Just In
- 4 hrs ago Aditi Rao Hydari Marries Siddharth, Exploring Heeramandi Star's Ethnic Style Statements, Bookmark Now!
- 6 hrs ago Solar Eclipse 2024 Date And Time: Will It Be Visible In India? When And Where To Watch It, Deets Inside!
- 8 hrs ago Balenciaga Tape Bracelet: Is It Worth Spending A Bomb On Adhesive Looking Accessory? Know Our Take!
- 10 hrs ago In China, GenZ Workers Are Ditching Formal Attire For Pyjamas, Know The Reason Behind This
Don't Miss
- Finance 2 Tata Group Stocks To Buy: Brokerages Give Buy Call After Big Updates, TP Rs 640- Rs 9,000
- Movies RC17: Janhvi Kapoor Or Kiara Advani- Who Will Play Female Lead In Ram Charan's Film?
- Sports Rishabh Pant becomes first player to play 100 matches for Delhi Capitals: Check Top Five List
- Automobiles Marelli Develops Revolutionary Automotive Lighting Platform In China
- Technology HONOR Pad 9 With Bluetooth Keyboard Up For Grabs At Rs 22,499 in India
- News Good Friday 2024: Date, History, Significance, And Everything You Need To Know
- Education RSMSSB Junior Instructor Recruitment 2024; Apply online for 2500 Posts, Check out for more details
- Travel Explore Tamil Nadu's Diverse Wedding Venues
What Does Chemotherapy Do To Cancer Cells?
Chemotherapy uses anti-cancer drugs to treat cancer. This therapy aims at destroying cells that grow rapidly in the body. Cancer cells have the ability to grow and divide quicker than other cells. A doctor who performs this treatment and is a specialist is known as an oncologist. Most of the time, chemotherapy is used in combination with other cancer-related treatment procedures such as radiation, surgery or hormone therapy.
How Chemotherapy Works On A Cellular Level?
Cancerous tumours are determined by the kind of cell division that happens. Even normal cells cease to divide when they come in contact with abnormally functioning cells. This process is termed as contact inhibition. Cancer cells lack the ability to control the cell division process.
The cell cycle follows the steps in a specific order comprising resting phase followed by the active growing phase and then finally the mitosis or the division phase.
Chemotherapy can kill cancer cells by inhibiting the cell division process. The drugs given during chemotherapy work by damaging the DNA or the RNA that make the cell divide. When these cells do not divide, they ultimately die. This treatment also induces self-death or cell suicide.
When chemotherapy works on cancer cells during the division stage, it is termed as cell-cycle specific, whereas when chemo works on destroying the cancer cells during the resting stage, it is termed as cell-cycle nonspecific.
The way your chemo sessions would be scheduled is based on the kind of cells and the rate at which they divide. The time of chemotherapy is decided based on when the drugs would be most effective. This forms the base for scheduling the chemotherapy cycles.
Chemotherapy can kill cells that divide rapidly. However, it needs to be noted that chemo is unable to distinguish between normal and cancerous cells. Although normal cells, unlike cancer cells, would grow back healthy, side effects are seen when chemo is in progress. The cells attacked by chemo are the blood cells, cells in the stomach and bowel, hair follicles, cells in the mouth, etc.
Due to the effect of chemo on the normal cells, which leads to their destruction, you could have side effects such as mouth sores, diarrhoea, hair loss, nausea, etc.
Anti-neoplastic drugs are used in cancer treatment and these are divided into classes based on the way they work.
How Long Is A Cycle Of Chemotherapy?
Cyclic treatment is such that the treatment is given in multiple cycles where each cycle is followed by a period of rest. Each course of the multiple chemo cycle varies. However, on an average, it ideally consists of four to six cycles.
Individual chemotherapy sessions vary on the treatment plan and differ from person to person. Some sessions might be as long as three to four hours, whereas some might just take about 30 minutes to finish.
Your first consultation with your doctor would give you a brief idea about the treatment plan that would be ideal for you.
How Long Does It Take For Chemo To Get Out Of Your System?
Chemo is usually out of your system a few hours after it has been administered. However, the side effects could last as long as up to six months. Chemotherapy drugs are broken down by our kidneys and liver. These are then excreted via urine, sweat or stool.
However, certain factors can play a role in how long the drugs stay in your body. These include reasons such as:
•
Your
age
•
The
other
medications
in
your
body
•
The
kind
of
chemo
you
have
received
•
How
well
your
liver
and
kidney
are
functioning
In case there is damage to any organ, the process of drug removal can get slower.
Do All Cancers Require Chemo?
In general, it is understood that chemo is the perfect treatment, especially if the cancer has occurred from a solid tumour. If surgery and radiation serve the purpose of killing and damaging the cancer cells in a particular area, then you might not need chemo.
However, if the doctor sees the need to provide cancer treatment to your whole body, then chemo is the ideal go-to treatment to get rid of this ailment.
- healthExclusive: Cervical Cancer In India, Doctor Shares Preacautions And Treatments That One Needs To Be Aware Of
- healthTV Actor Dolly Sohi Passes Away Due To Cervical Cancer, Know The Early Signs That Are Beyond Early Detection
- healthGhazal Maestro Pankaj Udhas Passes Away Due To Pancreatic Cancer, Know Risk Factors, Prevention, Treatments
- healthNew Study Finds Links Infertility In Men With Increased Risk Of Cancer For Them And Their Relatives
- healthIs Pancreatic Cancer Curable? Know The Causes, Warning Signs, And Treatment Of This Uncommon Silent Killer
- insyncBaba Vanga's Prophecy For 2024 May Come True With New Vaccine In Russia For Cancer
- healthDetecting Bowel Cancer: 10 Signs Of This Silent Killer To Watch Out For And Seek Medical Attention
- health10 Cancer Fighting Foods That Help That Play Significant Role In Supporting Body's Natural Defences
- healthWorld Cancer Day 2024: 5 Simple Daily Habits To Reduce The Risk Of Developing Cancer
- healthWorld Cancer Day 2024: Messages, Greetings, Wishes, Texts, Images, FB And WhatsApp Status
- healthExclusive: Poonam Pandey Didn't Die Of Cancer, However, It Does Spark Urgency For Cervical Cancer Awareness
- healthErotica Star Poonam Pandey 'Dead From Cervical Cancer' Stunt: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment Of Cervical Cancer