Chemotherapy (also known as chemo) is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells or stop cancer cells from growing and dividing. According to the book "Clinical Oncology," the first clinical trial investigating the effectiveness of chemotherapy in cancer treatment was conducted in 1940. Since then chemotherapy has played an important role in cancer treatment particularly in treating of advanced and metastatic cancers.
Adjuvant Chemotherapy
Adjuvant chemotherapy is the use of chemotherapy for patients who are still at high risk for cancer recurrence after treatments by surgery and radiation therapy, according to the American Cancer Society. According to "Clinical Oncology," adjuvant chemotherapy should be started as soon as possible following surgery and radiation treatment. Adjuvant chemotherapy should be given to cancer patients for a limited time and should be intermittent, when possible to minimize immunosuppression (when the activity of the immune system is reduced).
Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy
Neoadjuvant chemotherapy refers to the use of drugs to treat cancer prior to surgery. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy uses the same drug(s) that are used for adjuvant therapy. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is used to shrink large tumors before surgery or radiation, according to National Cancer Institute. Using neoadjuvant chemotherapy also provides an early opportunity to consider alternative chemotherapy agents if your tumor does not respond to the chemotherapy agents chosen initially.
Chemotherapy for Advanced and Metastatic Cancers
The most common use of chemotherapy is to manage advanced cancers and cancers that have spread beyond the primary site to other organs in the body (metastatic cancers). According to "Clinical Oncology," cancers that are curable or occasionally curable by chemotherapy alone include gestational chonocarcinoma, acute lymphoid leukemia, hairy cell leukemia, ovarian cancer, small-cell lung cancer and acute myeloid leukemia.
References
- American Cancer Society: Chemotherapy
- "Clinical Oncology," Abeloff et al., 2007, Elsevier
- National Cancer Institue: Chemotherapy
