Is cancer treatment more painful? Cancer patients are worried about hair loss, nausea and side effects. Doctors introduce "1 treatment" to reduce recurrence by 30%
Radiotherapy and chemotherapy “kill cancer cells as well as good cells.” Use “this therapy” to help prolong disease-free survival
The cancer clock continues to turn fast. According to the top ten causes of death statistics from the Taiwan Ministry of Health and Welfare in 2021, cancer has been the top ten cause of death for more than 40 years, claiming more than 50,000 lives last year alone. Dr. Hong Yiping, Department of Pharmacology, Department of Oncology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, explained: “In the past, chemotherapy and radiotherapy directly poisoned and killed cancerous tumors, but they often destroyed good cells as well. The side effects were obvious and could easily affect patients’ willingness to treat, especially This is especially true for elderly patients.”
As “immunotherapy” joins the ranks of treatments, it undoubtedly brings new treatment opportunities to cancer patients. In recent years, immunotherapy has been pushed to an early stage, and for the first time it has been added to the list of postoperative adjuvant treatments for “esophageal cancer” and “urothelial cancer”. Both of them have extended disease-free survival by nearly 2 years and reduced the risk of recurrence by 30%.
Dr. Zhang Yanhua, convener of the urological cancer multi-specialty medical team at Taipei Veterans General Hospital, pointed out that immunotherapy is being promoted early and added to the ranks of postoperative adjuvant therapy to achieve the treatment goal of prolonging “Disease Free Survival”. It helps patients get rid of worries about disease recurrence during treatment and brings new hope for cancer patients.
After surgery, you still face a 50% to 70% risk of recurrence. Doctors: “Immunotherapy” slows down side effects and helps control the condition.
Continuous breakthroughs in cancer treatment and reduction of recurrence are what the medical community and patients expect. According to the latest cancer registration report, nearly 7,000 more people have been diagnosed with esophageal cancer and epithelial urinary cancer. Both are cancers with a high risk of recurrence and require postoperative adjuvant treatment to help cancer patients control their conditions. Because cancer cells of esophageal cancer easily develop from the esophagus to the lymph nodes, patients still have a 70% risk of recurrence after surgery. Urinary tract cancer covers a wide range of cancers, and nearly 50% of patients face a risk of recurrence after surgery.
Dr. Zhang Yanhua said that there was a woman in her 60s in the clinic. Although she usually paid attention to her health, she was surprised to see painless hematuria after going to the toilet one day. She was diagnosed with stage III renal pelvis cancer. After the operation, her physical strength and mental state were very different. He was so weak every day that he couldn’t even take a bath by himself.
The patient was worried about the side effects of chemotherapy in the past, such as hair loss and nausea. Fortunately, after discussing with the doctor, the condition was stabilized and controlled with immunotherapy, and I was finally able to eat, sleep, and have the strength to take a shower by myself. Dr. Zhang Yanhua pointed out that such cases are not rare, and cancer patients all hope to be able to stably control the disease with a treatment method that suits them while taking into account their quality of life.
Dr. Hong Yiping pointed out that the current postoperative adjuvant treatment is mainly chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Although it can reduce recurrence, patients are generally older, have poor tolerance to drugs, and have high side effects of treatment, so they are easy to give up treatment. There was a case in the past who had been drinking and smoking for nearly 40 years and was diagnosed with stage 3 esophageal cancer. During the early stages of chemotherapy, the side effects brought a lot of inconvenience to the patients, including frequent vomiting and hair loss, as well as long-term fatigue and poor appetite. After that, he was treated with immunotherapy, which not only caused severe side effects and discomfort, but also made his condition stable and under control to this day.
“Disease-free survival” can be extended by up to nearly 2 years! “Immunotherapy” rebuilds cancer patients’ confidence in treatment
With the advancement of medical technology, immunotherapy has begun to be widely used in various cancer types. Recently, a new breakthrough has been reported. Immunotherapy, which was originally targeted at late-stage treatment, can be promoted to early stage and join the ranks of adjuvant treatment. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) confirmed that immunotherapy as an adjuvant treatment for esophageal cancer and urothelial cell carcinoma both extended “disease-free survival” by nearly 2 years, an increase of 2 years compared with 10 months for placebo. times the time, while reducing the risk of recurrence by 30%, which can be described as an important breakthrough in adjuvant treatment.
Dr. Hong Yiping explained that adding immunotherapy to the ranks of early postoperative adjuvant treatments for cancer can increase the disease-free survival period of patients, which can be said to be an option that helps patients maintain their quality of life and brings new hope. “In addition to being more effective in treatment, immunotherapy also has higher controllability of side effects. It can maintain the quality of life of cancer patients during treatment and rebuild their confidence in fighting cancer.”
Dr. Hong Yiping said that patients with esophageal cancer and urothelial cell cancer tend to suffer from older age. In the past, the side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy were often the reason why patients and their families were deterred from treatment. However, in recent years, due to the rapid changes in treatment options, you should discuss appropriate treatment with your doctor as soon as possible. Methods and drugs are expected to control the lesions while maintaining a good quality of life.
Dr. Zhang Yanhua also reminded that staying away from smoking and inhaling harmful substances in daily life can reduce the risk of cancer. If you find frequent painless hematuria, you should go to a urologist for professional treatment. In addition, elderly cancer patients do not need to worry too much about the disease. As long as they are screened regularly, detected and treated early, they still have a chance to return to normal life and successfully fight cancer.
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