5 Types of Therapies That Breast Cancer Patients Have To Go Through

Cancer, also known as tumor or malignancy is a disease caused by the formation of abnormal cells in the body. The uncontrolled division of cells in different parts of the body and spreading in the surrounding tissues is what causes cancer. Cancer can initiate in any cell of the human body. Many cancers convert into hard tumors. The word malignancy is suggestive of the fact that they can spread and affect the surrounding tissues rapidly. This is not the case with benign tumors as they don’t invade nearby tissues. Benign tumors can be treated by removing them or replacing them using a transplant such as bone marrow transplant to initiate graft-versus-tumor effect. 

As per the well-known oncologist, Dr. Sidharth Sahni, breast cancer can happen due to following cases: 

•If the mother doesn’t feed the child right after birth 

•There is a history of breast cancer within the family 

•Irregular periods 

•History of issues with reproductive organs 

•Prominent mood swings   

•Indisciplined lifestyle  

Unlike all other kind of cancers, it is comparatively easier to cure breast cancer if detected at early stage. 

The doctors have to give several kinds of therapies to the patient and here are 5 prominent therapies associated with it 

1.Chemotherapy:

It involves treating cancer with specific medicines or drugs that can kill cancer cells. These drugs interfere with the natural process of cell multiplication. Chemotherapy can cause harm to healthy tissues which usually recover after sometime. The combination of two or more drugs is sometimes prescribed to achieve the desired result which is known as ‘combination chemotherapy’. High dose chemotherapy is carried out in some cases such as leukemia.

2.Targeted Therapy:

This involves targeting the cancer cells by deregulating the proteins of target cells by using specific agents. Monoclonal antibody therapy, photodynamic therapy etc. are some of its types. It involves the usage of inhibitors or peptides that binds to the surface of protein of cancer cells. Sometimes high therapeutic ultrasound and lasers are also used under targeted therapy.

3.Radiation Therapy:

Also known as radio therapy or X ray therapy, involves the usage of ionizing radiation to destroy cancer cells or reduce their size. The focused radiation therapy on particular cells makes it difficult for them to grow and multiply. 

4.Immunotherapy:

Cancer immunotherapy refers to strengthening the person’s own immune system to fight cancer. This involves the usage of interferons, cancer vaccines, sipulieucel- T etc. to target the specific cells within body. Bone marrow transplantation from a genetically non identical donor is also a form of immunotherapy in which the donor’s immune cells attacks the tumor in a process known as graft-versus-tumor-effect. The cell-based immunotherapy is also widespread especially in Japan in which the patient’s own cells and lymphocytes are used to kill cancer cells.

5.Hormonal Therapy:

Blocking certain hormones in the body can inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Cancers such as prostate and breast cancer are some of the examples of hormone sensitive cancers. It involves blocking estrogen or progesterone or introducing hormone agonists.

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Created on Sep 14th 2020 07:30. Viewed 462 times.

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