Bangalore successfully performed a bone marrow transplant on Omani girl

Dubai, Dec 29, (PTI) :

A three-year-old girl in Oman, who was diagnosed with leukaemia six months back, has got a new lease of life after doctors in Bangalore successfully performed a bone marrow transplant on her.

Thyroid Disorders and Surgery

Insight into complications and treatment

•What is a thyroid disorder?

•What treatment may be recommended?

•What is thyroid surgery?

•and more...

Your thyroid gland is one of the endocrine glands that makes hormones to regulate physiological functions in your body, like metabolism. Other endocrine glands are the pancreas, the pituitary, the adrenal glands, and the parathyroid glands.

The thyroid gland is located in the middle of the lower neck, below the larynx (voice box) and wraps around the front half of the trachea (windpipe). It is shaped like a bow tie, just above the collarbones, having two halves (lobes) which are joined by a small tissue bar (isthmus.). You can’t always feel a normal thyroid gland.

What is a thyroid disorder?

Diseases of the thyroid gland are very common, affecting millions of Americans. The most common thyroid problems are:

•an overactive gland, called hyperthyroidism (e.g., Graves’ disease, toxic adenoma or toxic nodular goiter)

•an underactive gland, called hypothyroidism (e.g., Hashimoto’s thyroiditis)

•thyroid enlargement due to overactivity (as in Graves’ disease) or from under-activity (as in hypothyroidism). An enlarged thyroid gland is often called a “goiter”.

Patients with a family history or who had radiation therapy to the head or neck as children for acne, adenoids, or other reasons are more prone to develop thyroid malignancy.

If you develop significant swelling in your neck or difficulty breathing or swallowing, you should call your surgeon or be seen in the emergency room.

What treatment may be recommended?

Depending on the nature of your condition, treatment may include the following:

Hypothyroidism treatment:

•thyroid hormone replacement pills

Hyperthyroidism treatment:

•medication to block the effects of excessive production of thyroid hormone

•radioactive iodine to destroy the thyroid gland

•surgical removal of the thyroid gland

Goiters (lumps):

If you experience this condition, your doctor will propose a treatment plan based on the examination and your test results. He may recommend:

A fine needle aspiration biopsy—a safe, relatively painless procedure. With this procedure, a hypodermic needle is passed into the lump, often after administration of local anesthesia into the skin, and tissue fluid samples containing cells are taken. Often several passes with the needle are required. Sometimes ultrasound may be used to guide the needle into the nodule. There is little pain afterward and very few complications from the procedure occur. This test gives the doctor more information on the nature of the lump in your thyroid gland and specifically may help to differentiate a benign from a malignant thyroid mass.

Thyroid surgery—may be required when:

•the fine needle aspiration is reported as suspicious for or suggestive of cancer

•the trachea (windpipe) or esophagus are compressed because both lobes are very large

Historically, some malignant thyroid nodules have shown a reduction in size with the administration of thyroid hormone. However, this treatment, known as medical “suppression” therapy, has proven to be an unreliable treatment method.

What is thyroid surgery?

Thyroid surgery is an operation to remove part or all of the thyroid gland. It is performed in the hospital, and general anesthesia is usually required. Typically the operation removes the lobe of the thyroid gland containing the lump and possibly the isthmus. A frozen section (an immediate microscopic reading) may or may not be used to determine if the rest of the thyroid gland should be removed.

Sometimes, based on the result of the frozen section, the surgeon may decide not to remove any additional thyroid tissue, or proceed to remove the entire thyroid gland, and/or other tissue in the neck. This is a decision usually made in the operating room by the surgeon, based on findings at the time of surgery. Your surgeon will discuss these options with you preoperatively.

There may be times when the definite microscopic answer cannot be determined until several days after surgery. If a malignancy is identified in this way, your surgeon may recommend that the remaining lobe of the thyroid be removed at a second procedure. If you have specific questions about thyroid surgery, ask your otolaryngologist and he or she will answer them in detail.

What happens after thyroid surgery?

During the first 24 hours:

After surgery, you may have a drain (a tiny piece of plastic tubing), which prevents fluid and blood from building up in the wound. This is removed after the fluid accumulation has stabilized, usually within 24 hours after surgery. Most patients are discharged later the same day or the day following the procedure.

