How Is Cancer Treated Today

Cancer treatment depends on the type of cancer, cancer stage (how far it has spread), age, health status, and additional personal characteristics. No single treatment for cancer, and patients often receive a combination of therapies and palliative care. Treatments generally fall into one of the following categories: surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, hormonal therapy or gene therapy.
Surgery
Surgery is the oldest known treatment for cancer. If the cancer has not metastasized, it is possible to completely cure a patient by surgical removal of cancer from the body. This is often seen in the removal of the prostate or breast or a testicle. After the disease has spread, however, it is almost impossible to eliminate all cancer cells. Surgery can also be instrumental in helping to control symptoms such as intestinal obstruction or compression of the spinal cord.
Radiation
Radiation treatment, also known as radiotherapy, focusing on the cancer-killing high-energy rays in cancer cells. This causes damage to the molecules that make cancer cells and leads them to commit suicide. Radiation therapy uses high-energy gamma rays that are emitted from metals such as radio or high-energy x-rays that are created in a special machine. The first few radiation treatments caused severe side effects due to energy rays can damage normal, healthy tissue, but the technology has improved so you can be more objective with precision. Radiation therapy is used as a stand-alone treatment to shrink the tumor or destroy cancer cells (including those associated with leukemia and lymphoma), and is also used in combination with other cancer treatments.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy uses chemicals that interfere with the process of cell division - harmful proteins or DNA - to cancer cells commit suicide. These treatments target all rapidly dividing cells (not necessarily only the cancer cells), but normal cells can usually recover from damage induced by chemical, while cancer cells can not. Chemotherapy is usually used to treat cancer that has spread or metastasized and the drugs travel throughout the body. Is a necessary treatment for some forms of leukemia and lymphoma. The chemotherapy treatment occurs in cycles so that the body has time to recover between doses. However, there are still common side effects such as hair loss, nausea, fatigue and vomiting. Combination therapies often include several types of chemotherapy or chemotherapy combined with other treatment options.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy aims to get the body's immune system to fight the tumor. injected local immunotherapy treatment in an affected area, for example, because of the inflammation that causes tumors to shrink. systemic immunotherapy is all the body by administration of an agent such as interferon alpha protein that can shrink tumors. Immunotherapy can also be considered not specific if it improves the ability to fight cancer by stimulating the immune system, and can be considered if treatment directed specifically tells the immune system to destroy cancer cells. These treatments are relatively young, but researchers have had success with the treatments that have antibodies against the body that inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells. Bone marrow transplantation (transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells) can also be considered immunotherapy because the donor's immune cells, often attack the tumor cells or cancer are present in the host.
Hormone Therapy
Several cancers have been associated with some types of hormones, especially breast cancer and prostate cancer. Hormone therapy is designed to alter the production of hormones in the body so that cancer cells stop growing or killed altogether. Hormonal therapy for breast cancer often focus on reducing levels of estrogen (a common drug tamoxifen) and prostate cancer therapies hormone often focus on reducing levels of testosterone. In addition, some cases of leukemia and lymphoma can be treated with the hormone cortisone.
Gene therapy
The goal of gene therapy is to replace damaged genes with those working to tackle one of the causes of cancer: the DNA damage. For example, researchers are trying to replace the damaged gene that signals cells to stop dividing (p53) with a copy of a working gene. Other gene-based therapies focus on more DNA damaging cancer cells to the point where the cell commits suicide. Gene therapy is a very young and still has not led to any successful treatment.