Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy: What is it?

Many of us have heard the term “chemotherapy”, let’s learn more about it.

To be precise, chemotherapy is one of the modern highly technological methods of treatment for different types of malignant tumours by injecting of special chemicals and medications into the body.

This treating method has systemic influence on a cancer patient’s body. Reaching all body cells the preparations accumulate in pathological tissues and destroy them.

There is no universal approach while choosing the scheme of treatment, it is prescribed individually.

The course of chemotherapy is determined by a number of factors:

• Location of the tumour
• Its structure
• Patient’s health, and
• Patient’s psychological state

In Onco.Rehab clinic chemotherapy, as a treating method, is an important element of integrative therapy.

The usage of the method

Chemotherapy can be prescribed:

• in the case of high sensitivity of tumour cells to chemotherapy medicines;
• as a preliminary stage before the surgery;
• as metastasis prevention;
• as an additional measure to irradiation or surgery;
• in the case of hyperthermia.

Hyperthermia

Chemotherapy: types according to the time of the course

Let us talk about several types of chemotherapy, which take place in different periods.

Adjuvant maintenance therapy

It is a complex of auxiliary therapeutic measures, which goal is to prevent the recurrence of identified and already treated nidus of atypia.

Cytostatics, that are used here, inhibit and suppress pathological processes in tissues. They positively influence active division and reproduction of healthy tissues.

As this method has a disastrous effect on metastases, the recurrence is minimized, and the chances of the patient’s recovery significantly increase.

Neoadjuvant therapy

This method represents the usage of cytostatics before the surgery.

The main goal of the treatment is to reveal the reaction of the malignant tumour to the injected medications, which will reduce the size of the tumour.

Moreover, the injected medications affect microcancerous lesions and metastases, increasing the resectability of the tumour.

Induction chemotherapy

It takes place during the preoperative period and is meant to prepare the patient’s body to the surgery.

In medical practice this method is widely used for improving a patient’s quality of life when the tumour is considered inoperable.

Palliative chemotherapy

When other treating methods are impossible, palliative chemotherapy is used.

It happens in the case of:

• tumours of significant size;
• extensive metastasis.

Injected cytostatics inhibit tumour growth, help reduce the pain syndrome, thus easing the patient’s health condition and prolonging the patient’s life.

Chemotherapy: types according to the coloring of medications

Medications used in chemotherapy are classified according to the colour of their components.

Thus, medicine distinguishes the following types of chemotherapy:

• Red therapy – is the most aggressive and toxic variant. Injected medications of the antacycline subgroup may lower the immune barriers and anti-infective protection. A correctly chosen treatment destroys the malignant cells, prevents their further reproduction and proliferation. Breaks between the courses are compulsory, as the patient’s body should recover and get rid of toxins.
• Yellow therapy – uses the most gentle anti-cancer medications, that are tolerated by patients more easily. In this case the patient’s body needs less time for recovery.
• White therapy – is based on such medications as Taxol or Tacosel.

To increase the efficiency of treatment courses specialists, as a rule, recommend polychemotherapy combined with other methods.

As for medications used in the Onco.Rehab clinic, it should be noticed that at the end of 2019 the purchase of original medicines made up more than 80% in financial terms. They include:

• Vemurafenib (Zelboraf)
• Dabrafenib (Tafinlar) + Trametinib (Mekinist)
• Lenvatinib (Lenvima)
• Lapatinib (Tyverb)
• Abiraterone
• Axitinib
• Vandetanib
• Vismodegib
• Olaparib
• Enzalutamide
• Osimertinib
• Sunitinib
• Trastuzumab
• Pertuzumab
• Regorafenib
• Sorafenib
• Everolimus
• Ceritinib
• Nintedanib
• Palbociclib
• Ribociclib

Targeted chemotherapy

It is one of the fast-growing methods of chemotherapy. It affects atypical cells on a molecular genetic level.

The selective and ultra-precise disorder of the delicate mechanisms of cellular metabolism leads to the situation when the injected medications significantly inhibit the proliferation of atypical cells and even induce their self-destruction. At the same time, the metabolism of healthy elements can hardly be negatively affected. It means that the patient’s risk to face side effects of chemotherapy is minimal.

Induction chemotherapy

Induction chemotherapy is used:

• as a therapeutic measure;
• as a part of palliative therapy.

This method is usually chosen in 3 cases:

• The stage of the disease makes the surgery ineffective.
• The malignant nidus is highly sensitive to the injected medications.
• The patient has aggravating somatic pathologies.

Hyperthermic chemotherapy

Medical practice proves that the injection of medication in combination with hyperthermia increases the effectiveness of cancer treatment. This strategy is applied in case of:

• diagnosing of large tumours;
• metastasis inside organs.

The undeniable advantage of hyperthermic therapy lies in the significant reduction in the toxic effects on the patient’s body.

Platinum chemotherapy

Platinum-based medicines have already proven themselves in the fight against atypical changes. Such medicines are able to influence the mutated cells, which are localized in the zones where other medications are ineffective.

Platinum medicines help against tumours in:

• lung structures,
• ovaries,
• bladder, and
• testicles.

Gentle and high-dose chemotherapy

Gentle chemotherapy means the treatment of tumour centres with cytostatic medications, which minimize side effects. However, one should understand that cytostatics are less effective than other anti-cancer drugs.

This method is typically used:

• With mild forms of malignant tumours at the second or third stages of their formation to prevent possible distant single metastases.
• During the treatment of weak patients to minimize the toxic effects on the body.

Doses of chemotherapy medications are increased at the presence of any types of lymphoma, as the risk of rapid growth and metastasis even at early stages is very high.

High-dose chemotherapy shows remarkable toxic exposure on the patient’s body, e.g. vomiting, nausea, diarrhea.

To give the cancer patient possibility to recover, breaks between the courses are longer.

When choosing the type of chemotherapy specialists always follow one main principle: do no harm to the patient.

The Onco.Rehab clinic of integrative oncology offers medication therapy for cancer patients.

Systemic treatment and rehabilitation are available for Muscovites and residents of OTHER REGIONS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION with CMI policy.

To receive systemic treatment and rehabilitation you need a 057-U reference for the hospitalization/rehabilitation to "Oncoklinika", ltd.

If you want to be treated in Onco.Rehab, the first integrative oncology clinic in Russia, you MUST NOT NOTE on your medical form "Treatment at the place of residence".