Complications are rare but may include:

•bleeding

•a hoarse voice

•difficulty swallowing

•numbness of the skin on the neck

•vocal cord paralysis

•low blood calcium

At home:

Following the procedure, if it is determined that you need to take any medication, your surgeon will discuss this with you, prior to your discharge.

Medications may include:

•thyroid hormone replacement

•calcium and/or vitamin D replacement

Some symptoms may not become evident for two or three days after surgery. If you experience any of the following, call your surgeon:

•numbness and tingling around the lips and hands

•increasing pain

•fever

•swelling

•wound discharge

If a malignancy is identified, thyroid replacement medication may be withheld for several weeks. This allows a radioactive scan to better detect any remaining microscopic thyroid tissue, or spread of malignant cells to lymph nodes or other sites in the body.

How is a diagnosis made?

The diagnosis of a thyroid function abnormality or a thyroid mass is made by taking a medical history and a physical examination. Specifically, your doctor will examine your neck and ask you to lift up your chin to make your thyroid gland more prominent. You may be asked to swallow during the examination, which helps to feel the thyroid and any mass in it. Other tests your doctor may order include:

•evaluation of the larynx/vocal cords with a mirror or a fiberoptic telescope

•an ultrasound examination of your neck and thyroid

•blood tests of thyroid function

•a radioactive thyroid scan

•a fine needle aspiration biopsy

•a chest X-ray

•a CT or MRI scan

Published in

http://www.entnet.org/HealthInformation/Thyroid-Disorders.cfm

PX-866 anti cancer drug effective in heart disease

Oncothyreon Inc. said a test of its PX-866 anti-cancer drug was “effective” in a test related to heart disease.

At the American Thoracic Society International Conference in San Diego this week, Dr. William Hardie, an associate professor of pulmonary medicine at Children’s Hospital Medical Center in Cincinnati, said in his preclinical model test of pulmonary fibrosis, PX-866 “prevented both the deterioration in lung function and the fibrosis normally seen in the model.” He added that the results possibly indicate the drug “might be beneficial in such human lung diseases as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.”

Officials at the Seattle biotech (NASDAQ: ONTY) said although they’re currently focusing PX-866 on cancer, they’re “very interested” in the possibilities of its use “in non-malignant diseases, including autoimmune and cardiovascular diseases.”

Published in

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2009/05/18/daily10.html

Cancer cuasing product منتجات أمريكية مسرطنة

دبي – محمد عايش

اعترفت منظمات أهلية أمريكية أن قائمة طويلة من مواد التجميل ومنتجات الأطفال التي يتم تصديرها إلى أسواق الخليج وبعض الدول العربية الأخرى، تتضمن مواد مسرطنة محظورة، ومن بينها منتجات تحمل علامات تجارية عالمية تلقى إقبالاً كبيراً في الدول الخليجية.وحسب المنظمات التي أصدرت بياناً بهذا الشأن الثلاثاء 25-3-2008 فإن بعض المستحضرات ومنتجات الشامبو ومواد التجميل التي يتم تصديرها إلى الخليج ومصر والأردن ودول أخرى لم تسمها تحتوي على مادة الـ"ديوكسين 1.4" المسرطن.

