When you think of cancer treatments, radiation and chemotherapy probably come to mind. However, that might change soon. In recent years, a lot has happened that has transformed how the disease is, and how it’ll be treated. Listed below are some other cancer treatment options:
Immunotherapy
Cancer is tough to fight because its cells can easily judge your immune system. Your body can’t work hard enough to fight them, or it doesn’t see the cells as threats. But, some new immunotherapy drugs make these cells easier to find by ‘marking’ them. These medicines can also attack tumors and make the defenses of your body stronger.
CAR T-cell therapy, a form of gene therapy, has been approved by the FDA. In this therapy, T cells, some of your own immune cells, are used to treat your cancer. Doctors remove the cells from your blood and replace them by adding new genes, which can help find and kill cancer cells.
Personalized Medicine
Earlier, most people with the same stage and type of cancer received the same treatment. Now, doctors are aware of the fact that a solution that helps one person might not work well for another.
Using your genes, the doctors can get a better idea of which treatments will help you the most.
Some drugs are more targeted too and can focus only on deadly cancer cells instead of wiping out all cells (even the healthy ones). This allows the medicines and immune cells to get inside tumors and fight them.
Drug-Free Treatments
Meditation, massage, hypnosis, yoga, and other such drug-free therapies can help you live better while you’re being treated for cancer. Some may help your mood, and some may help relieve stress. Others may make it easier to take the side effects of radiation or chemotherapy.
Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese practice that uses thin needs under your skin. This method can help relieve symptoms such as:
– Nausea
– Depression
– Fatigue
– Pain
– Hot flashes
– Night sweats