Length of Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is the treatment for cancer. Cancer is really a deadly disease and it takes toll of your life. And chemotherapy is a treatment in which different drugs and chemicals are used. It is actually a very broad term. This kind of therapy is meant for killing the cancer cells in the body. The type of chemotherapy, duration and the way of doing this actually depends on the stage of cancer. Duration of this solution depends upon the treatment plan. It is important to note that there are cycles in chemotherapy treatment. There is treatment and then again rest, then again treatment and then rest and so on. Normally it takes some 3-6 months time for completion of the chemotherapy treatment of cancer. The rest periods help in the body’s recovery process. The cells get time to recover from the damage.

The doctors take decision as to what will be the kind of treatment that you will be offered. The doctors may decide upon taking chemotherapy session with single drug or multiple drugs. The duration of treatment is also not fixed. It depends upon the situation. In some patients the duration is or some consecutive days, in some it is alternative days and so on. Depending upon the treatment plan the treatment can be for number of hours or minutes. Doctor will check the recovery and then move forward in the treatment plan.

There are instances where doctors suggest that chemotherapy must take place weekly or bi weekly. Some people also call for monthly treatments. The chemotherapy specialist and the doctor’s team will decide as to how many cycles you will require to get completely alright. The length of chemotherapy mainly depends upon the goal and the aim of treatment. If there is adjuvant chemotherapy which means chemotherapy post surgery then it will take some 6 months complete to remove the cancer effect from the body. This kind of treatment is used mainly in breast and colon cancer problem. It si important to note that if the cancer is of testis or that of leukemia then in such a case the treatment can last for 1 or 2 years too.

If the cancer is visible then in that case the response of the patient mute b seen and also this will decide as to what will be the length of the cancer treatment. Even the small and microscopic cells will be attacked with this treatment. If the cancer does not disappear and it merely shrinks then this therapy can be continued for some more time. It must be continued till it can be tolerated.

This therapy is mainly preferred at the doctor's office. But it can be given in the hospital or at patient’s home also. After giving chemotherapy the doctor tells the patient to stay there for sometime so that he can understand that whether there are any side effects. Chemotherapy can be given either by injections or orally. Here the patient’s patience and the ability to see the tolerance levels come in effect.