What is the difference between chemotherapy and radiation therapy for cancer?

Answer 1

The main object of both treatment is to kill all the cancer cells, but by different methods to ensure no cancerous cell is left behind in the disease spot.

Chemotherapy - Chemotherapy is done by giving chemical drugs which can kill the cancer cells. Chemotherapy is a systemic therapy; this means it affects the whole body by going through the bloodstream. The purpose of chemotherapy and other systemic treatments is to get rid of any cancer cells that may have spread from where the cancer started to another part of the body.

Chemotherapy is effective against cancer cells because the drugs love to interfere with rapidly dividing cells. The side effects of chemotherapy come about because cancer cells aren't the only rapidly dividing cells in your body. The cells in your blood, mouth, intestinal tract, nose, nails, vagina, and hair are also undergoing constant, rapid division. This means that the chemotherapy is going to affect them, too.

Radiation Therapy - Radiation therapy is one of the most common treatments for cancer. It is often part of the main treatment for some types of cancer, such as cancers of the head and neck, bladder, lung, and Hodgkin disease. Many other cancers are also treated with radiation therapy. Thousands of people become free of cancer after receiving radiation treatments, either alone or combined with other treatments such as surgery or chemotherapy.
All cells, whether cancerous or healthy, grow and divide to form new cells. But cancer cells grow and divide more quickly than many of the normal cells around them.

Unlike chemotherapy, which exposes the entire body to cancer-fighting drugs, radiation therapy is usually a local treatment. It affects only the part of the body being treated. In the case of radioactive substances that are given in the vein or by mouth, the radiation does travel throughout the body.

Generally the combination of both Chemo and Radiation treatments are given to the patient to ensure that all the cells are killed. -

Answer 2

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What is the difference between chemotherapy and radiation therapy for cancer?

Answer 3

Chemo Vs Radiation

Answer 4

Radiation Vs Chemo

Answer 5

Chemotherapy is given in drug form, it enters the blood system and is known as systemic because its treats the whole body.

Radiotherapy is a little more comlex. Using very large x-ray machines (like when you break an arm) it delivers a beam of x-rays to a paticular site where the cancer is located. Because x-rays are radiation, the radiation is delivered to a very specific area in the body and kills cells where is it targeted, that way killing of the cells of the tumour.

Answer 6

Chemotherapy is a bunch of chemicals and other medicinal things getting pumped through the body, but radiation is just really strong rays which are put through the body to try to shrink the tumor or whatever is there

Answer 7

Chemotherapy is the use of medicines (or drugs) to treat disease.

Radiation therapy uses ionizing radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors.

Answer 8

Chemotherapy is treatment using medication. Radiation is treatment using xray type equipment with beams directed toward the cancerous area for a pre-determined period of time. I believe both forms last 6 weeks. Patients usually go once a week for 6 weeks and can make the patients very weak, tired and just not feel too well. Radiation can cause a burn or discoloration to the skin and chemotherapy normally causes the patient to lose their hair, and often their eyebrows and eyelashes.

Answer 9

I can personally tell you about radiation, I had a brain tumor and had surgery and it was removed and the path came back saying it was a Grade 3, which means if it one day comes back it would come back as a Grade 4. So, I have had 6 weeks of treatments everyday(except the weekends). It caused me to have problems with my teeth was it was over and to lose my hair and it still has not grown back and they say it may never grow in. Good news I have been cancer-free for almost two years now!

Answer 10

Chemo is chemical treatment through the blood ,whereas radiation tx is with x-ray type devices. Hope tat helps?