وقالت المنظمات التي أطلقت حملة "مواد تجميل آمنة" إن مادة برتوكيماوية من مشتقات النفط اسمها "ديوكسين 1.4" قد تم العثور عليها في عدد من شامبوهات الاستحمام للنساء والأطفال بنسب أعلى من المسموح بها. وأشارت الحملة، في بيان لها، أن التحاليل المعملية المستقلة كشفت عن وجود مادة "دايوكسين 1.4" في شامبو الاستحمام "هالو كيتي"، وفي منتج "هاجيز" لغسيل جسم الأطفال وفي شامبو جونسون للأطفال -وهي معلومات نفتها الشركة لاحقا- وفي شامبوهات تباع تحت أسماء تجارية جذابة أخرى بغرض جذب الأطفال إليها. وأضاف البيان أن الـ"دايوكسين" منتج مشتق من البترول تعتبره وكالة حماية البيئة الأمريكية مسرطنا محتملا للإنسان، ومسببا للسرطان ثابتا للحيوان وفق برنامج المواد السامة القومي". وكشف القائمون على الحملة أن هيئة الأغذية والأدوية الأمريكية، وهي هيئة حكومية أمريكية، لا تراجع تلك المنتجات أو تقوم بتحليلها قبل أن تباع، وإنما تطلب فقط أن تقوم الشركات المنتجة بذلك بنفسها. وقالت الحملة إن انتشار هذه المادة يعتبر خطيراً للغاية، حيث إن النساء والأطفال يستخدمون في المتوسط 12 منتجاً للنظافة الشخصية والتجميل يوميا. من جهتها اعتبرت شركة جونسون أن جونسون أن صدور مطالبات من هيئة الأغذية والأدوية الأمريكية للحد الطوعي من نسبة استخدام الديوكسان في منتجات العناية الشخصية هي ادعاءات غير صحيحة روجتها بعض المجموعات البيئية في الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية، مؤكدة أن هذه المادة تعد عنصرا شائعا في صناعة تلك المنتجات وأنها لا تشكل خطرا على السلامة ضمن نسب منخفضة مشيرة ايضا إلى انها تظهر بشكل طبيعي وآمن في المنتجات الغذائية مثل الطماطم ومنتجاتها والبن والدجاج المقلي. وقالت الشركة أيضا إنها قامت بوقف اثنين من منتجاتها في السابق وأبقت منتجا واحدا لا تتعدى نسبة مادة الديوكسان فيه نسبة أربعة أجزاء في المليون، مشيرة إلى المنتجات التي رفعت من التداول لم تسوق أبدا في أسواق الشرق الأوسط.

وأكد رئيس وحدة المسرطنات في مستشفى الملك فيصل التخصصي بالرياض الدكتور فهد الخديري لـ"الأسواق.نت" أن مادة الـ"ديوكسين 1.4" مسرطنة فعلاً، وقد أثبتت الأبحاث العلمية أنها مسبب رئيس لمرض السرطان، إلا أن الدكتور الخديري قال إنه لا زال غير متأكد من وجود هذه المادة في المنتجات التي تحدث عنها التقرير الأمريكي. ووصف المادة بأنها "سامة جداً، وتسبب مشاكل وأمراضا في الجلد إذا كانت موجودة في الشامبو"، وقال إن قوة تأثيرها ترجع إلى كميتها ونسبة تركيزها، مشيراً إلى أنها حتى لو كانت موجودة بنسب مسموحة فإن بعض الأطفال قد يسرف في استخدام المنتجات التي تتضمنها بما يؤدي إلى تعرضهم للخطر. ودعا الدكتور الخديري الدول العربية والخليجية إلى إيجاد مختبرات متخصصة للكشف عن المواد الضارة في المنتجات التي يتم استيرادها، وقال "يجب أن يكون في كل مركز جمركي أو منفذ حدودي مختبر متكامل ومجهز للكشف عن المواد الواردة وعدم الاعتماد على شهادات المنشأ معها".

