Treatments
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy, or "chemical treatment," has been around since the days of the ancient Greeks. However, chemotherapy for the treatment of cancer began in the 1940s with the use of nitrogen mustard. Since then, in the attempt to discover what is effective in chemotherapy, many new drugs have been developed and tried. Today's therapy uses more than 100 drugs to treat cancer. There are even more chemo drugs still under development and investigation.
Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays to damage cancer cells and stop them from growing. The radiation comes from a large machine. Radiation therapy for leukemia patients may be given in two ways. For some patients, the doctor may direct the radiation to one specific area of the body where there is a collection of leukemia cells. Other patients may receive radiation that is directed to the whole body. This is called total-body irradiation.
Surgery
The spleen is located in the abdomen, on the left side. It acts as a filtration system for blood cells. When a patient has chronic leukemia, the spleen tends to collect leukemia cells, transfused platelets and red blood cells. Frequently the spleen enlarges from storing these cells. This makes it difficult for the chemotherapy to reduce the quantity of diseased cells. If the spleen is not removed, it sometimes grows so large that it causes breathing difficulty and compresses other organs.
Stem Cell Transplantation
This type of treatment may be referred to as a “bone marrow transplant.” This treatment consists of destroying leukemia bone marrow cells using high doses of chemotherapy and in some cases, radiation therapy. Because high-dose chemotherapy severely damages the bone marrow’s ability to produce cells, healthy stem cells are provided to stimulate new bone marrow growth.
There are two types of stem cell transplantation:
-Autologous SCT involves infusion of your own healthy bone marrow cells.
-Allogeneic SCT involves the infusion of compatible donor cells to you. These cells can be obtained from the bone marrow of a donor or stem cells.
Chemotherapy, or "chemical treatment," has been around since the days of the ancient Greeks. However, chemotherapy for the treatment of cancer began in the 1940s with the use of nitrogen mustard. Since then, in the attempt to discover what is effective in chemotherapy, many new drugs have been developed and tried. Today's therapy uses more than 100 drugs to treat cancer. There are even more chemo drugs still under development and investigation.
Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays to damage cancer cells and stop them from growing. The radiation comes from a large machine. Radiation therapy for leukemia patients may be given in two ways. For some patients, the doctor may direct the radiation to one specific area of the body where there is a collection of leukemia cells. Other patients may receive radiation that is directed to the whole body. This is called total-body irradiation.
Surgery
The spleen is located in the abdomen, on the left side. It acts as a filtration system for blood cells. When a patient has chronic leukemia, the spleen tends to collect leukemia cells, transfused platelets and red blood cells. Frequently the spleen enlarges from storing these cells. This makes it difficult for the chemotherapy to reduce the quantity of diseased cells. If the spleen is not removed, it sometimes grows so large that it causes breathing difficulty and compresses other organs.
Stem Cell Transplantation
This type of treatment may be referred to as a “bone marrow transplant.” This treatment consists of destroying leukemia bone marrow cells using high doses of chemotherapy and in some cases, radiation therapy. Because high-dose chemotherapy severely damages the bone marrow’s ability to produce cells, healthy stem cells are provided to stimulate new bone marrow growth.
There are two types of stem cell transplantation:
-Autologous SCT involves infusion of your own healthy bone marrow cells.
-Allogeneic SCT involves the infusion of compatible donor cells to you. These cells can be obtained from the bone marrow of a donor or stem cells.
Treatment Side Effects
-Infection
-Fatigue
-Bleeding
-Bowel Irritation
-diarrhea or constipation
-Nausea & Vomiting
-Sore Mouth
-Hair Loss
-Weight Loss
-ETC.
-Fatigue
-Bleeding
-Bowel Irritation
-diarrhea or constipation
-Nausea & Vomiting
-Sore Mouth
-Hair Loss
-Weight Loss
-ETC.