Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy, in its most general sense, is the treatment of disease by chemicals especially by killing micro-organisms or cancerous cells. In popular usage, it refers to antineoplastic drugs used to treat cancer or the combination of these drugs into a cytotoxic standardized treatment regimen.

What is Chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy literally refers to the treatment of certain diseases using specific chemicals that are destructive to malignant cells or to the causative agent of a disease such as a bacteria or virus. Therefore, the treatment can be broadly divided into two categories - cancer chemotherapy and antimicrobial chemotherapy.

History of Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy Principles

Chemotherapy Treatment Schemes

Chemotherapy Types

What is 'Chemo Brain'?

Does Scalp Cooling Prevent Hair Loss During Chemotherapy?

How Chemotherapy Affects Daily Living

Latest Chemotherapy News and Research

AstraZeneca receives positive NICE recommendations for lung cancer treatment

AstraZeneca announced that this week it has received two positive recommendations from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for the treatment of lung cancer patients across England and Wales.

25 Jan 2025

Immune environment found to influence success of leukemia immunotherapy

A research team from Columbia Engineering and the Irving Institute for Cancer Dynamics made a pivotal discovery in the field of cancer immunotherapy.

24 Jan 2025

Breakthrough gene discovery offers new hope for medulloblastoma therapy

Scientists at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have identified a key gene that could lead to next-generation treatments for medulloblastoma, the most common malignant brain tumor in children.

24 Jan 2025

Multi-omics approach identifies potential drug combinations for AML treatment

Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is mainly characterized by an increase in the number of myeloid cells in the bone marrow and a decrease in mature cells, accounting for 28% of leukaemia cases, with a five-year survival rate of only 30.5%.

23 Jan 2025

Researchers map genetic differences across children with Wilms tumor

Genetically tailored treatment plans for children with a type of kidney cancer could help provide the most effective care while minimizing side effects as much as possible.

23 Jan 2025

Metronomic chemotherapy offers hope for children with neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial solid tumor in children, with nearly 50% of cases diagnosed at an advanced stage, often with metastatic disease.

23 Jan 2025

AGA releases updated guidelines on hepatitis B reactivation in patients on immunosuppressive drugs

The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) has unveiled an updated clinical practice guideline in Gastroenterology addressing the prevention and management of hepatitis B virus reactivation (HBVr) in patients on immunosuppressive drugs.

23 Jan 2025

Real-world effectiveness and safety of olaparib in HRD-positive BRCA wild-type ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer, a deadly gynecologic malignancy, has seen a significant shift in its treatment paradigm with the introduction of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, which are now standard in the maintenance setting following first-line chemotherapy.

23 Jan 2025

Genomic insights and new treatment paradigms related to HER2-low breast cancer

A new review was published in Oncotarget's Volume 16 on January 20, 2025, titled "Evolving concepts in HER2-low breast cancer: Genomic insights, definitions, and treatment paradigms."

22 Jan 2025

Single dose of novel drug shows tumor-clearing potential in breast cancer models

Despite significant therapeutic advances, breast cancer remains a leading cause of cancer-related death in women.

22 Jan 2025

Study offers insight into how senescent cells survive after cancer treatment

After treating a tumor with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, cells known as senescent cells can appear.

22 Jan 2025

Green tea enriched films show promise for treating oral mucositis

Green tea shines as a natural powerhouse of antioxidants, with catechins leading the charge among its polyphenols, which protect cells from oxidative stress.

22 Jan 2025

Researchers launch startup to revolutionize targeted drug delivery using milk exosomes

Two Nebraska researchers have launched a startup company aimed at bringing to market an innovative method for delivering therapeutics, gene editing tools, plasmids and more to targeted locations in the human body.

17 Jan 2025

New clinical trial aims to extend survival for bile duct cancer patients

A new clinical trial, sponsored by UCL and UCLH, aims to extend survival for some patients with cancer in the biliary tract by treating them with therapies specifically tailored to the genetic profile of their tumor.

17 Jan 2025

Triple-drug chemo fails to improve survival in advanced biliary tract cancer

The results of a clinical trial led by researchers at the University of Arizona Health Sciences and published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology showed that chemotherapy combining three different types of drugs did not improve overall survival for patients with advanced stage, inoperable biliary tract cancers.

17 Jan 2025

Non-toxic bacterial therapy shows promise for targeting tumors

A University of Massachusetts Amherst-Ernest Pharmaceuticals team of scientists has made "exciting," patient-friendly advances in developing a non-toxic bacterial therapy, BacID, to deliver cancer-fighting drugs directly into tumors.

16 Jan 2025

Researchers discover a major driver of osteosarcoma

A major driver of the bone cancer osteosarcoma has been discovered by researchers from UCL, EMBL EBI and the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, providing insights that could help to predict cancer severity and how patients will respond to treatment.

16 Jan 2025

T-DM1 reduces long-term risk of death in HER2-positive breast cancer patients

In patients with high-risk HER2-positive breast cancer, post-surgery, or adjuvant, treatment with trastuzumab emtansine (T-DM1) reduced the long-term risk of death or invasive disease by 46% and improved survival compared to trastuzumab alone, according to the final results of the phase 3 KATHERINE clinical trial led by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Hillman Cancer Center.

16 Jan 2025

ORACLE test enhances prediction of lung cancer outcomes

A new test, developed by researchers from UCL Cancer Institute and the Francis Crick Institute, can better predict lung cancer survival at the point of diagnosis, which could inform treatment decisions and potentially reduce the risk of the cancer returning or spreading.

13 Jan 2025

New test could predict lung cancer outcomes using tumor DNA

Scientists from the Francis Crick Institute, UCL, UCLH and Personalis have found that a test to detect circulating tumor DNA can predict lung cancer outcome in a Cancer Research UK-funded study.

13 Jan 2025