is rheumatoid arthritis, immunodeficiency syndromes, the use of antiepileptic drugs, advanced age).

Some people who are undergoing chemotherapy have initially discussed contraindications with their primary care physician. If they are not, then the course of cancer treatment begins immediately. It is worth noting that anyone can refuse chemotherapy. It already depends on the patient.

New methods of therapy in oncology

Targeted therapy represents the latest in the treatment of cancerous tumors. Treatment is based on the principles of targeted influence on the basic molecular mechanisms of a particular disease. This therapy is significantly different from other traditional methods of treating cancerous tumors.

It contributes to the destruction of cancer cells, while not destroying healthy tissues of the human body.

It also does not cause side effects. Targeted drugs can be used alone or combined with traditional tumor treatments, such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Basically, this method is used for prophylactic purposes to prevent the formation of relapses, as well as for the course of treatment of metastatic types of the disease.

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In what cases is chemotherapy prescribed and types of its implementation

Chemotherapy is one of the methods of treating malignant neoplasms along with radiation therapy and surgery.

A distinctive feature of drugs that are used in the treatment of tumors is their strong toxicity. This explains the fact that most patients cannot blindly trust the doctor, but prefer to know in advance in which cases chemotherapy is given, what is the duration of the courses and the consequences of taking it if this particular method of treatment is prescribed.

What are the indications for chemotherapy?

When prescribing chemotherapy, the oncologist takes into account a number of factors: the general condition of the patient's body, the type of tumor, its operability, localization, and prevalence in the body.

Indications for the use of chemotherapy are:

1. Oncological diseases, the remission of which occurs only as a result of combined treatment, including therapy with highly toxic drugs (leukemia, hemoblastosis, some types of sarcomas and carcinomas).
2. The need to reduce the volume of an existing neoplasm in order to achieve its operability.
3. High risk of metastasis (used to prevent the formation of secondary foci).
4. Damage to the lymph nodes (regardless of the volume and stage of development of the oncological process).
5. Improving the effectiveness of radiation therapy with a high-intensity course of treatment.

Therapy with highly toxic drugs is never used in case of cachexia (exhaustion), organic intoxication, the presence of secondary foci in the brain and liver (due to a violation of the drug excretion process) and a high concentration of bilirubin in the blood.

The appointment of chemotherapy is possible at any stage of the tumor process.

Types of chemotherapy and indications for them

According to the direction of action, chemotherapy is classified into therapeutic (induction), postoperative (adjuvant), preoperative (neoadjuvant) and prophylactic.

Induction chemotherapy is prescribed in cases where the high sensitivity of oncocells to anticancer drugs is confirmed and there is no need for additional methods of treatment.

Also, such courses are performed in the presence of contraindications to surgical intervention and in the course of palliative treatment. Indications for the use of induction chemotherapy are some types of lymphomas, leukemias, germ cell and thromboblastic neoplasms.

Adjuvant therapy is performed after removal of the primary tumor site.

The purpose of chemotherapy courses in this group is to prevent the recurrence of the disease and destroy possible latent or minor metastases at the time of treatment, which cannot be detected using the available diagnostic methods.

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy, on the other hand, is given before surgery to inhibit tumor growth and reduce the risk of metastasis after surgery. Also, courses of preoperative therapy can be performed to reduce the tumor to operable volumes.

In oncological diseases of the female reproductive system, chemotherapy is used either as the main treatment, supplemented by radiation therapy (at the initial stages of the disease), or after removal of the neoplasm or organ along with the tumor.

In bowel cancer, adjuvant therapy is mandatory. Despite the fact that this method of treatment for this type of tumor is used only as an auxiliary, the use of chemotherapy reduces the mortality of patients by 40%.

Therapy for lung cancer may include highly toxic drugs both before and after surgery.

Given the high aggressiveness of lung tumors and their tendency to metastasize, in some cases chemotherapy is the only possible method of treating or alleviating the patient's condition.

In case of liver cancer, chemotherapy can be prescribed only as a complementary or palliative treatment: the effectiveness of toxic drugs in neoplasms in this organ is low.

Chemotherapy regimens

As a rule, for the convenience of perception by patients, “chemistry” is classified not only by the classes of drugs used, but also by the colors of their solutions. There are four types of chemotherapy:

• Red. Considered the most toxic. It includes medications of the anthracycline group: idarubicin, doxorubicin, epirubicin. Red chemotherapy is often prescribed as a high-intensity induction treatment for blastomas, lymphomas, advanced cancers, and leukemias.
• Yellow. Yellow group drugs are less toxic than anthracyclines. These include fluorouracil, methotrexate, and cyclophosphamide. Yellow chemotherapy can be used as an adjunct to induction treatment with highly toxic drugs. Cyclophosphamide and fluorouracil are used in adjuvant regimens along with the red group drugs.
• Blue. Blue, as well as white (colorless) therapy, is introduced only if there are certain indications - for example, high sensitivity to drugs of more toxic groups. Also, the use of sparing regimens with mitomycin and mitoxantrone is typical for the late stages of treatment, when the patient has received a full course of treatment with anthracyclines.
• White. Therapy with Taxotel and Taxol is the least toxic.

