Chemotherapy

Different drugs used in a chemotherapy against Cancer.

Methotrexate was one of the first drugs used for chemotherapy. It was developed in the 1950s, and is used to treat autoimmune diseases and cancer. It can also be used to treat an ectopic pregnancy, or to perform an abortion.

Chemotherapy, or 'chemo', is the use of chemical substances to treat diseases. The word "chemotherapy" is often used for a type of medicine used to treat cancer. The drugs are cytotoxic, which means they are toxic to the body's cells.^[1]

There are many types of chemotherapy. and doctors chose the medication that will treat each types of cancer in the best way. Often, chemotherapy drugs are combined with each other and with other drugs when a person is treated for cancer.^[2]

When a person has surgery to remove a tumor, chemotherapy may be given before or after.

Chemotherapy can also be used to treat other diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Chemotherapy often has bad side effects:

Loss or damage of hair and nails
Weakened immune system
Nausea and vomiting

Chemotherapy Media

Dose response relationship of cell killing by chemotherapeutic drugs on normal and cancer cells. At high doses the percentage of normal and cancer cells killed is very similar. For this reason, doses are chosen where anti-tumour activity exceeds normal cell death.
5-FU dose management results in significantly better response and survival rates versus BSA dosing.
5-FU dose management avoids serious side effects experienced with BSA dosing.
Two DNA bases that are cross-linked by a nitrogen mustard. Different nitrogen mustards will have different chemical groups (R). The nitrogen mustards most commonly alkylate the N7 nitrogen of guanine (as shown here) but other atoms can be alkylated.
Deoxycytidine (left) and two anti-metabolite drugs (center and right), gemcitabine and decitabine. The drugs are very similar but they have subtle differences in their chemical structure.
Vinca alkaloids prevent the assembly of microtubules, whereas taxanes prevent their disassembly. Both mechanisms cause defective mitosis.
Topoisomerase I and II Inhibitors
Two girls with acute lymphoblastic leukemia receiving chemotherapy. The girl on the left has a central venous catheter inserted in her neck. The girl on the right has a peripheral venous catheter. The arm board stabilizes the arm during needle insertion. Anti-cancer IV drip is seen at top right.
Hair matting after few sessions of chemotherapy
The four phases of the cell cycle. G1 – the initial growth phase. S – the phase in which DNA is synthesised. G2 – the second growth phase in preparation for cell division. M – mitosis; where the cell divides to produce two daughter cells that continue the cell cycle.