How Long Does Chemo Take
How long does chemo take?
When a person is detected of cancer, the question of worry is how long does chemo take. It is a very tiresome process and can last up to two weeks or more depending on the type of cancer a person has. Chemotherapy takes place in cycles ranging from 6 to 8 or more. Different health conditions have different number of cycles. It also depends on the extent to which cancer has spread to the body. Thus how long does chemo take rests largely on the individual and the cancer type.
Chemo helps in killing those cancer-affecting cells that keep multiplying in number. By killing them, the effect of cancer is decreased. A chemo treatment can be successful as well as fatal at times. Cancer is a deadly disease causing extreme disruptions to the body. It weakens a person from inside, also causing side effects. This is because since it kills those cells that multiply, it simultaneously kills even those that are present normally in the body. Thus hair loss and decreased amount of blood production may occur. It is a difficult treatment and how long does chemo take depends on each person’s condition.
Chemo also makes a person weak and causes weight loss but if succeeded in its attempt, it may ward off the disease completely. How long does chemo take can even rise up to a few months. This is because since the person loses his/her energy with the undergoing chemotherapy, doctors advice a break in between for the person to rebuild some amount of strength to get ready for the next dose. Usually the resting time is a little more to make the person regain strength.
There are various methods of giving chemotherapy to a cancer patient. How long does chemo take is also determined by the type of method used. Drugs can be injected into the patient’s body through the veins, oral medication is also possible with chemo, a cream can be used too or the necessary injections are given as a part of the therapy.
If a pregnant woman is detected with cancer, the chemotherapy may prove unhealthy for the child. This is because the treatment may transfer the infection to the baby, hence there may be difficulties faced. The baby may be born premature or can be detected with health problems. How long does chemo take in such cases may be delayed as doctors may advice the postponement of chemo until the birth of the baby.
How long does chemo take is proportionate to the type of cancer that a patient is detected with. The usage of drugs and the method of giving chemo – everything together determine exactly how long the therapy will last. Cancer can be cured and it may also prove fatal. Early detection can be treated successfully. If a patient is likely to have reached the final stages of cancer, then chemotherapy will also be unsuccessful in treating the patient. A chemo can take up to several weeks, months or even a year. As a result, to give a definite timing for how long does chemo take is not feasible.