Most often in medical practice, polychemotherapeutic courses are used, combining drugs from different groups. This increases the effectiveness of treatment, but increases the number of side effects.

Polychemical regimens include AC (doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide), CAF (AC regimen supplemented with fluorouracil), FEC (cyclophosphamide, epidoxorubicin, fluorouracil). One of the monotherapy regimens is CMF (the combination of the main drugs of the yellow group). Yellow monotherapy can be used for contraindications to the administration of anthracyclines (for example, angina pectoris).

A side effect of red chemotherapy and other regimens with drugs from the anthracycline group is a sharp decrease in the number of immune cells and anemia, which leads to the prescription of antibiotics and antifungal drugs in parallel with the treatment of cancer. For drugs of the blue group, a weakening of the effect and an increase in the side effects of vaccines are characteristic.

In addition to these, drugs with platinum can be used during chemotherapy.

Preparation and administration of chemotherapy

Before starting chemotherapy, the patient must give up bad habits (primarily smoking), cleanse the body of tumor decay products and drugs taken, and undergo a course of treatment for exacerbations of diseases associated with oncology.

This is necessary not only to achieve the maximum effect of the use of anticancer drugs, but also to reduce their negative impact on the body.

During therapy, it is necessary to limit physical activity, the use of fatty foods and caffeine. It is recommended to take a vacation for the entire period of treatment. During the entire chemotherapy cycle, it is necessary to strictly observe the water norm.

Immediately before chemotherapy, premedication is carried out - the introduction of drugs that reduce the reaction of the mucosa to toxic drugs. Thus, it is possible to minimize the risk of severe nausea, vomiting and other unpleasant symptoms.

Drugs used during chemotherapy are administered intravenously, intravenously, intravenously, subcutaneously, orally (in the form of tablets), intramuscularly, intraarterially, intravesically, into tumor tissues, intrathecally (in the lumbar region), intrapleurally or intraperitoneally, depending on the localization of primary and secondary tumor foci.

For tumors of the heart, the drug can be delivered to the region of the left ventricle through an installed catheter or into the pericardial cavity, simultaneously with its drainage.

Intracisternal administration using a reservoir implanted in the temple is used for some types of brain neoplasms. It is also possible to apply local solutions and pastes (ointments) with highly toxic preparations to the surface of the affected skin.

Depending on the patient's condition, the number of courses of therapy undergone, the drugs used and the method of their administration, treatment can take place at home (with the permission of the attending oncologist) or in a hospital.

Even if home therapy is allowed, the first session is recommended to be carried out in a hospital setting, under the close supervision of the attending physician, who, if necessary, will adjust the prescribed course, regimen and duration of treatment.

Duration of chemotherapy

The duration of treatment is determined individually, based on the sensitivity of the tumor to drugs and the patient's health status. Chemotherapy is given in cycles. One cycle can last up to two weeks, while the patient can receive drugs daily, once a week or once per cycle.

The introduction of one drug can last from several hours to several days.

The interval between procedures is determined by the chosen treatment regimen, and the dosage of drugs is determined by the weight and condition of the excretory system (kidneys, liver) of the patient and the stage of the oncological process.

The number of cycles is usually from 4 to 8. The total treatment time, therefore, averages from 3 to 8 months. In some cases, the oncologist prescribes a second course of treatment in order to prevent relapse, as a result, the duration of therapy is increased to 1-1.5 years.

Postoperative chemotherapy is prescribed approximately one month after the removal of the neoplasm. In the course of treatment, tests are necessarily carried out for the sensitivity of oncocells to the drugs involved in the scheme, and after that - tests for specific tumor markers, which allow detecting tumor recurrences.

The harm of chemotherapy for the body is compensated by its high effectiveness against oncological diseases. Individual selection of the course of treatment and medical supervision reduce the risk of developing severe complications.

It is a pity that so far there has not been another method of treatment for oncology, like chemotherapy. The harm, of course, from it to the body is also colossal.

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The described methods of diagnosis, treatment, traditional medicine recipes, etc. it is not recommended to use it on its own. Be sure to consult with a specialist so as not to harm your health!

Chemotherapy - what is it in oncology? Chemotherapy: reviews, photos, consequences

The World Health Organization has published data, according to which, malignant tumors (cancer) are among the ten diseases leading to the death of patients around the world. The most depressing statistic in high-income countries is that cancer is second only to stroke and heart attack.

The doctor, notifying the patient of his diagnosis, immediately acquaints him with the tactics of treatment. Depending on the form of the oncological process, surgery, radiation or chemotherapy is implemented. What's this? All characteristics of the treatment will be discussed below.

What is the difference between simple pharmacotherapy and chemotherapy?

If you pay attention to the traditional use of pharmacological agents, then their action is aimed at eliminating the source of the disease, factors that negatively affect human life. In addition, the goal of such treatment is to guide the person to a natural recovery. Chemotherapy has other goals. This is the destruction of a pathogenic formation, or at least the suppression of its growth and metastasis. At the same time, healthy cells of the body also experience a destructive effect, however, they quickly recover after treatment.

Most often, such an impact is aimed at combating cancer. In other cases, standard pharmacotherapy is sufficient.

