How is cancer treated?

The treatment you have depends on the type of cancer you have, where it is, and the stage it’s at.

You could have one treatment (the treatment plan is called a protocol) or a combination of:

Chemotherapy (aka chemo)

Uses cytoxic drugs (chemicals) to destroy the cancer cells. It sounds scarier than it is - you’ll be told about the drugs, their possible side-effects, how often you will have it, and how it will be given. Leukaemia is always treated with chemotheraphy.

Surgery

If you have a solid cancer, or tumour, you may be offered surgery (an operation) to remove all or part of the lump. You’ll have a general anaesthetic, so you’ll be out cold. For a lump or a tumour you may have a biopsy (a small piece of the tumour is removed and tested to see exactly what it is.) The medical and nursing staff will tell you exactly what will happen well before the operation.

Sometimes, with a tumour, surgery is all that is needed. Other times, a combination of surgery and radiotherapy or chemotherapy is the best option. Quite often you may have chemotherapy or radiotherapy before the surgery to remove the tumour.

Radiotherapy

High-energy rays are targeted at the cancer cells, avoiding the normal cells. It is not painful, and lasts for a few minutes for each session. It is a bit like having an x-ray. The doctor and nurses will tell you in detail what will happen, and how long you will have the treatment for.

Bone marrow transplant

Your bone marrow makes your red blood cells. A bone marrow transplant is when you get new bone marrow (either from a donor or your own ‘cleaned up’ marrow).

This means you get new blood forming and a new immune system. The doctor and nurses will tell you in detail what will happen, and how long you will be in hospital.

There is more information about how cancer is treated in our About Childhood Cancer section, on the main CLIC Sargent website. Click here to visit this section.