Most people receive chemotherapy intravenously through an IV, which may be injected directly into a vein or via a catheter or port.  The drugs are given as an infusion directly into the blood stream, which then carries these drugs throughout the body.

Preventive chemotherapy, also called adjuvant therapy, is chemotherapy that is used after surgery to increase the change that no cancer cells are left alive in the body. This helps to minimize the risk of cancer recurrence and improves the long-term outcomes for most patients.  It may be used in combination with other treatments, such as radiation therapy or immunotherapy.

Most people who go through chemotherapy do not experience pain during their infusions, although some patients may feel a slight burning when the drug enters their system.  Patients that do not have good veins or who have difficulty with needles may instead receive a central venous catheter, or other catheter or port.  While the infusion itself is not usually painful, chemotherapy can cause side effects after treatment that should be monitored and communicated to your cancer care team.

Chemotherapy utilizes medications that target fast-growing cancer cells and, as such, often affects other fast-growing cells in your body.  Although this is not universal across all chemotherapy drugs, some chemo does affect fast-growing cells inside your hair roots, causing hair loss throughout the body.  If hair loss will be seen, typically patients start noticing hair loss 2 to 4 weeks after the start of treatment. You can expect to have your hair grow back 3 to 6 months after your treatment ends.

There are more than 100 different types of chemotherapy used for treating cancer, and they are made out of a variety of different substances.  Some chemotherapy drugs are derived from natural sources, such as plants or bacteria, while others are the result of synthetic development.  Typically speaking, chemotherapy drugs are divided into groups, some of which are:

• Alkylating Agents – These work by damaging the DNA of cancer cells in order to prevent them from reproducing.
• Antimetabolites – These destroy cancer cells by disrupting their metabolism, keeping them from dividing and growing.
• Antitumor Antibiotics – These medicines inhibit growth by altering the DNA of cancer cells.  Antitumor antibiotics are derived from soil bacteria known as streptomyces.

No. While chemotherapy and radiation may both be used in the treatment of cancer, chemotherapy targets cancer cells by using cytotoxic medications delivered intravenously.  Radiation therapy instead uses high-energy beams to target cancer cells.