Basic principles

Chemotherapy - what is it? Oncologists unite under this name the general name of the course of treatment of malignant tumors, during which the patient receives pharmacological drugs. This is a special method of treatment that allows to achieve irreversible damage and death of cancer cells.

The purpose of pharmacological action is to suppress the metabolism of pathological cells and cause their death and complete destruction. The patient may receive treatment before, after, or instead of radiation therapy or stereotactic radiosurgery.

Chemotherapy - what are these drugs? Currently, in the treatment of oncological diseases, regimens involving the administration of a specific drug or combinations of them can be used. The method of treatment can be implemented separately or in combination with radiation and surgical treatment.

Cancer treatment planning

When an oncologist develops an effective treatment plan, he takes into account many factors. The localization of the tumor, the prevalence of the pathological process, its type and the general health of the patient are taken into account. Many patients have questions. Chemotherapy - what is it: a single treatment regimen adopted in all countries or an individual plan? Doctors explain that the tactics of action are developed individually. The dosage and name of the antitumor drug are selected separately in each case. For example, with cervical cancer, a completely different effect is realized than with breast cancer.

When is it appropriate to use this treatment?

Chemotherapy - what is it (a photo of the patient is presented below) and when is it to be prescribed? First of all, doctors decide on the introduction of medications after the tumor has begun to spread widely, that is, metastases have appeared in the body. This process is characterized as the development of neoplasms in those organs that are removed from the primary pathological formation. Malignant cancer has a high tendency to metastasize. Often, the doctor decides to remove the primary focus by surgery, and new formations are treated with drugs - cytostatics.

Diseases for which the course is carried out:

• Some forms of leukemia.
• Acute lymphocytic leukemia.
• Malignant tumors of the testicles, uterus, mammary glands, liver, and other organs - in all cases, individual chemotherapy can be implemented. What is it in lung cancer or brain tumor? Again, a standard range of actions is provided, according to the treatment protocol.
• Lymphogranulomatosis.
• Hodgeken's disease.
• Sarcoma and others.

Actions of the oncologist

Chemotherapy - what is it, based on the type of treatment? Doctors may prescribe the following:

• Monotherapy - the patient is shown taking one drug.
• Polytherapy - sequential or simultaneous treatment with several drugs.

In modern medicine, complex combinations of a number of components are most often used. This allows you to achieve the maximum effect of treatment.

Chemotherapy - what is it, based on the type of treatment? Oncologists provide the specified classification:

• Adjuvant - performed after radiation exposure or surgery.
• Neoadjuvant - implemented before the start of radical treatment.
• Chemotherapy as the only treatment. Such a plan is accepted as the main one when it is impossible to perform a surgical intervention.

In addition, immunotherapy and targeted therapy are often included in the treatment regimen. The presented areas are undergoing rapid development and will soon be introduced into independent areas of oncology treatment.

The effect of drugs on humans

Chemotherapy for oncology - what is it and how does it affect the body? The active substances of drugs begin to interfere with the life cycle of cancer cells. They influence the features of their structure and development. The maximum sensitivity is shown by those pathological and healthy cells that divide rapidly, but live for a short period of time. That is why a whole range of side effects is observed during treatment: hair roots, digestive organs, bone marrow and blood cells suffer).

Side effects

A person receiving the drug may feel constant weakness, as the level of hemoglobin in the blood drops. Due to the decrease in the level of leukocytes, the patient can tolerate various secondary infections, he also suffers from vomiting and diarrhea. No less often, small sores form on the mucous membrane of the mouth and hair loss is observed.

It is worth noting that two patients with the same diagnosis may respond completely differently to the same drug. It all depends on the individual characteristics of a person: some do not experience any side effects, while others show their full set. Treatment of such conditions is a very important part of the work of an oncologist.

How is the treatment carried out?

Chemotherapy for oncology - what is it and how is the treatment process? As a rule, everything again depends on the individual condition of the patient, the treatment solution is administered to the patient using a dropper, that is, intravenously. The oncologist develops a specific treatment strategy based on numerous studies and protocols created by scientists around the world.

Treatment is a course. After each stage, the patient receives peace. This is necessary to reduce side effects and restore systems and organs. Usually, the duration of the break varies from 1 to 3 weeks, after which the drip administration of the medication continues (in strict accordance with the treatment protocol).

The quality of life of cancer patients is maintained with the help of other drugs. The complex of similar actions is called accompanying therapy. Properly selected drugs can avoid the development of side effects or significantly reduce their manifestations in any type of cancer.

Before a new course is implemented, the patient undergoes a thorough examination. This helps to correct the chemical effect. In addition, based on the findings, treatment may be delayed in order for the patient to recover better.

Chemotherapy in oncology - what is it and what should the patient prepare for? The general sequence of actions is revealed as follows:

• Individual prescription of treatment.
• Preparing a drug in a pharmaceutical laboratory.
• Dosage calculation.
• Introduction of infusions.

If the treatment protocol is not long and is 2-3 hours, the patient can be placed on a day hospital. If long-term multi-day infusions await him, placement in the chemotherapy department is required. A cancer patient, thanks to modern equipment, is not limited in movement and can walk within the hospital or on its territory. After the course, the doctor may allow you to go home.

