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Therapy for pancreatic cancer (part 7)


Published : 10 Nov 2021 09:00 PM | Updated : 12 Nov 2021 11:21 AM

Shemotherapy:

Chemotherapy uses drugs to help kill cancer cells. These drugs can be injected into a vein or taken orally. You may receive one chemotherapy drug or a combination of them.

Chemotherapy can also be combined with radiation therapy (chemoradiation). Chemoradiation is typically used to treat cancer that hasn't spread beyond the pancreas to other organs. At specialized medical centers, this combination may be used before surgery to help shrink the tumor. In people with advanced pancreatic cancer and cancer that has spread to other parts of the body, chemotherapy may be used to control cancer growth, relieve symptoms and prolong survival.

Radiation therapy:

Radiation therapy uses high-energy beams, such as those made from X-rays and protons, to destroy cancer cells. You may receive radiation treatments before or after cancer surgery, often in combination with chemotherapy. 

Radiation therapy usually comes from a machine that moves around you, directing radiation to specific points on your body (external beam radiation).  Traditional radiation therapy uses X-rays to treat cancer, but a newer form of radiation using protons is available at some medical centers. In certain situations, proton therapy can be used to treat pancreatic cancer and it may offer fewer side effects compared with standard radiation therapy.

    Courtesy: Mayo Clinic

Related news:

Pancreatic cancer (part 1)

Symptoms, causes of pancreatic cancer (part 2)

Risk factors, complications of pancreatic cancer (part 3)

How to reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer (part 4)