Chemocare

Confused about chemotherapy? What it does? Learn about the history, definitions, terminology and types of treatments used to remedy various cancers.

  Chemotherapy, a Trusty Weapon Against Cancer, Falls Out of Favor

Breast-cancer doctors are at odds over whether some patients should get less chemo—or none at all.

 Chemo Wasn’t Good Enough

When you first start treatment, it’s kind of fun. Well, maybe fun is the wrong word. It’s... new? The days of chemo are long, but they move a little more quickly at first because there is so much to learn and experience. However, your freshman naivety is quickly overpowered by heavy fatigue, nausea, and other terrible side effects. I felt this shift about a month after chemo, and each week it only got worse. Two months into chemo, I crashed and burned.

 Cooling Cap May Limit Chemo Hair Loss In Women With Breast Cancer

Researchers don't know exactly how the cooling caps work. One theory is that cooling constricts the blood vessels in the scalp, slowing the circulation and thereby reducing the amount of toxins to which hair follicles are exposed. Or it may be that cold slows the growth of hair follicles, making them less susceptible to damage from chemotherapy, which targets rapidly dividing cells.

 Doctors Suggest Less Chemo, Surgery for Some Cancer Treatments

Researchers explore leaner approaches aimed at sparing patients tough side effects—and costs.

 How the Promise of Immunotherapy Is Transforming Oncology

Cancer immunotherapy comes in several forms. The drugs sparking the most interest are called checkpoint inhibitors. They work by releasing the natural brakes on the immune system, enabling its foot soldiers, called T cells, to attack tumors.

 Some breast cancer patients may not need chemotherapy, depending on their genes

Although this work does indicate that thousands of women can be spared this difficult treatment, it doesn’t mean skipping chemo is the right choice for all early-stage breast cancer patients.

 The Worst Part of Chemo Isn't Nausea

The side effects of chemo are well known and include nausea, vomiting, and hair loss, but preliminary results of a study released over the weekend suggest that patients aren't as worried about these physical consequences as they used to be. Rather, it's the more hidden aspects of chemotherapy that stress them out in their day-to-day lives, like losing sleep or feeling like their illness is a weight on their loved ones.

In photos: A burlesque guide to making it through chemo

“Chemotherapy sucks the happiness out of you,” says Sondhe. “They have you on so many drugs and so much is going on, you would think you would be able to find that place and find that humor, but it doesn’t exist.”

Study: Chemo hurts patients with end-stage cancer

An important new medical study finds that chemotherapy does not extend life for end-stage, terminal cancer patients. What's more, those who received chemotherapy treatment near the end of their disease had a worse quality of life than those who didn't.

Virtual Chemotherapy

Today, whether you want to or not, you are coming along for a ride to my chemotherapy session. You’re welcome. You might call this a virtual chemo experience.

5 Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Chemo

It’s not easy for you to feel clear headed in the face of a cancer diagnosis. But asking questions — writing them down before your appointment — can give you helpful information and also give you time to think through your decision.

All aboard the chemo bus

Chemotherapy is a harrowing experience but it becomes even harder to endure when such potentially lifesaving treatment lies in a hospital hours away from home. However, there is now a solution that brings chemo to the heart of the community.

Can chemotherapy make cancer worse?

Chemotherapy is the last chance for many cancer survivors, but researchers in Seattle just made what they call a "completely unexpected" discovery that suggests the go-to cancer treatment is a double-edged sword

Chemotherapy Doesn’t Work, Doctor Blows the Whistle

A compendium of misrepresentations led to a Facebook rumor claiming a long-dead doctor had recently revealed that chemotherapy doesn't work.

Chemotherapy doesn’t work? Not so fast

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve come across statements like the ones above, often in all caps, quite frequently with more than one exclamation point, on the websites of “natural healers,” purveyors of “alternative medicine.” In fact, if you Google “chemotherapy doesn’t work,” “chemotherapy is poison,” or “chemotherapy kills,” you’ll get thousands upon thousands of hits. In the case of “chemotherapy kills,”

Does Chemotherapy Deserve Its Bad Rap?

Fortunately, with advanced testing of the tumor, some patients are learning they can avoid chemotherapy as part of their treatment. But for those of us who turn out to be candidates for harsh chemical infusion, the fear of what chemotherapy will do can be overwhelming. We have all heard the horror stories.

Gene Test Helps Some Breast-Cancer Patients Skip Chemo, Study Says

Oncotype DX can help women determine their treatment options

Herbal Cancer Treatments

On this site, there are over 100 pages that provide only information. There are also about 30 pages that discuss herbs and herbal products that can be used to support different aspects of cancer treatment.

Making Chemo More Tolerable

With traditional chemotherapy still the go-to method of treating many cancers, physicians and researchers are trying new ways to ease side effects and make the treatment less toxic.

Secondhand chemo

Cancer drugs help patients, but could they also be endangering caregivers, family members, and the environment?

The Doctor’s Wife in the Chemo Chair

The surgery had gone pretty well. The chemo up until that point had the predicted side effects. But each new day, each new test and each new treatment carried new dangers. Clearing one hurdle did not mean the next would be lower. The whole harrowing experience up to that point had in one way or another just been a dizzying progression of numbers and chances and probabilities culminating at that moment – a colorless fluid easing its way into Ruth’s circulation that had a hair’s breadth of a chance killing her.

What Is Chemo-Brain?

Chemo brain is a mental cloudiness reported by about 30 percent of cancer patients who receive chemotherapy. Symptoms typically include impairments in attention, concentration, executive function, memory and visuospatial skills.

When Chemotherapy Does More Harm than Good

A cancer diagnosis is a life-altering event, and the news—let alone making decisions about how to manage treatment—is already challenging enough. But with a terminal diagnosis, those choices become even more fraught.

Why Chemo Sucks So Bad

“Chemo sucks so bad because it makes your world stop and move in slow motion while everyone buzzes around you because they have to live their lives.