Chemotherapy or chemo is a common treatment used in many cancers including lung caners including mesothelioma or asbestos cancer. Chemo is the use of drugs to kill the cancerous cells. It can be given in pill form or injected into the veins. With mesothelioma it can be injected directly into the chest (mesoinfo.com). Chemotherapy travels through the bloodstream and attempts to kill cancerous cells. Most of the time there are more than one type of drug being given at the same time, called combination chemo, and there are many options, combinations and choices that a patient and a doctor can choose from (cancer.org).

There are over a 100 types of chemo medications and clinical trials are being held on a continuous basis, in hopes of something better. Depending on the affected area, the stage the cancer is in, and the size, determines what type of chemo treatment should be used and in what combination. The most commonly used chemo drugs for lung cancer include Gemzar®, Ifex®, Oncovin®, Adriamycin®, Navelbine®, Taxotere®, Taxol®, Paraplatin®, VP-16; VePesid®, and Platinol®. They are usually used in combination to produce the best outcome (oncologyoutcome.com).

Treatment times vary depending on the cancer and can be given daily, weekly, or monthly, however most treatments have breaks so that the body can rebuild its strength and healthy cells can grow (cancer.org).

Each person is different and side affects affect each person differently. Because chemotherapy drugs travel throughout the body, healthy cells and tissues can be attacked and damaged by the drugs causing many of the side affects. The most common side affects include nausea and vomiting, hair loss or thinning, and an increased chance of bruising, bleeding and getting an infection (cancer.org). Patients who receive chemo treatments can feel very fatigued but most people can lead a functional life. There may be a need to alter lifestyle choice due to the fatigue and chemo schedule (cancer.gov). Other side affects can occur and each person reports different affects. Some people do not have any side affects and not everyone loses their hair.

Doctors will monitor the affects of the drugs to determine if the treatment is working and may need to perform additional tests to determine if the cancer is shrinking or is gone completely. Chemotherapy can kill cancerous cells but there is no guarantee that the cancer will not return.