وتعليقاً على ما جاء في بيان المنظمات الأمريكية، وما خلصت إليه تحليلاتهم بشأن المنتجات، قال الخبير الإماراتي في قضايا حماية المستهلك الدكتور حسن الكثيري لـ"الأسواق.نت" إن مشكلة بلادنا تتلخص في عدم وجود مواصفات ومقاييس واضحة تتعلق بالمنتجات التي يتم تصديرها إلى بلادنا، ولذلك تستغل الشركات هذا الجانب وتقوم بتصدير منتجات ضارة أو غير صحية إلينا. وأضاف الدكتور الكثيري "لكل سلعة مواصفات ومقاييس خاصة بها، وآليات لاستكشاف هذه المواصفات والتأكد من وجودها، لكن غالبية الدول العربية ودول العالم الثالث لا توجد بها للأسف مواصفات، وإذا وجدت المواصفات فلا توجد الآليات والمختبرات الفنية اللازمة للتأكد من مطابقة هذه المواصفات، وبالتالي تضطر دولنا للاعتماد على الأوراق المرفقة مع البضائع الواردة". وضرب الكثيري مثالاً على غياب المواصفات عن بلادنا بقوله "في الولايات المتحدة يوجد أكثر من 100 ألف مواصفة، بحيث لا يوجد منتج إلا وله مواصفاته الخاصة التي يتم التحقق منها عند دخوله إلى البلاد، أما في الدول العربية فيتراوح عدد المواصفات بين 5 و6 آلاف فقط"! ولفت الكثيري إلى أن بعض الشركات الأجنبية التي يتم سحب منتجاتها من الأسواق الأمريكية أو الأوروبية؛ لمخالفتها المواصفات، تقوم بإعادة تصدير هذه المنتوجات المسحوبة إلى العالم العربي نتيجة علمهم بغياب المواصفات والمعايير الموجودة في بلادهم عن عالمنا العربي. ودعا الكثيري الدول العربية والخليجية على وجه الخصوص إلى تأسيس مختبرات مركزية متخصصة على مستوى العالم العربي أو على مستوى مجلس التعاون الخليجي؛ للكشف عن المنتجات الطبية والغذائية، والتأكد من صلاحيتها قبل السماح بدخولها. وقال إن دولنا العربية إذا لم تكن قادرة على تأسيس مثل هذه المختبرات، فيمكنها أن تتخذ قراراً سهلاً وبسيطاً لحماية شعوبها من المنتجات الضارة، وهو أن تشترط لإدخال أي منتج أن يكون مسموحاً تداوله في بلد المنشأ، إذ من غير المعقول أن يكون المنتج ممنوعاً لأسباب صحية في بلده، ومسموحاً في بلادنا!

منقول من

http://www.alaswaq.net/articles/2008/03/27/14880.html

CANCER-CAUSING CHEMICAL FOUND IN CHILDREN'S BATH PRODUCTS

February 08, 2007

CONTACT:Stacy Malkan, Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, (202) 321-6963; David Steinman, author, “Safe Trip to Eden,” (310) 403-6995; Sheila Huettl, Freedom Press, (800) 959-9797

WASHINGTON — A hidden cancer-causing petrochemical has been found in dozens of children’s bath products and adults’ personal care products, at higher than acceptable levels.

Laboratory tests released today revealed the presence of 1,4-Dioxane in products such as Hello Kitty Bubble Bath, Huggies Baby Wash, Johnson’s Baby Wash, Scooby-Doo Bubble Bath and Sesame Street Bubble Bath. The tests also found the carcinogen in Clairol Herbal Essences shampoo, Olay Complete Body Wash and many other personal care products.

1,4-Dioxane is a petroleum-derived contaminant considered a probable human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a clear-cut animal carcinogen by the National Toxicology Program. It is also on California’s Proposition 65 list of chemicals known or suspected by the state to cause cancer or birth defects. Because it is a contaminant produced during manufacturing, the FDA does not require it to be listed as an ingredient on product labels.

The problem of 1,4-Dioxane contamination in personal care products is highlighted in a new book, “Safe Trip to Eden: Ten Steps to Save the Planet Earth from the Global Warming Meltdown,” by David Steinman. The laboratory results were released jointly today at the National Press Club by Steinman and the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition of U.S.-based health and environmental groups working to protect cosmetics consumers from toxic chemicals and hold companies accountable for the safety of their products.

“Regrettably, 1,4-Dioxane contamination is just the tip of the iceberg,” said Jeanne Rizzo, R.N., executive director of the Breast Cancer Fund, a founding member of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. “Because the FDA does not require cosmetics products to be approved as safe before they are sold, companies can put unlimited amounts of toxic chemicals in cosmetics.”

Steinman said parents should be outraged that companies are willing to spend a significant amount of money on entertainment licensing agreements that entice children but won’t spend pennies to remove contaminants such as 1,4-Dioxane.

“Consumers who have young children, as I do, have the right to expect the highest purity in children’s products,” Steinman said. “I call on American consumers to say no to dangerous petrochemicals in their children’s cosmetic and personal care products.”

Contrary to what many consumers may believe, the FDA does not review or regulate cosmetics products or ingredients for safety before they are sold to the public and has no legal authority to require safety assessments of cosmetics.

Devra Lee Davis, professor of epidemiology and director of the Center for Environmental Oncology at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, said that the usual regulatory approach of assessing risk one chemical at a time does not account for the combined effects of very low levels of hidden contaminants in personal care products and from other sources. “We must lower exposures to controllable agents that we know or suspect cause cancer,” she said.

