Cancer Treatment

Brachytherapy uses small pellets of radioactive material placed next to or directly into the cancer. The radiation travels only a short distance, limiting the effects on surrounding healthy tissues. It is sometimes used to treat people with rectal... Full Answer

There is no specific benefit.  The important thing is that your cancer specialist is well trained and works as part of a cancer center and integrated team with a tumor board. This will provide the coordinated care and access to clinical trials and... Full Answer

The main types of treatment that can be used for colon and rectal cancer are: SurgeryRadiation therapyChemotherapyTargeted therapies Depending on the stage of the cancer, 2 or more of these types of treatment may be combined at the same time or used... Full Answer

Brilliant scientists have designed and continue to develop multiple types of immunotherapy. One type, therapeutic cancer vaccines, often confuses people. This type of immunotherapy actually treats cancer rather than preventing it. Using patients'... Full Answer

Immunotherapy is not appropriate for all patients and all types of cancer. At this time, hematologists/oncologists at Penn Medicine use immunotherapy to treat the following: Breast cancer Hematologic (blood) cancers, including multiple myeloma and... Full Answer

Targeted therapy refers to an emerging class of drugs that destroy cancerous cells, leaving healthy cells unharmed, and without the use and unwanted side effects of chemotherapy and radiation - nausea, hair loss, and weakness and fatigue. Full Answer

Some examples of targeted molecular therapy include the following: Selective BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib for BRAF mutant melanoma targets the protein (BRAF) involved in normal cell signaling. Mutations in the gene for BRAF are found in about half... Full Answer

Normally, when foreign cells such as bacteria or viruses enter the body, the immune system responds to the invasion and clears the body of the infection. The immune system does not naturally recognize cancer cells as being foreign, so it does not... Full Answer

Targeted molecular therapy is not appropriate or feasible for all patients and all types of cancer. Hematologists/oncologists at Penn Medicine use targeted molecular therapy to treat the following: Brain cancer Breast cancer Gastrointestinal (GI)... Full Answer

MammoSite, or brachytherapy, is an internal therapy in which the radiation source is placed inside the body. MammoSite is a targeted radiation therapy treatment for breast cancer performed following a lumpectomy. A small, soft balloon is placed... Full Answer