Dr. Richard C. Ostenson Cancer Center—
Inpatient
Care
Chemotherapy is the use of anti-cancer drugs, medications that seek out and destroy cancer cells in different parts of the body. It is also used to attack cancers that cannot be reached by surgery or radiation, or to destroy cancer cells still remaining after these procedures.
This process is called adjuvant chemotherapy. These anti-cancer drugs are carried throughout the body by the blood system, where they disrupt the cancer cells’ ability to grow and multiply. Normal cells, in areas such as the bone marrow (where blood cells are made), the gastrointestinal tract (stomach and intestines), the reproductive system and hair, may also be affected, but are able to repair damage caused by the chemotherapy.
There are many different factors that determine how and when chemotherapy should be given, including the type of cancer, stage of the disease and effect of the drug. Depending on these factors, your chemotherapy may be given orally, by injection or by infusion, and the frequency may be daily, weekly or monthly.
Often, more than one drug is used in what is called combination chemotherapy. More than 50 anti-cancer agents now exist; new drugs and new uses for those drugs are constantly being discovered. Once your treatment plan has been determined, your Good Samaritan Cancer Care physician and nurse will explain which medicines are to be used and what to expect from the experience.
Chemotherapy treatments are usually given in the Good Samaritan Cancer Center by an oncology nurse. However, if your treatment requires several hours of medication infusion, it may be given in the oncology outpatient area on the oncology unit or you may be admitted to Good Samaritan Hospital for a period of time.
Your written information and individual instructions regarding your chemotherapy will be given to you prior to treatment. The staff is interested in caring for your physical and emotional needs, and is available to assist you in any way possible.
The field of oncology changes rapidly. Many of the newest advances and innovative cancer treatment techniques have focused on combining medical oncology and radiation therapy. Because Good Samaritan Cancer Care provides both these methods, you can be assured that the latest chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment plans are available to our patients.
Good Samaritan Cancer Care offers most varieties of chemotherapy. To contact Cancer Care, please click here.