The FDA has been measuring 1,4-Dioxane levels since 1979, but because the agency has little authority or enforcement capacity over the cosmetics industry, it has worked with manufacturers to reduce levels on a voluntary basis only.

More than two dozen products were tested at Steinman’s request by West Coast Analytical Service, an independent testing laboratory specializing in trace chemical analysis. Among the products tested:

• 
  ProductBaby & Children’s Consumer Products 1,4-Dioxaneconcentration
• 
  Disney Clean as Can Bee Hair & Body Wash (Water Jel Technologies) 8.8 ppm
  Disney Pixar Cars Piston Cup Bubble Bath (MZB Personal Care) 2.2 ppm
  Gerber Grins & Giggles Gentle & Mild Aloe Vera Baby Shampoo 8.4 ppm
  Hello Kitty Bubble Bath (Kid Care) 12 ppm*
  Huggies Baby Wash Shea Butter 4.0 ppm
  Huggies Natural Care Baby Wash Extra Gentle and Tear Free 4.2 ppm
  Johnson’s Head-to-Toe Baby Wash (Johnson & Johnson) 5.3 ppm to 6.1 ppm
  Johnson’s Kids Tigger Bath Bubbles (Johnson & Johnson) 5.6 ppm to 7.9 ppm
  Johnson’s Kids Shampoo Watermelon Explosion (Johnson & Johnson) 10 ppm*
  Lil’ Bratz Mild Bubble Bath (Kid Care) 3.7 ppm
  L’Oreal Kids Orange Mango Smoothie Shampoo 2.0 ppm
  Mr. Bubble Bubble Bath Gentle Formula with Aloe 1.5 ppm
  Rite-Aid Tearless Baby Shampoo 4.3 ppm
  Scooby-Doo Mild Bubble Bath (Kid Care) 3.0 ppm
  Sesame Street Wet Wild Watermelon Bubble Bath (The Village Company) 7.4 ppm.
  
  
  Adult Consumer Products
  
  Clairol Herbal Essences Rainforest Flowers Shampoo 23 ppm*
  Olay Complete Body Wash with Vitamins (normal skin) 23 ppm*
  Suave Naturals Passion Flower 2.0 ppm

*Product was at or above FDA maximum

Steinman’s book explains what Americans can do today to be “green patriots” and curb the nation’s dependency on foreign oil. The new laboratory results reveal the health risks posed by the same petrochemicals that are part of what he calls the nation’s growing oil addiction.
Women and girls use an average of 12 personal care products daily, according to a 2004 survey conducted by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. The Environmental Working Group's interactive product safety guide, Skin Deep, allows consumers to find products free of common carcinogenic impurities like 1,4-Dioxane.
# # #
To learn more about “Safe Trip to Eden: Ten Steps to Save the Planet Earth from the Global Warming Meltdown” by David Steinman, call Sheila Huettl at (323) 208-2629.
###
Founding members of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics include: Alliance for a Healthy Tomorrow, Breast Cancer Fund, Clean Water Fund, Commonweal, Environmental Working Group, Friends of the Earth, Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition, National Black Environmental Justice Network, National Environmental Trust and Women's Voices for the Earth.

For more information and background on the campaign, see http://www.safecosmetics.org/.

Published in:

http://www.safecosmetics.org/newsroom/press.cfm?pressReleaseID=21

New Nanotechnology Technique for Cancer Cells

A University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) team of scientists and researchers were able to differentiate cancer cells from normal cells using a new nanotechnology technique that "feels" the "softness" (or "stiffness") of the cells. Details of this new technique and its potential for cancer detection were published recently in the advance online edition of the leading-edge scientific journal Nature Nanotechnology.

According to the new paper, this is the first time that scientist were able to take living cells from cancer patients and, using nanotechnology, analyze them and screen which were cancerous and which were not. The new nanotechnology technique may have interesting applications for detecting cancer and may aid in giving patients more personalizing treatments protocols.

The new technique is based on measuring a rather elusive concept in cell biology: the "flexibility" of the cell. Cancerous cells must travel long distances through the body to infect other organs. These methastasic cells should become more "flexible" if they will be able to overcome all sort of physical obstacles in the blood stream and within tiny and complex cell matrices of cell tissue. The new technology can detect, at the nano level, this softness or flexibility of the cancerous cells.