Patient experience

Chemotherapy - what is it? Feedback on the course of treatment was formed as follows:

Most cancer patients note that modern drugs do not cause any pain when administered. However, more often than usual, fatigue and fatigue are felt. Oncologists themselves recommend more time to rest during the day and slow down the usual rhythm of life a little. Patients are not allowed to work. It is only necessary to consult a doctor about how many hours work activities should take.

It is fatigue, according to patients, that is the most common side effect. To mitigate the situation, oncologists advise to correctly plan the daily routine, the correct diet, the patient should drink enough liquid.

Groups of drugs used

Chemotherapy - what is it and the consequences of treatment. Oncologists divide all cytostatics into several groups. The classification is presented as follows:

• Alkylating agents, which include various nitrogen-containing drugs, Cisplatin, Melphalan, Cyclophosphamide. Such medicines suppress the production of nucleic acids, which are the genetic material of cells. As a result, the division of the pathological formation stops.
• Antimetabolites. This group includes drugs - antagonists of pyrimidine, folic acid, purine. In chemotherapy, Methotrexate, Fluorouracil, Thioguanine are used. Their active substances remove metabolites from cells - metabolic products, which causes the cessation of division.
• Agents that inhibit cell mitosis. These are taxanes and vinca alkaloids that inhibit the division of a cancerous tumor. The growth of pathological formations stops.
• Antibiotics. Some antibiotic drugs are able to suppress the growth of malignant tumors. As a rule, Doxorubomycin, Mitomycin are included in the treatment protocol.
• Enzymes. A substance such as L-asparaginase causes suppression of the growth of cancer cells.

Colors and cancer treatment

The drugs that are included in the treatment plan contribute to the destruction of cancer cells. In pathological formations, the internal structure, the ability to divide, is disturbed. However, healthy cells also die during the course. To destroy an oncological disease, medicines are used, which are conditionally divided by color:

• Red chemotherapy. What it is? This is a course in which the treatment plan includes drugs such as Doxorubicin, Idarubicin, Epirubicin. When a patient undergoes treatment, his immune potential deteriorates significantly.
• Yellow - such means as Cyclophosphamide, Methotrexate, Fluorouracil are used. Most patients experience less severe side effects.
• White chemotherapy - what is it? The treatment protocol is supplemented with drugs such as Taxol, Taxotel.

Consequences of treatment

Statistics show that with the use of chemotherapy it is difficult to achieve a complete cure for cancer. Healthy is only a small part of patients. It usually requires the involvement of additional methods of exposure, for example, surgery or radiation therapy.

Nevertheless, drug treatment significantly increases the chances of success. Cytostatics enhance the effectiveness of other therapeutic measures. The patient experiences much less suffering, his life is greatly extended.

Complications

According to the reviews of most cancer patients, in addition to high fatigue, a whole range of other complications can be observed. This group includes the following symptoms:

• Alopecia - hair loss (the occurrence depends on the type of medication used).
• Throat and mouth lesions. The complication manifests itself as difficulty swallowing, a burning sensation in the larynx, the development of stomatitis.
• Vomiting and changes in appetite do not develop in all patients, which depends on the individual characteristics of the body.
• Constipation/diarrhea. Predisposition have those patients who before the start of treatment suffered from similar phenomena.
• Changes in the composition of blood and bone marrow. A person's immunity deteriorates during treatment, he begins to suffer from infectious diseases.

In conclusion, it is worth noting that the success of any therapy depends on the mood of the patient himself. If he is focused on success and thinks in a positive way, he will definitely cope with cancer.

4 chemotherapy for cancer

4 Chemotherapy is a common prescription for oncological diseases. The number 4 indicates the number of courses of administration of anticancer drugs.

How 4 chemotherapy treatments affect health

The side effects that chemotherapy drugs give are quite difficult to tolerate. Therefore, many patients are concerned if 4 chemotherapy is prescribed, what does this mean, what course are they undergoing at this stage? The oncologist should tell you what the consequences for the body will be, how bad your health will be. What determines the severity of side effects:

1. The state of health of the patient, age and ability to regenerate. Chemotherapy affects all metabolic processes in the body. To compensate for this negative impact, 4 courses are held intermittently. During the break between courses, the liver and kidneys restore the damage received, the mucous membrane heals, and the composition of the blood normalizes. The duration of the break between courses is selected individually, according to the results of the analyzes. Usually the break is from 1 to 6 weeks. Patients over 65 years of age are more difficult to tolerate 4 stages of chemotherapy than younger ones. For cancer of the liver or kidneys, the course of treatment takes place in the inpatient department, for round-the-clock monitoring of the patient's well-being. If necessary, conduct a course of hardware blood purification.
2. Recovery protocol. Anticancer drugs include more than 10 classes of drugs, each of which has its own characteristics of pharmacological action. A protocol is a document in which specific names of chemotherapy drugs, dosage and optimal duration of a course of administration at a given stage of chemotherapy are prescribed. If the protocol includes highly toxic drugs, a long recovery after 4 chemotherapy will be required.
3. degree of cancer. Cancer weakens the immune system, interferes with the functioning of internal organs, and causes serious damage to the body. Often, oncologists refuse chemotherapy for stage 4 cancer, because the patient is simply unable to endure the toxic effects of the drug.

