Leukemia Cancer Treatment
The treatment for leukemia depends a lot on the kind of leukemia one is faced with as a medical practitioner. Leukemia is not a single entity. It has varied etiological factors, sources, and even the specific cells that can be affected can range from any of six different white blood cells. On a broad basis, leukemia can be categorized into acute leukemia and chronic leukemia. Of course, the biological age of the patient in question has to be kept in mind, with children forming a major chunk of leukemia patients, pediatric leukemia is an important field and the treatment for the same has to be revised keeping in mind the special needs of the child patient.
While surgical intervention and nuclear medicine are still being used along with or without chemotherapy acting as an adjunct, there are various new age methods and treatment modalities that are emerging in the medical world thanks to the various advances made in the field of oncology research and clinical trials. Some of these new age techniques are biological therapy, which is fast becoming commonplace enough to be actually removed from the category of new age cancer treatment modalities, and the other being the promising field of stem cell research.
Since leukemia is, as it is more commonly known as, blood cancer, or cancer of the blood, surgery plays a very limited role in its treatment with biological therapy, radiation therapy, interferons, chemotherapy and new age gene immunotherapy ruling the roost when it comes to actual treatment. Surgical procedures are obviously needed to excise a defective or cancerous marrow, infected lymph nodes and / or tissue to which the leukemia has spread via metastasis. Surgical procedures are also performed in patients suffering from leukemia in cases where the cancer has spread indefinitely into the spleen, which is like a transport hub for all blood.
Of course, it is superfluous and rare to use any of these methods, however promising, in isolation. Usually the doctor will combine two or more of these treatment modalities to help the patient get over the cancer as painlessly as possible and also with minimum possible invasive procedures and with the constant aim of fast remission and recovery.
While radiation therapy or radiotherapy usually works well by killing off or disabling the metabolic processes of the cells involved in the cancerous progression, it can cause certain side effects, such as a disabled or slow defense and immunological system, delayed wound healing and opportunistic infections. Therefore, it is necessary to deal with all present acute and chronic infections as well as potential sources of infection, like rotting teeth, before one goes in for radiation therapy.
Stem Cell Transplantation or SCT, is a new age methodology which is used along with chemotherapy and radiation therapy in the resurrective phase as well as to improve immune response. Interferon therapy, also called biological therapy or sometimes immune therapy is needed in most cases of blood cancer as it is effective and non invasive.