Cancer is one of the deadliest diseases that affects the human race and causes numerous deaths worldwide in a single year. There was a time, if a person is affected by cancer, the only end is death. However, in the present time medical science has advanced a lot and now is able to treat a person suffering from cancer if diagnosed and detected on time. There are various methods that are used by doctors nowadays to treat cancer including Surgery, Chemotherapy, Radiation therapy, Immunotherapy, Hormonal therapy, Targeted therapy, Stem cell or bone marrow transplants, Interventional radiology, etc.
Today, we are going to discuss two of these methods: Immunotherapy and chemotherapy. While chemotherapy has been in the medical world since the 1940s, the last decade advancement in cancer research and treatments has made the immunotherapy method also a great success. Sometimes, these methods are also combined in order to get more success in the treatment and to ensure better recovery of the patient. Let’s learn more about these cancer treatment methods and the differences of the both…….
Immunotherapy: A Brief About it
Immunotherapy is a method that does not involve the direct interaction with the cancer cells but instead stimulates and makes it easy for it to recognise the cancer cells and destroy them.
There are several forms or ways immunotherapy is applied and used by doctors for cancer treatment including checkpoint inhibitors, cancer vaccines, bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) and adoptive cell transfers (ACTs).
The doctor will prefer immunotherapy as the treatment approach after making sure of the type of cancer, the patient’s immune system, and previous treatments the patient has taken.
Chemotherapy: A Brief About It
Chemotherapy is more directly interacting with cancer cells. It involves using the drugs that are specifically toxic to the cancer cells and thus attack, stop the division and growth and kill the cancer cells.
The chemotherapy drugs can be given by various methods like orally, intravenously, or topically, depending on the type and stage of cancer. Topical treatment is mostly done for skin cancer after examining the patient’s body by skin cancer screening to detect the areas that are affected by cancer cells. Chemotherapy is often used solely or with combination therapy that includes radiation therapy as well.
Immunotherapy Vs Chemotherapy: Which One is More Effective?
Both immunotherapy and chemotherapy are effective and proven methods. So, their effectiveness and better results are situational that depends on the type of cancer, the stage of diagnosis and the immune system power of the patient. Here are some key differences between the both to understand which method is better in what way:-
Principle Approach
Chemotherapy as mentioned is a direct method that attacks and destroys cancer cells while interacting with them one on one. On the other hand, in immunotherapy, the immune system is actively stimulated in order to make it easy for it to detect and destroy cancer cells.
Time
As chemotherapy methods directly interact with the cancer cells, it comparatively shows effects faster than the immunotherapy method. It quickly shrinks a tumor on the other side, immunotherapy is a bit slower and needs more time to show results .
Side Effects
Chemotherapy is a quick and effective method, but its rapid attack nature leads to damaging healthy cells also with cancer cells. This causes various ill effects like Hair loss, Nausea and vomiting, Diarrhea, Fatigue, Fever, Weight loss, etc.
Immunotherapy is a very target specific method and thus causes almost no damage to other healthy cells and just focuses on attacking the harmful cancer cells. However, it also has some side effects like flu-like symptoms, muscle aches, fever, appetite loss, weakness, diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting, etc. Also, immunotherapy is a very effective method but one thing to note is that the effectiveness of immunotherapy in solid tumors is limited.
Stage
Immunotherapy is usually approached when other traditional methods do not show much effects but is mostly used if the cancer diagnosed is of advanced stage. However, nowadays doctors have started using immunotherapy as the first line of treatment for cancer types like melanoma and lung cancer.
Chemotherapy is mostly chosen as a treatment method at any stage of cancer as it helps with altering the symptoms of the cancer very well and shows rapid results. It is an effective method and helps to reduce a tumour size and stop it from spreading to more than one body part. It can be vital for palliative care in more advanced stages to alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life.