Chemotherapy is used as an independent type of treatment, or as part of complex therapy, together with radiation therapy or surgery.

How 4 chemotherapy is performed in a hospital, cost and reviews

To describe the size, rate of growth, and blood supply of a tumor, the term "prevalence" is used. Evaluation of the prevalence of the oncological process allows you to plan a course for recovery, select the optimal protocol, and track the dynamics of changes. In the patient's medical record, the stage of cancer is described according to the TNM system, where:

• the letter T denotes the main tumor;
• N - nearby metastases;
• M - distant metastases.

Each letter has an index, from 0 to 4, where 0 indicates the confirmed absence of a tumor or metastasis, 4 the highest degree of prevalence. With a well-chosen protocol, IV chemotherapy interferes with the oncological process. Data about these changes is also reflected in the course assignment map. There are 3 types of changes that 4 chemotherapy treatments cause:

1. Recovery. Complete disappearance of metastases, rapid reduction of the underlying cancerous tumor. In some cases, 4 chemotherapy causes accelerated destruction of malignant cells. Tumor collapse syndrome is accompanied by severe intoxication and can pose a threat to human life. With rapid positive dynamics, the patient is hospitalized to monitor the condition and provide a course of medical care.
2. Partial remission. TNM indices decrease to 0-1, tumor prevalence decreases. For some types of cancer, such as breast cancer, this is exactly what the oncologist is looking for. If 4 chemotherapy was done for breast cancer, partial remission gradually turns into complete.
3. Stabilization. If malignant cells do not respond to 4 chemotherapy treatments, no change in the prevalence of cancer occurs. In this case, the oncologist can prescribe additional courses of chemotherapy, change the protocol, and connect radiation therapy.
4. Unfavorable changes. Unpredictable dynamics represent a major challenge in cancer therapy. If the oncologist sees tumor growth after 4 chemotherapy, what is next assigned to the patient: protocol change, radiation therapy, experimental treatment. One of the promising experimental areas today is gene therapy. Destruction of cancer cells with modified viral agents increases the effectiveness of 4 chemotherapy treatments.

Adjustment of dosage and protocols for 4 chemotherapy is carried out according to the results of examinations. So that the oncologist can make a quick decision, each person regularly takes a blood test and more specific tests, undergoes ultrasound, CT or MRI.

BRIEFLY:

Chemotherapy suppresses the immune system; and cancer grows and metastasizes when the body's natural immune forces are suppressed. This is the main harm of chemotherapy. Cancer survival is directly related to how strong the body's immune system is..

Therefore, in the treatment of oncology, the immune system must be strengthened, not suppressed. Only with a fully functioning immune system can cancer be cured and prevented.

. It saturates the cells with toxins, that deactivate critical respiratory enzymes. When normal cells are exposed to this, they are more likely to become cancerous..

That's why .

DETAILS:

This will come as a surprise to you, but there is no scientific evidence that chemotherapy cures cancer or prolongs the life of patients with cancer.

Chemotherapy can only TEMPORARILY reduce the size of a tumor, but cannot cure it or cure the cancer itself.

A tumor is not cancer, it is a symptom of it. To treat a symptom without curing is to waste time and wait for a relapse.

According to a study by the Department of Radiation Oncology at Northern Sydney Cancer Center, published in the journal Clinical Oncology in 2004 and evaluating data from clinical trials of chemotherapy over the past 20 years, the effect of chemotherapy on 5-year survival in America is 2.1% (154,971 patients ), and in Australia 2.3% (72,964 patients).

That is, studies show that chemotherapy does not work in 98% of cases. And this is the data for America and Australia, countries in which cancer treatment is considered the best and most advanced in the world.

It has also been proven that chemotherapy does not work in cases where the cancer has spread throughout the body (that is, when there are metastases).

Statistics show that a person who has undergone chemotherapy lives much less than someone who has not been treated for cancer at all. Chemotherapy kills people before cancer does.

If you have had chemotherapy, you definitely need to get rid of it. Otherwise, the toxins from chemotherapy will "sit" in your body and poison you and your health for the rest of your life.

Only those studies that are sponsored by manufacturers of chemotherapy drugs speak about the effectiveness of cancer treatment with chemotherapy.There are no studies done by independent parties that are not financially connected or interested in the results, and which would confirm its effectiveness in the treatment of cancer.

Do not forget that medicine is a business that brings in more money than war. The cost of chemotherapy drugs is high and they earn a lot of money.

Interestingly, chemotherapeutic drugs were originally derived from nitroyprite (nitrogen mustard) or, as it is also called, "mustard gas", that is, a deadly gas that was used to kill people in gas chambers during World War II. No one survived the gas chambers. And this gas did not cure anyone. However, doctors noticed that this gas slowed down the growth of fast-growing tissues and reduced white blood cells, so they decided to use it in oncology. One of the first to produce chemotherapeutic drugs was the now well-known company Bayer, which has turned into a pharmaceutical company, the same company that originally produced mustard gas for the Nazis, who killed people in gas chambers.

It is worth paying attention to the fact that shrinking a tumor and curing cancer are two completely different things.. Why go through the suffering and side effects that chemotherapy causes if it cannot cure cancer?

