Cancer affects almost 40% of us at some point in our lives. While a cancer diagnosis can fill many people with a sense of doom and gloom, many forms of cancer can be fortunately treated nowadays. By seeking treatment early, you can increase the success rate and reduce the chance of it coming back. There are many different treatment options that you can pursue (or help a relative to pursue). Below are some of the different treatment options that could be worth looking into.
Surgery
Surgery is one of the most common ways to treat cancer. This is typically recommended when cancer is found in one part of the body where it can be easily removed all at once to prevent it from spreading. Some surgeries like skin cancer incisions can be performed under local anaesthesia, while others are performed under general anaesthesia. A surgeon will recommend the best option for you.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy involves using medicines to kill cancer cells around the body. It can be used to shrink tumors before surgery to make them more operable, or may be used to treat entire forms of cancer that may not be operable. Chemotherapy may involve taking pills or may involve taking medicine intravenously. Some people are put off chemo because of the side effects such as nausea and hair loss, however these side effects do not affect everyone and some can be treated.
Radiation therapy
This form of therapy involves using high levels of radiation to help kill off cancer cells. As with chemotherapy, this is sometimes used to shrink a tumor, but can also be used to fully remove certain localized tumors. It also has side effects like chemotherapy that are worth looking into.
Hormone therapy
Certain types of cancer such as breast cancer and prostate cancer may be able to be treated using hormone therapy. Because such cancers typically rely on hormones to grow, reducing hormone levels may be able to stop growth of the cancer. There are different ways of administering hormone therapy from a pill to an injection, and there are possible side effects that you may want to consider.
Holistic treatment
Holistic treatment is typically not carried out at hospitals, but at alternative treatment centers instead. It used non-invasive and natural-based methods of treatment. Some people try holistic treatment after other forms of treatment have failed, while others directly opt for holistic treatment.
Other options
These are not the only forms of cancer treatment. Hospitals may recommend all kinds of other treatment options for specific types of cancers such as stem cell transplants and hyperthermia treatment. Such treatments may be necessary if other forms of treatment aren’t possible. In other cases, patients may find certain treatments unappealing and therefore may prefer these other alternative treatments (for example, some people may be afraid of going under the knife or attempting chemo and may find that other treatment options are less daunting). It’s worth talking to a doctor to see what they recommend. Ultimately, it is your choice as to which treatment option you choose, however you should try to at least research all your options before making a decision.