Researchers at the UCLA's Jonsson Cancer Center, collected fluid samples of lung, breast and pancreatic cancer patients. Under a regular microscope cancer and normal cells looked very similar so there was no way to differentiate one cell from the other. In addition, conventional tests had 70% success rate in detecting cancerous cells (which is normal for these tests).

Rao and colleagues used a new leading edge technology known as Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) to measure cell softness. The Atomic Force Microscope utilizes a very tiny and sharp tip that pushes and feels the cell surface and determines the degree of softness. It is like a physical examination at the cell level.

The scientist found that the cancerous cells are much softer than the normal. Normal non cancerous cells are stiffer than the cancer cells and this can be succesufully detected by AFM.Softness values can be assigned to each cell to classify it as cancerous or not cancerous making diagnosis using this nanomechanical technique more accurate than traditional methods that involve killing the cells with chemicals and staining them.The study was done in a collaborative scheme between the California NanoSystems Institute, the Jonsson Cancer Center and the Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UCLA. This new approach will find its way through the complex web of diagnostic tools available for cancer diagnosis. Until now conventional methods are tedious, slow, and not efficient. This new nanotechnique is certainly an advance on these limitations.

Source:Rao et al. 2007. Nanomechanical analysis of cells from cancer patients. Nature Nanotechnology Published online: 2 December 2007 doi:10.1038/nnano.2007.388. URL: http://www.nature.com/nnano/journal/vaop/ncurrent/abs/nnano.2007.388.html

Published in

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/467146/new_nanotechnology_technique_can_differentiate.html

Chemotherapy

Copied from: http://hcd2.bupa.co.uk/fact_sheets/html/chemotherapy.html
Published by BUPA's Health Information Team
February 2004

Chemotherapy is a type of drug treatment used in cancer. There are over 50 different chemotherapy drugs available. The drugs are used in different ways according to the type of cancer, how advanced it is and the general health of the person being treated.

Different chemotherapy drugs may be used alone or in combinations of two or more drugs.

Aims of chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is used at various stages of cancer. It is used to treat solid tumours (cancerous lumps) affecting organs such as the breast or bowel, as well as blood cancers such as leukaemia.

Chemotherapy may be given at one or more of the following stages:

Before surgery (neo-adjuvant therapy) to shrink a tumour so that it is easier to remove from the body. This is normally used for large tumours or those that are strongly attached to surrounding tissue.
After surgery (adjuvant therapy) to make sure that any cancerous cells left in the body after removal of a tumour are killed. This makes it less likely that the cancer will come back.
In advanced cancer to remove cancerous cells that have spread through the body, or to slow the progress of the disease.
Each person has their own chemotherapy treatment planned by an oncologist, a doctor who specialises in treating cancer.

The goal of chemotherapy in people with early cancers is usually to kill the cancerous cells and to cure the condition.

When cancer has spread to other organs, it may not be possible to cure the condition fully. In this case, the aim of chemotherapy may be to slow the progress of the disease and to extend the period of good quality life for as long as possible. This is called palliative chemotherapy.

In some types of cancer, particularly leukaemia, high-dose chemotherapy is used. This treatment also destroys many of the body's own immune cells and has to be followed by a bone marrow transplant, which replaces the tissue damaged by the high dose drugs.

The type of chemotherapy drugs depends on a number of factors:

the type of cancer
where the cancer started
whether the cancer has spread to other parts of the body
the general health of the person
People are monitored regularly throughout their course of chemotherapy by physical examination, X-rays or scans, as well as blood and urine tests.

How chemotherapy works
All chemotherapy drugs work by attacking cells that are dividing rapidly. Normal cells divide at a rate that is tightly controlled by the body. However, in cancer cells, the cell division goes wrong, leading to uncontrolled production of new cells and the formation of a tumour or blood cancer. Chemotherapy drugs interfere with the division of these cells and may cause the cancer to die back completely.

Types of chemotherapy medicines
Most chemotherapy drugs affect the DNA in cancer cells. This is the chemical (made up of two strands of linked molecules) that stores the genetic information in a cell. DNA controls what a cell does, including how it divides.

