Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses medicine to stop or slow the growth of cancer cells. If you’ve been diagnosed with cancer, understanding more about this therapy can help you feel better about the cancer treatment process.

At MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, we offer the South Jersey community a wide range of advanced — and effective — chemotherapies. Because we understand the impact cancer treatment can have on your life, we provide a wide variety of resources to help you during this difficult time.

Chemotherapy: What You Should Know

Your treatment team will determine whether (and which) chemotherapies you might benefit from most. They will consider the type and stage of disease as well as where the disease is located. Here are some details:

• What is chemotherapy? Chemotherapy medicines attack cancer cells in different ways. They can be delivered via injection into a blood vessel or swallowed as a pill. Because there are so many chemotherapy medicines, your treatment team will decide which combinations you will benefit from most, and when.
• How we use chemotherapy: Chemotherapy can be used alone or with other cancer treatments, such as surgery, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy. Your treatment team will tailor your treatment plan to your specific needs. There are several ways to receive chemotherapy, including:
  • Port or catheter: In most cases, a small, round disc made of plastic or metal (port) or a soft, thin tube (catheter) is placed under your skin into a larger blood vessel of your chest. This port or catheter acts as a permanent IV so that you don’t have to get pricked in the arm with each treatment. It will remain under your skin until your treatment is completed.
  • Infusion: Sometimes, the medications are given through a thin needle (part of the IV) that is placed in a vein in your hand or lower arm. The IV is attached to a bag that holds the medicine. Once the medicine flows into the blood, it can travel throughout the body and attack cancer cells.
  • Pills or liquid: Chemotherapy also can be taken as a pill, capsule, or liquid that is swallowed or injected directly into your body.
• Chemotherapy side effects: Your treatment team will help prepare you for any side effects and how they can be relieved.
• How you benefit: As doctors learn more about how chemotherapies work, they know more about who will benefit from certain medicines, and at which point in your treatment. Your response to chemotherapy will depend on multiple factors. Many chemotherapies today have proven to be very effective at fighting different types of cancer.