Do you think a lot has changed since the war, and chemotherapy has become more “advanced”? Unfortunately, it is not.

When a doctor says that chemotherapy is effective, it does not mean that it cures cancer. It just means that it TEMPORARILY reduces the size of the tumor. And what will you do later, when the tumor begins to grow again and more aggressively than before the "treatment" with chemotherapy, when the body's immune forces have already been completely destroyed?

What do doctors call "cure for cancer"? In the world of doctors, this means that after the diagnosis, the person lived for another 5 years. Is this the same as what the average person understands by the word "cured"? If a person lived 5 years and died a day later, no one cares anymore. As well as the significantly reduced quality of life of patients after chemotherapy. Thus, the statistics are greatly distorted and the percentage of cured people is artificially inflated.

How else does medicine manipulate statistics? Thanks to technology, cancer is now often detected at an earlier stage. Thus, more people fall into the 5-year "survival" period, which allows us to talk about an "increase in the effectiveness of treatment" of malignant tumors. Why is the 5-year milestone taken as a basis? Because then the statistics of survivors drops sharply and it is no longer necessary to talk about any results of treatment.

To date, enough statistical and scientific data have been collected that the harm of chemotherapy is too serious to think about alternative methods of oncology treatment practiced in many clinics around the world.

WHAT SPECIFICLY IS THE HARM FROM CHEMOTHERAPY?

1. Scientists have found that by temporarily reducing the size of tumors, but not curing them, chemotherapy leads to cancer cells entering the bloodstream and other organs.

The journal Science Translation Medicine published a study that provides information on how chemotherapy can cause recurrent cancer and more aggressive types of tumors. While chemotherapy works to temporarily shrink the primary tumor, it provokes the spread of cancer cells to other organs.

Researchers studied the effects of chemotherapy drugs on breast cancer patients and found that the drugs increase the chances of the cancer spreading to other parts of the body.

1. Chemotherapy causes damage to healthy cells, which causes them to release a protein that supports further tumor growth and causes resistance to treatment.

The researchers looked at the effects of chemotherapy on tissue collected from men with prostate cancer and found "evidence of DNA damage" in healthy cells after treatment. Chemotherapy works by inhibiting the reproduction of rapidly dividing cells. Healthy cells damaged by chemotherapy secrete more of a protein called WNT16B, which increases the survival rate of cancer cells. “The increase in WNT16B was completely unexpected,” study co-author Peter Nelson of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle told AFP. The protein was picked up by tumor cells adjacent to damaged healthy cells. “WNT16B, when secreted, interacts with neighboring tumor cells and causes them to grow, multiply and, importantly, resist subsequent treatment,” Nelson said. When cancer is treated with chemotherapy, tumors often respond well at first, but then they also often grow back and are resistant to further chemotherapy. Studies show that the rate of recovery of cancer cells between courses of chemotherapy increases. "Our results indicate that injury responses in benign cells ... can directly enhance tumor growth kinetics," the team writes.

The researchers said they confirmed their results with breast and ovarian cancer tumors.

1. Chemotherapy causes long-term damage to the immune system in patients.

The harm of chemotherapy is that it lowers the levels of key immune cells in patients for at least nine months after treatment, leaving them vulnerable to potentially life-threatening viral and bacterial infections. Some of the cells do not recover even after 9 months and remain weak and susceptible to viruses. That is why people often die from the side effects of chemotherapy. Since it kills the immune system, a person becomes infected with an infection and his body is not able to resist it.

1. Chemotherapy is very toxic to the body, it is a poison and a carcinogen, which is enough to cause you cases of recurrent cancer.

On the packaging of chemotherapy drugs, it is written that it is a carcinogen. A carcinogen is a substance that causes cancer in the body. How can the body be cured of cancer if, in the process of “treatment”, it is additionally injected in huge quantities with a substance that has been proven to cause cancer? This is another harm of chemotherapy.

Often, patients die from chemotherapy simply because their organs cannot withstand its toxicity. They have heart, liver or kidney failure.

They reflect well the dangers of chemotherapeutic drugs in the manuals that are given to their nurses by medical clinics (in the USA). It warns nurses who prepare drugs to administer to patients that they are at "significant risk" of skin damage, reproductive abnormalities, problems with the hematological (circulatory) system, and damage to the liver and chromosomes. Nurses are also instructed to "never eat, drink, smoke, or apply cosmetics in the drug preparation area." (extract from Questioning Chemotherapy, Ralph W. Moss, Ph.D., Equinox Press, 2000).

1. There is no chemotherapy that does not kill healthy cells.

Chemistry is aimed at suppressing cell reproduction, but healthy cells and tissues also multiply, and this process also affects them. For example, the spinal cord, which, among other things, produces white blood cells necessary for immunity, the mucous membranes of the intestinal wall and hair follicles. They are severely damaged by chemotherapy toxins, leading to reduced immune function, nausea, vomiting, intestinal bleeding, mouth ulcers, and hair loss. Patients report memory loss and children have learning difficulties. There are also many cases of damage to the heart, lungs and kidneys, a significant number of infections. This is another harm of chemotherapy.