The main groups of chemotherapy drugs are:

Alkylating drugs, such as cyclophosphamide, stick to one of the DNA strands and prevents them dividing. They are used in breast and lung cancers, as well as some lymphomas and leukaemias.
Cytotoxic antibiotics, such as doxorubicin, stick to DNA causing it to become tangled and preventing the cell from dividing. They are used in breast, ovary, bladder and lung cancers, lymphoma and sarcoma.
Antimetabolites, such as methotrexate, stop cells working by preventing them making and repairing DNA. They are used in breast, bone and bladder cancers, and some leukaemias.
Vinca alkaloids, such as vindesine, disrupt the mechanism that enables one cell to split into two new cells. They are used in leukaemias and lymphomas, as well as in breast and lung cancers.
Other drugs include platinum compounds like carboplatin, and taxanes such as docetaxel. They have various modes of action.
Other cancer drugs
Chemotherapy is not the only type of drug treatment available for cancer. Other treatments, which may be used alongside chemotherapy, include drugs that alter hormone levels in the blood and slow down the growth rate of hormone-dependent tumours (eg some breast cancers).

Several other new treatment options are more experimental and may only be available in clinical trials. They include:

Angiogenesis inhibitors - prevent the growth of blood vessels inside a tumour, starving it of blood.
Biological therapies - help the body's immune system to attack cancer cells.
Monoclonal antibodies - stick to cancer cells and stimulate the body to destroy them.
How are the drugs given?
Most chemotherapy drugs are given directly into the bloodstream. This can be by injection or infusion ("drip") into a vein in the back of the hand, or through a "central line", a thin tube that leads from the skin of the chest to a main vein near the heart. A central line can be left in place for a few months, with drugs injected when required.

Other ways to be given chemotherapy drugs include:

tablets
injections into muscle
injections into the area around the spinal cord (intrathecal injection)
injections into a cavity such as the bladder
injections under the skin
creams for skin cancers
Chemotherapy in the form of tablets or creams can be taken at home. Injections or infusions are usually given on an outpatient basis in a chemotherapy suite at hospital. It is sometimes possible to be given chemotherapy at home. These sessions may take between 30 minutes and a few hours at a time.

Injections into the abdominal cavity usually require a few days' stay in hospital, whereas high-dose chemotherapy followed by a bone marrow transplant needs a stay of a few weeks.

Chemotherapy is often given in combinations of two or more drugs in order to reduce the number of as many cancer cells as possible. Common combinations include cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisolone (often abbreviated as "CHOP") for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and fluourourcil ("CMF") for breast cancer.

Duration of treatment
The length of chemotherapy treatment depends on the type of cancer, how much it has spread through the body, the types of drugs used, the severity of side-effects and how successful the treatment is.

In most cases, chemotherapy is given in cycles of treatment alternating with rest periods to allow the body to recover from side-effects. Several cycles of treatment are needed, as chemotherapy only attacks cells that are actively dividing. At any one time, some cancer cells will be resting, and may not be killed until a later round of drug treatment.

It may be necessary to change the original ("first-line") course of treatment if this is not controlling the cancer adequately or if there are dangerous side-effects. The new drug or combination is called the "second-line" treatment.

Side-effects
Chemotherapy does not only target cancer cells, but any cells that divide rapidly. This includes those in the bone marrow and skin, hair-producing cells, and the cells that line the mouth and digestive system. Damage to these healthy cells may produce various side effects, including:

tiredness
nausea and vomiting
diarrhoea or constipation
hair loss
getting infections more easily
sore mouth, mouth ulcers and changes in the sense of taste
Many of these side-effects can be controlled using additional drugs. For example, nausea can be reduced using antiemetic (anti-sickness) drugs such as ondansetron or steroids (eg dexamethasone). Furthermore, most side-effects are temporary and will pass once treatment is completed. However, there is a risk that irreversible infertility and, for women, early menopause may occur.

Effects on everyday life
Some people manage to continue with their lives as normal during chemotherapy. A small number of people even feel better as the symptoms of their cancer decrease. However, for many people, chemotherapy can have significant effects on everyday life. In particular, tiredness often prevents patients from carrying on working full time or doing normal levels of physical activity.

Women having chemotherapy should not try to become pregnant during treatment because the chemotherapy drugs can damage the developing baby.

Further information
Cancerbackup
0808 800 1234
http://www.cancerbackup.org.uk