Chemotherapy is one of the possible treatments used on colon cancer patients. Depending on the type of cancer or its stage of evolution, chemotherapy can be used for curing cancer, stopping the expansion of cancer, slow the evolution of cancer; eliminate symptoms caused by cancer, kill cancer cells that have spread to other areas than the original tumor or for improving the quality of life for patients in the last months of life.

The chemotherapy drugs can be administrated as pills or injections. Chemo can have many side effects, which usually depend on the stage of the tumor and the way the individual organism reacts to the medicine, as well on the general health of the patient. Some of the most common side effects are diarrhea, constipation, infections, hair loss, fluid retention, anemia and fatigue, nausea and vomiting, flu-like syndrome, effects on skin and nails, blood clotting problems; effects on the physical and mental or sexual life, effects on the nervous system, problems of the oral cavity, gums and throat; adverse effects on the kidneys and bladder.



Because cancer cells grow and divide rapidly, drugs are administrated to kill the rapidly growing cells. But, some normal cells also multiply rapidly and chemotherapy affects them too. When this happens, the side effects occur. Normal cells that are rapidly growing are the blood cells in the spinal cord, digestive tract cells of the reproductive system and hair follicles. Drugs may affect cells of the heart, kidneys, bladder, lungs and nervous system also. Most of the normal cells feel no more side effects once the chemotherapy is over, but some effects disappear gradually. Time is needed for this to happen, and the period is different form person to person. How soon you’ll feel better again, depends on many factors, including your general health and the types of medicines that wore administered. While some effects disappear relatively quickly, others can disappear only after months or years. Sometimes side effects can be felt all life, this is the case in which chemotherapy cause irreversible impairment of the heart, lungs, kidneys and reproductive organs. Some types of chemotherapy can occasionally cause delayed effects such as secondary cancers, which occurs many years later. Usually doctors try to control these side effects by means different for each patient depending on many factors like his general health.

Chemo for colon cancer patients has the same side effects. Usually in colon cancer cases, chemotherapy is used if the disease is diagnosed in an advanced stage, and the surgical intervention can not be done. In some cases, chemo for colon caner patients can be prescribed with surgery, to sustain the intervention results. If the treatment works or not, depends on the patient’s body response to the medicines.