1. There are many innovations in the production of chemotherapy drugs, but they are driven solely by commercial reasons.

All chemotherapy drugs are very expensive and this is a very profitable business for pharmaceutical companies. In America, the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approves new chemotherapy drugs if, during trials, they can reduce tumors by 50% for a period of 28 days. Even if after 28 days the tumor begins to grow aggressively again, the FDA still calls this drug a success and allows it to be put on the market. Isn't this a scam for cancer patients who are given false hope and put through so much suffering from taking these drugs?

1. In America alone, the oncology business brings in $200 billion annually (!).

In 2010, chemotherapeutic drugs alone brought $75 billion to the US (!). In Russia, oncology treatment is also very expensive, but the state, charitable organizations and foundations often bear the costs. They pay out-of-pocket to buy needed medicines, which profit from pharmaceutical companies, government officials and other stakeholders involved in the purchases.

1. Chemotherapy has only been proven to help with a few extremely rare types of cancer.

This is cancer of pregnancy (choriocarcinoma - cancer of the fetus), Burkitt's lymphoma, which exists mainly in certain areas of Africa, with childhood leukemia, with cancers of the genital organs. In such common types as breast, prostate, lung, colon cancer, statistics show that the results of chemotherapy are more than modest.

RESEARCH

• In 2009, the Cancer Cell study was conducted, which found that such anti-cancer drugs as Avastin and Erbitux promote the development of metastases. Taxol (a chemotherapy drug) promotes the growth of cancer cells. If you are given Taxol before surgery to shrink a tumor, then the number of circulating tumor cells in your body increases by 10,000 times.
• Scientific American, June 25, 2010 issue says that opiate painkillers stimulate the growth and spread of cancer cells in the body. Morphine causes cancer cells to multiply faster and speeds up the development of new blood vessels needed for tumor growth. Patients who are not given morphine live longer.
• Dr. John Diamond (NCI Journal) - " A study of 10,000 patients shows very clearly that the claim that chemotherapy is a good treatment for Hodgkins' lymphoma is a lie. Patients treated with chemotherapy are 14 times more likely to develop leukemia and 6 times more likely to develop cancers of the bones, joints, and soft tissues compared to patients who did not undergo chemotherapy. The March 21, 1996, edition of the New England Journal of Medicine reported that children who successfully underwent treatment for Hodgkins' lymphoma were 18 times more likely to have recurrent malignant tumors later in life. Girls have a 35% chance of developing breast cancer before age 40, which is 75 times higher than the average. Four years after treatment, the risk of developing leukemia greatly increases and this risk stops growing only 14 years after treatment, but the risk of developing tumors remains at 30% for 30 years.
• The McGill Center in Montreal (cancer center) conducted a study among 64 oncologists who were asked what they would do if they were diagnosed with cancer. 58 of them said that they would not use chemotherapy for themselves or their relatives, because it does not work and is very toxic. .
• The Seattle Times in its 2010 July 10 edition reported: "Danish epidemiologists used data from reported cancer cases from the 1940s to the late 1980s and were the first to draw attention to the significantly higher risk of leukemia among nurses, and later, among doctors. This means that chemotherapy is so carcinogenic that even doctors and nurses who administer it to patients are at an increased risk of developing cancer.
• Another study of more than 92,000 nurses found an increased incidence of breast, thyroid, nervous system, and brain cancers among them.
• Another study conducted by the CDC (US Centers for Disease Control) lasted for 10 years and had the largest sample. It has confirmed that chemotherapy is very contaminating in the workplaces where it is administered, and in some cases is still found in the urine of people who administered it to patients (decades later!)."

WHAT THE DOCTORS SAY

• Dr. Allen Levin: “Most cancer patients die from chemotherapy. Chemotherapy does not reduce breast cancer, colon cancer, or lung cancer. This fact was documented ten years ago, but doctors still use chemotherapy.”
• Dr. Alan S. Neeson, former president of the American Chemical Society: "As a chemist trained in the use of statistics, I cannot understand why doctors ignore the clear evidence that chemotherapy is very, very, very harmful."
• Dr. Ralph Moss: “The strangest thing about chemotherapy is that these drugs are themselves carcinogens and cause cancer. And this is an indisputable fact. If you look to see if there is a life extension from the use of this medicine, you will find all sorts of manipulations with the statistics. There is no evidence that chemotherapy prolongs life, and the biggest lie about chemotherapy is that there is a correlation between reducing tumor size and prolonging patient life with chemotherapy.”
• In The topic of Cancer: When the Killing has to Stop, Dick Richards cites the results of several autopsy studies in which patients died from chemotherapy before their tumor grew to a size that could have killed them.

CONCLUSIONS

Chemotherapy suppresses the immune system; and cancer grows and metastasizes when the body's natural immune forces are suppressed. This is the main harm of chemotherapy. Cancer survival rates are directly related to how strong the body's immune system is.

Therefore, in the treatment of oncology, the immune system must be strengthened, not suppressed. Only with a fully functioning immune system can cancer be cured and prevented.

Remember that a cancer cell becomes when it receives little or no oxygen. (Otto Warburg received the Nobel Prize for this discovery.)

The harm of chemotherapy also lies in the fact that it greatly reduces the level of oxygen in the blood.. She is saturates cells with toxins that deactivate critical respiratory enzymes. When normal cells are exposed to this, they are more likely to become cancerous.

