Staying on Track with Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is medicine that goes through your whole body and attacks rapidly dividing cells. That's why chemotherapy is effective against cancer cells, which divide more quickly than most other cells in your body. But the cells in your blood, mouth, and your hair-making cells also divide relatively fast. That's why chemotherapy can cause side effects in those parts of the body.

Your chemotherapy regimen is likely to include a combination of drugs, selected to attack the different kinds of cancer cells in your body. You get it through a needle inserted in your vein (intravenously), or by mouth, as a pill, capsule, or liquid.

Expert Quote

“The reason you're getting adjuvant therapy [treatment to lower the risk of the cancer coming back after surgery] is to kill off any cells that might be there before they take hold. So, once we find out something works, we try to give it sooner rather than later.”

Ann Partridge MD, MPH

Meet our Medical Experts »

Chemotherapy is most effective when you get the full amount for the full number of cycles your doctor recommends. It's also best when the chemotherapy is given on time, without significant delays.

Chemotherapy treatment typically begins as soon as possible after surgery. It is given in cycles, with each treatment period followed by a recovery period. The total course of chemotherapy usually lasts from three to six months.

Problems you might have with sticking to your chemotherapy plan:

• The treatment schedule may conflict with job demands, family needs, or the distance you live from the treatment facility. This may cause you to miss or postpone appointments.
• The success of oral chemotherapy (pills or liquid you take by mouth) depends upon you taking the correct dose of medication, on schedule. But keeping track of dosages is difficult, especially when you have more than one drug to keep track of.
• Common side effects of chemotherapy include nausea, discomfort, pain, fatigue, hair loss, infertility, mild memory loss, and increased risk of infection. Some women have few side effects. Others have them daily. An example of a rare, severe side effect is heart damage. Any of these may cause you to miss appointments or interrupt treatment.

Ways to overcome these problems:

• Ask your doctor what to expect with your particular chemotherapy, so you know as much as possible before you start.
• Remember that side effects have no relationship to how well your treatment is working. Whether or not you have them, the chemotherapy is working to kill cancer cells in your body. And it works best when you get the full recommended regimen on schedule.
• It's not a good idea to skip chemotherapy cycles for vacations or personal events. But you can ask the staff at your treatment center to help you plan the cycles so that upcoming events occur during weeks when you're likely to feel stronger.
• Try to schedule your chemotherapy for Thursday or Friday afternoons. That way, you'll have all weekend to rest up and deal with any side effects.
• When you experience any chemotherapy side effects, call your nurse or doctor for help. Don't think that you'll be bothering them or that you need to "tough it out."
• Most side effects can be minimized or controlled with medications, changes in what you eat and drink, schedule adjustments, or the temporary use of wigs or scarves. You'll find detailed information on this topic in the breastcancer.org section on Dealing with Chemotherapy Side Effects.