How Long Does Chemotherapy Procedure Continue
Chemotherapy Treatment
Chemotherapy is a mode of treatment to treat various kinds of cancer, the drugs that are used are toxic by nature and are known to destroy the cancerous cells or slow down the rapid growth of these cells. The mode of treatment depends upon the type of cancer, the stage of cancer and the most important thing the prognosis of the patient. The treatment period varies.
All chemotherapy treatments are given in cycles and after each cycle there is a rest period as this helps you to recover from the damage done to the body as well as the normal healthy cells before you move further in your treatment cycle. Chemotherapy lasts for three to six months and the length of the treatment depends upon each cycle, the number of cycles and the frequency of each cycle.
Recovery period
Chemotherapy can be single drug chemotherapy or a combination of two or more drugs in order to help treat cancer. The treatment may be just for a day or may go on for a few days depending upon the treatment plan and the number. Each treatment cycle includes the rest period or the recovery period after the completion of each treatment cycle.
The frequency of each cycle can be repeated on weekly bases, bi-weekly bases and even on monthly bases. A treatment cycle is usually defined as a monthly interval cycle.
The number of cycles or the number of chemotherapy frequency is determined only after the doctor and the entire team makes a thorough research and other clinical tests are performed.
Length of chemotherapy
The time duration or the length of the chemotherapy depends upon curing you completely then adjuvant chemotherapy will also be applied to you after you undergo surgery and this treatment can take at least four to six months to eradicate the cancerous cells completely. If you are suffering from testicular cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin and leukaemia then the treatment cycle may extend to almost a year.
In case the cancer is visible then the length of the treatment will always depend upon how the body responds to the treatment. Chemotherapy is administered for a couple of treatment cycles or until the size of the tumour decreases or vanishes completely. Even though these tumours may disappear a cycle or two may be continued so that the cancerous cells that may have spread in the body are destroyed.
Chemotherapy can be administered in the house, office, doctor’s clinic and even in the outpatient department of the hospital. During the initial chemotherapy stages you will be asked to stay in the hospital so as to monitor the effects or the side effects of the drugs.
There are various ways by which chemotherapy drugs are administered like they can be administered intravenously can be injected taken topically or even orally. The length of the treatment depends upon a few factors like the stage of cancer, type of cancer, patient’s health and the response to the treatment. Moreover the ability of the patient to tolerate the effects of these drugs is all taken into consideration when the treatment is commenced.