How is cancer treated?

Over the last decade, the attitude of medicine tocancer has changed significantly. If more recently, cancer was considered an incurable disease, today there are quite effective ways to combat this serious illness. The most common methods are surgical intervention, chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Those who encountered this heavyoften a question arises: do they treat cancer. Doctors say that the methods of treatment and the likelihood of survival depend on the stage of cancer. More information about this can be found in this article: Is it possible to cure cancer ?. Let's consider the basic methods of treatment.

Surgical intervention

Treatment by surgery is the mosta common method of cancer treatment. Thus, cancer cells, metastases, and cancer-damaged healthy cells of the body are surgically removed. This method in oncology not only treats cancer, but also prepares patients for radiotherapy. Surgical treatment, as a rule, is always supplemented by other methods, since it is practically impossible to remove all cancer cells with a scalpel. The operation to remove cancer cells passes, most often, fairly quickly and without consequences. A significant disadvantage of this method is that after the operation a relapse is often observed, because the body has cancer cells.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is one of the basic methodscancer treatment. When chemotherapy, the patient is regularly administered an antitumor drug intravenously with a syringe or dropper. Chemotherapy treats cancer where it is convenient for the patient, but more often in a hospital environment, because during treatment there may be undesirable consequences, for example, vomiting or choking.

To date, in oncology for chemotherapycytotoxins are used. These are strong chemicals obtained from a strangling gas - mustard gas. The medicine when ingested begins to actively destroy cancer cells or stops their growth, thereby achieving a remission. In the treatment of breast cancer and prostate ovaries, hormonal drugs such as tamoxifen and flutamide are always used additionally. This allows you to maintain reproductive function in the patient.

Despite the fact that chemotherapy allowseffectively treat cancer, she has many opponents. The thing is that antitumor drugs are strong toxins that destroy both cancer cells and healthy cells of the body. The dose of the drug during therapy is close to fatal, so treatment is accompanied by side effects, for example, hair loss, metabolic disorders.

Radiation therapy (radiotherapy)

Radiotherapy is used in every second casecancer treatment. The treatment consists in irradiating cancer cells with a small dose of ionizing radiation, so that they begin to be destroyed, and the cancer goes into a state of remission. Radiotherapy is used quite often after surgery for cancer in order to get rid of those cells that failed to operate. Radiation therapy can be external (intraoperative radiotherapy) or internal (brachytherapy), this is affected by the type of cancer and stage of the disease. Radiotherapy is always gradual, that is, the dose of radiation gradually increases. Also, radiation is always directed at the zone most affected by cancer. Healthy tissues that are located side by side are covered with lead blocks.

Radiotherapy, as well as chemical treatmentdrugs, undoubtedly, heals from cancer, but at the same time, healthy cells are also exposed to strong radiation. If the consequences of chemotherapy appear immediately, then the damage from radiation can occur after several years. In addition, after internal radiotherapy, internal or external burns remain. Patients often describe malaise and weakness after radiotherapy, but these symptoms quickly disappear.

Treatment of cancer by folk methods

In addition to traditional medicine, cancer is treated with folkways, such as decoctions, compresses, ointments from herbs, plants, etc. In addition, there are recommendations for nutrition. For example, it is recommended to drink on an empty stomach a spoonful of linseed oil in the morning. In the diet should include raw kernels of apricot, elderberry and cornelian berries, sea kale. As procedures, traditional medicine recommends iodine nets, as well as the constant cleansing of the body by enemas.

The following preventive measures are used for the purification of blood and the removal of toxins:

Decoction of rose hips, black elderberry and hawthorn. The fruits of these plants are mixed 100 grams in pure water. Sometimes add the leaves of wild pear and apple. Cook for 2 hours, after which it should be filtered. The broth is taken 2-3 times a day after eating.

Decoction of young leaves of birch and black currant. Sometimes mint and raspberry leaves are added to this. For 50 grams of leaves insist in hot water, and then filter. Drink should be before bedtime.

Remember that cancer is a complex systemic disease,which often ends in a fatal outcome. In order for the therapy to be effective, it is necessary to combine methods, as well as to consult constantly with the attending physician.