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A patient may receive chemotherapy through an IV that delivers medicine into a port. |
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The best way to treat cancer before and/or after surgery is to give strong anti-cancer medicines called chemotherapy. Patients may receive a series of chemotherapy treatments for three to six months or more. Generally, patients receive chemotherapy in one of two forms: intravenously (IV) or in pill form. Patients who receive medicines through an IV have a small tube placed in a vein in one arm, or they have a port (a disk) placed just under the skin in the chest. Usually, patients receive treatments by IV in blocks of time called cycles or courses. For example, a patient may receive treatments every three or four weeks, for three or more months. Patients who receive chemotherapy in pill form take it at home by mouth, usually on a daily basis. |
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Drugs that target DNA act against cancer cells by hurting the tumors’ DNA (the molecules that lay inside of the cell that are responsible for new protein and cell growth). Common side effects of targeted DNA therapy include hair loss, low blood counts, fatigue, nausea (sick feeling in the stomach), and loose bowel movements (diarrhea). Common drugs in this category of therapy include doxorubicin (Adriamycin®), cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan®), paclitaxel (Taxol®), docetaxel (Taxotere®), methotrexate (Trexall®), 5-fluorouracil or 5-FU (Adrucil®), vinorelbine (Navelbine®), capecitabine (Xeloda®) and epirubicin (Ellence®).
Drugs that target receptors are given alone or with other forms of chemotherapy. They can destroy a tumor by recognizing and binding special regions on the tumor. The drugs in this category cause fewer side effects than other common forms of chemotherapy. Herceptin® (trastuzumab) and lapatinib (Tykerb®) are two well-known brands of drug that target Her2/neu receptors.
Hormone (Antiestrogen) therapy is a type of targeted therapy that fights the effect of natural forms of estrogen on cancer growth. About two-thirds of all breast cancers have estrogen and/or progesterone receptors. Tumors with these features may be destroyed or growth stopped by use of drugs that compete with effects of estrogen or that reduce the amount of estrogen that is formed. Common types of drugs in this category include tamoxifen (Nolvadex®), fulvestrant (Faslodex®), and aromatase inhibitors, including anastrozole (Arimidex®), letrozole (Femara®), and exemestane (Aromasin®).
A new form of adjuvant therapy for breast cancer? Recent reports have shown that the use of bisphosphonates (Zometa®, Zolendric acid and Bonefos®, Clodronate) to treat bone density problems (osteoporosis) may also have a significant benefit in preventing the recurrence of breast cancer. Simple infusion schedules are being studied to see if these drugs no only strengthen bones but may also have a role in the prevention of breast cancer relapse.