That's why chemotherapy increases the risk of developing new or recurring cancers, and these cancers are often more aggressive. If you have had chemotherapy, you will need to undergo a body detox to rid your body of toxins and carcinogens from chemotherapy.

In order to cure cancer, it is necessary to radically change the way of life in order to create an environment in the body in which cancer cannot develop. Cancer cannot develop in a healthy body. You were sick for ten years before cancer appeared in your body. Cancer is the result of your diseased body. Read the article and remove as much as possible from your life everything that leads to it. Without removing the cause of cancer, you will not be able to recover from it.

, alkalize it, eliminate the deficiency that just led to your cancer, drink. You can also get a FREE consultation on all these issues by contacting us through the form in the section.

The most common and effective method of treating such a formidable disease in its complications as cancer is. It implies the introduction into the human body of various toxic substances that have the ability to inhibit the growth and activity of mutated cells.

The course of chemotherapy is carried out in different ways of administering cytostatics and may last for a different period, since the treatment tactics are selected by a specialist in each case individually.

Chemotherapy is prescribed to achieve several goals - slowing down the growth of a malignant focus, reducing the size of a tumor neoplasm, destroying cancer elements that may have remained after surgery.

Chemotherapy at the Ichilov Cancer Center

Duration of treatment courses

Therapy of oncological processes largely depends on the type of tumor neoplasm, the goal set by the specialist, the availability of chemotherapy drugs, and the patient's response to their administration.

Chemotherapy protocols, how it is carried out and how long it lasts, are determined by the oncologist in each situation strictly on an individual basis. The schedule of treatment procedures can be a daily intake of medications or their weekly administration, in some cases once a month is enough. The dosage will be minimal, but taking into account obtaining the maximum possible effect.

The duration of treatment courses will also be different - as practice shows, to fully suppress the cancer process, several cycles of cytostatics are required. One session can take several minutes or hours, while the course is 1-5 procedures.

This is followed by a break - time is allotted so that healthy cells that have received damage at the time of chemotherapy can self-repair. Then the next treatment course is carried out. Most often, the number of such cycles is 4-8, and the total time for treatment reaches 6 months or more.

In the practice of oncologists, there are cases when it is required to prevent the recurrence of the disease. The introduction of chemotherapy drugs aims to suppress the possible reproduction and activity of mutated cells. In this case, treatment can stretch up to 1–1.5 years.

An important point of any chemotherapy is the strict adherence of patients to the recommendations of specialists. Every year, new drugs with anti-cancer properties are introduced - therefore, the frequency of administration, the number of sessions, the duration of treatment can vary significantly.

With a long course of chemotherapy, cell tolerance to the administered drug may occur. To exclude such a negative effect, oncologists must conduct tests for sensitivity to chemotherapy drugs.

Receive mode

Chemical compounds in cytostatics are so aggressive that their administration must be carried out in an extremely slow mode. One session of intravenous delivery of a chemotherapy drug to the tumor focus can be extended for 1–1.5 hours. Going through this process is not easy.

If you accelerate the introduction of medicines, they may well burn or dissolve the vessel from the inside, which will cause severe pain in the injection area, the formation of abscesses, and even death.

Therefore, specialists never follow the lead of patients and do not speed up the time of treatment sessions.

After the end of the chemotherapy sessions, the patient may well go home. However, the best option is if he is accompanied by relatives. Indeed, side effects, for example, severe dizziness, urge to vomit, may appear immediately after the end of the treatment session.

It is generally accepted that the most favorable regimen for taking chemotherapy drugs for a cancer patient is 1-2 sessions per month. Under favorable circumstances, such a regimen of chemotherapy does not last 3-4 months. A malignant neoplasm detected in time can be suppressed in 4–6 months.

It takes years to heal severe forms of cancer. In each of these cases, control and supervision by an oncologist is strictly required.

Can treatment be interrupted?

Faced with unpleasant consequences - nausea, vomiting, pain, patients are interested in the attending physician whether it is possible to interrupt the course of administration of chemotherapy drugs. The answer, as a rule, does not please them - such actions are fraught with serious complications. The course of the pathology is aggravated, new tumor foci are formed. A fatal outcome is also possible.

Therefore, it is absolutely forbidden to interrupt cycles of chemotherapy, stop taking medications recommended by an oncologist.

It is necessary to strictly adhere to the frequency of the prescribed procedures - to accurately maintain the timing and schemes for the administration of chemotherapy drugs.

It is necessary to notify the oncologist about each violation of the treatment regimen, committed due to forgetfulness or due to other objective reasons. Only a specialist can correct the situation, recommend the correct tactics of action.

It is possible to interrupt the course of chemotherapy under emergency circumstances:

• severe exacerbation of somatic pathology;
• a sharp decrease in the volume of leukocytes in the bloodstream;
• a significant deterioration in the patient's well-being - he is not able to arrive at the treatment procedure.

The oncologist should learn about all circumstances immediately. The decision is made in each case on an individual basis. For example, a cancer patient can be delivered to a medical facility by ambulance. In a hospital, he will undergo the necessary manipulations to restore health parameters. This will allow you to continue the course of treatment.