Cancer Therapy Involving Drugs
Cancer is a complex disease that requires careful consideration and a well-informed approach when choosing treatment options. Here are some key points to help you navigate your cancer journey.
Before making a decision about a cancer drug, it's essential to learn as much as possible about the recommended treatment, including its benefits and risks. Your oncologist will formulate a treatment plan based on factors such as the type of cancer, its stage or grade, the characteristics of the tumor, your age, overall health, and other considerations.
Apart from cancer drugs, other treatments for cancer include surgery, radiation therapy, and stem cell transplants. For example, surgery removes the tumor or lymph nodes, while radiation therapy uses high-energy beams to treat cancer. Stem cell transplants replace bone marrow with healthy stem cells, which can be beneficial for people with blood-related cancers like leukemia or lymphoma.
It's important to remember that you have a say in your cancer treatment. You can make the decision to delay treatment or not have treatment at all, and you can seek a second opinion from another qualified doctor. If you're interested in experimental treatments, ask your doctor about taking part in clinical trials. The National Institutes of Health maintains a large database of clinical trials at clinicaltrials.gov.
Chemotherapy attacks regular cells in the body, causing side effects such as hair loss, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, mouth sores, loss of appetite, low white blood cells, fatigue, dizziness, and rash. Hormone therapies may block the body's ability to make hormones and interfere with how hormones act, causing side effects like hot flashes, fatigue, tender breasts, loss of interest in sex, mood changes, nausea, and diarrhea.
In the case of breast cancer, the most commonly recommended drugs by oncologists are CDK4/6 inhibitors (such as Abemaciclib and Ribociclib), mTOR inhibitors like Everolimus, and hormone therapies including Tamoxifen and Fulvestrant. For prostate cancer, key medications include Enzalutamide, Abiraterone, Apalutamide, Darolutamide, and the new PARP inhibitor Niraparib (marketed as Akeega) for metastatic castration-resistant cases with BRCA mutations.
For more information and updates on cancer care, consider joining the Cancer Care newsletter and checking out the Cancer Care hub. Remember, knowledge is power, and understanding your treatment options can help you make informed decisions about your health.
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