| Chemotherapy:
This
is a method of killing cancer cells with drugs or medicine.
However, the drugs will also kill healthy cells in the
body, like hair cells. This is why some cancer patients
lose their hair, but it will not harm them. Usually,
their hair grows back after the treatment is finished. |
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| Even
though chemotherapy can kill cancer cells, it cannot cure
liver cancer totally. This is because some cancer cells
become too strong to be killed by the drugs after a while.
Therefore, the doctor has to find other ways to treat
the patient. |
What
are the side effects?
- Constant
vomiting feeling
- Vomiting
- Hair
loss
- Reduced
ability of blood to clot
- Mouth
sores or ulcers
- Infections
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Surgery:
This method removes cancer cells and is the only treatment
that can cure liver cancer totally. However, whether
surgery can be used or not will depend on the size of
the tumor. If cancer cells are all in one area, then
surgery can be used to remove that part of the liver.
The liver can grow again to the original size after
surgery. But if the liver cells are all over the liver,
there is no way surgery can remove the whole liver.
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Radio
frequency ablation:
This method, uses heat to kill off cancer cells. The
energy is used to create heat at a certain point for
a certain length of time. The heat and energy rays will
be passed into the body through a needle. This method
is quite safe with very few side effects.
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What are the side effects?
- Slight
fever
- Bleeding
- Infections
- Pain
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| Radiation:
This is not used in primary liver
cancer, as the cancer cells are not sensitive to the
x-ray energy used in this method. Also, it may cause
more harm than good.
Cryosurgery:
This method freezes the tumor, thus destroying the tumor
cells. A liquid gas like carbon dioxide is frequently
used.
When
it defrosts, more damage is done to the cells. It will
take about 5-7 days if it are no problems during the
treatment.
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What are the side effects?
Some effects of cryosurgery
are:
- Slight
fever
- Infection
- Lower
body temperature
- Injury
to organs near the liver
- Bleeding
of the liver or cracking of the liver surface during
treatment
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