| Medical Dictionary |
A Medical Dictionary of Medical Terminology
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Cancer chemotherapy is a type of cancer treatment. It uses medicines to destroy cancer cells.
Normally, the cells in your body grow and die in a controlled way. Cancer cells keep growing without control. Chemotherapy works by killing the cancer cells, stopping them from spreading, or slowing their growth.
Chemotherapy is used to:
Chemotherapy does not just destroy cancer cells. It can also harm some healthy cells, which causes side effects.
You may have a lot of side effects, some side effects, or none at all. It depends on the type and amount of chemotherapy you get and how your body reacts.
Some common side effects are:
There are ways to prevent or control some side effects. Talk with your health care provider about how to manage them. Healthy cells usually recover after chemotherapy is over, so most side effects gradually go away.
What can I expect when getting chemotherapy?You may get chemotherapy in a hospital or at home, a doctor's office, or a medical clinic. You might be given the medicines by mouth, in a shot, as a cream, through a catheter, or intravenously (by IV).
Your treatment plan will depend on the type of cancer you have, which chemotherapy medicines are used, the treatment goals, and how your body responds to the medicines.
Chemotherapy may be given alone or with other treatments. You may get treatment every day, every week, or every month. You may have breaks between treatments so that your body has a chance to build new healthy cells.
NIH: National Cancer Institute
Health care workers are exposed to many job hazards. These can include :
Follow good job safety and injury prevention practices. They can reduce your risk of health problems. Use protective equipment, follow infection control guidelines, learn the right way to lift heavy objects, and find ways to manage stress.
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health