Many women are suffering from breast cancer across the globe at present. However, treatment for breast cancer is getting better with the advent of time. The primary objective of a successful breast cancer treatment will be to prevent the disease from returning once again. In the subsequent paragraphs, we have mentioned the different types of breast cancer treatments available right now.
1. Surgery
Surgery is often the first line of defense when it comes to breast cancer treatment. You will come across different types of surgeries these days, and these will be performed for various reasons. For instance, the patient might resort to surgical procedures for removing the malignancy as far as possible, or restoring the shape of the breast following the removal of cancer.
The primary objective of surgery will be to remove the tumor. Only a portion of the breast having the tumor will be removed by an operation known as lumpectomy. However, the entire breast will be removed in case of a mastectomy.
2. Radiation therapy
Also known as radiotherapy, this is a kind of treatment using high-energy radiation for reducing the tumor and killing the cancer cells. Although this treatment will not cause any pain to the patient, he/she might be suffering from skin discomfort in the future.
Radiation therapy will be recommended by the oncologist in case cancer has already spread. It will aid in destroying the cancer cells, which the surgeon could not remove. The patient will usually have radiation therapy sessions for 4 to 5 days every single week. Moreover, each session is going to last several minutes.
3. Chemotherapy
This kind of treatment for breast cancer will be using special medications to kill or shrink the cancer cells. On most occasions, this type of breast cancer treatment will be used following surgery. Its primary objective will be to destroy those cancer cells which could not be removed. This is known as adjuvant therapy.
The medicines will be administered in a particular number of cycles for a specific period. On some occasions, chemotherapy might be given to the patient once every week or even every two weeks. In some cases, it will be administered once every four weeks. The types of medication will depend on the type of cancer that the patient is struggling with. Moreover, it will also depend on how far the malignancy has spread.
4. Hormonal therapy
In this case, the patient will be given medicines for preventing hormones from encouraging the development of cancer cells. These medicines will be working in a couple of ways. The first will be to reduce the amount of estrogen within the system. The second will be to block the action of the hormone on the cancer cells.
You will come across different types of medications for hormonal therapy. These consist of selective estrogen receptor modulators, aromatase inhibitors, as well as estrogen receptor down regulators. However, hormonal therapy is going to work on those cancer cells which happen to be hormone receptor-positive. Here, we would like to mention that the majority of breast cancer cells belong to this category. The main intention of this kind of treatment will be to starve the cancer cells of the required hormones.
5. Targeted therapy
These are medications that will alter the way cancer cells function. They also aid in preventing cancer from spreading and developing. However, it is not feasible to treat all breast cancer types with this particular method. The targeted medications will be working differently, unlike the chemotherapy medications.
Moreover, the side effects will also be different. These medications are going to penetrate the bloodstream, similar to chemotherapy. Therefore, they will be reaching virtually all parts of the body that are beneficial against malignancies that have already spread. If the chemotherapy medications do not give the desired effects, targeted drugs will be used to get better results.
6. Immunotherapy
In this type of treatment for breast cancer, the body’s immunity will attack the cancer cells. Medications known as checkpoint inhibitors might be used for treating patients who have breast cancer. The usage of these drugs has been approved by the FDA. They can be used along with a particular chemotherapy medication for getting effective results. The medications are known as atezolizumab, and sacituzumab govitecan-hziy are employed for treating triple-negative breast cancer.
7. Complementary and holistic medication
While conventional medicines will be performing their role, the primary objective of complementary therapies will be to balance the patient. This type of treatment has helped breast cancer patients in various ways. While enhancing their lifestyle, it has likewise aided in getting rid of the symptoms. At present, more research is being conducted to understand the benefits provided by complementary and holistic medicine fully.
Conclusion
Innovative ideas are creeping up every single day for treating different types of cancer, including breast cancer. The primary objective of any kind of treatment for breast cancer will be to prevent the occurrence of the disease once again. All these above-mentioned treatment options have yielded effective results for numerous patients over the years.
