By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Newsunplug KenyaNewsunplug KenyaNewsunplug Kenya
  • News
    • Metro
    • Politics
    • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Spotify
Reading: What Is Preventative Chemotherapy? Kate Middleton’s Cancer Treatment Explained
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Newsunplug KenyaNewsunplug Kenya
Font ResizerAa
  • News
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Spotify
  • News
    • Metro
    • Politics
    • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Sports
  • Tech
  • Spotify
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
© 2022 Foxiz News Network. Ruby Design Company. All Rights Reserved.
Newsunplug Kenya > Blog > News > What Is Preventative Chemotherapy? Kate Middleton’s Cancer Treatment Explained
News

What Is Preventative Chemotherapy? Kate Middleton’s Cancer Treatment Explained

hallanaija
Last updated: March 23, 2024 11:06 am
hallanaija 1 year ago
Share
SHARE
Catherine, Princess of Wales, announced on Friday that she is undergoing preventative chemotherapy to treat cancer discovered after she had abdominal surgery.

While the exact situation is difficult to determine because the 42-year-old princess did not disclose the nature of the cancer, here is an explanation of preventative chemo.

– What is chemotherapy? –

Chemotherapy is the use of powerful drugs to stop cancerous cells from growing, dividing and creating more cells. There are a large number of kinds of chemotherapy, depending on the cancer, how far it has spread and the treatment regime.

Because these treatments cannot distinguish between different cells, they end up killing some cells that do good, such as white blood cells, causing some side effects.

– Why preventative? –

Preventative chemotherapy is often used after surgery to “decrease the likelihood” that cancer will return, Kimmie Ng, an oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in the United States told AFP.

Even after successful surgery, “microscopic cancer cells can remain lurking in the body and can’t be detected by current tests,” said Lawrence Young, molecular oncology professor at the University of Warwick.

READ MORE  A new era of security and technological connections between Kenya and the US

It is “a bit like mopping a floor with bleach when you’ve spilt something on it”, Andrew Beggs, a cancer surgeon at the University of Birmingham, told the Science Media Centre.

– Side effects? –

How chemo affects people can vary depending on the particular cancer, treatment and person.

But common side effects include fatigue, nausea, diarrhoea, loss of appetite and an increased risk of getting an infection.

Some rarer, more severe side effects can include sepsis and damage to vital organs.

– How long? –

Treatment schedules again can vary widely, but a traditional chemo regime would be delivered in four to six blocks, said Bob Phillips, paediatric oncology professor at the University of York.

A cycle may last 21 days and “consists of a day or few days of chemo, then time for the body to recover from it,” Phillips said.

Regimes of preventative chemo tend to last between three to six months.

It can take people weeks or months to recover from the treatment.

– More cancer among young people? –

Beggs emphasised that “young onset cancer is by no means rare”.

READ MORE  KEMSA Revokes List Of Pre-Qualified Suppliers To Tame Corruption

“I run a clinic for early-onset cancer in adults and we are seeing more and more people in their 40s with cancer,” he said.

Shivan Sivakumar, an oncology expert at the University of Birmingham said “there is an epidemic currently” of people under 50 getting cancer.

“It is unknown the cause of this, but we are seeing more patients getting abdominal cancers,” he said.

Ng pointed out that research from the American Cancer Society released this year showed that younger adults were the only age group in which cancer increased between 1995 and 2020.

“There is an urgent need for research into the causes of this uptick,” Ng said.

Research published in the BMJ journal last week said that cancer cases among people aged 35-69 in Britain also rose over the last quarter of a century.

But deaths from cancer fell by a significant margin.

“The younger you are, the more likely you are to tolerate chemotherapy well,” Sivakumar said.

Younger people also more likely to survive cancer.

A combination of early diagnosis and better treatments has led to “survival rates doubling in the last 50 years”, Young said.

READ MORE  Gov’t directs national schools to submit banking details to facilitate payment of fees through eCitizen

“An incidental finding of cancer during surgery for other conditions is often associated with the tumour being detected at an early stage when subsequent chemotherapy is much more effective,” he added.

– Check yourself? –

Michelle Mitchell, chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said that such high-profile cancers can serve as a reminder for people to think about their own health.

“If people spot something that’s not normal for them or isn’t going away, they should check with their GP,” she said.

“It probably won’t be cancer. But if it is, spotting it at an early stage means treatment is more likely to be successful.”

You Might Also Like

Morocco’s 24-hour heatwave Claims Over 20 Lives

Matatu owners take on CS Kindiki over new transport rules

Petition filed to remove Judiciary’s chief registrar Anne Amadi

DCI Obtain Footage From Matiang’i Home

Sam Gituku: Not just Gachagua was deleted from Ruto’s WhatsApp journal.

Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Email Print
Previous Article Congress Vote Averts US Government Shutdown
Next Article Three Suspects Arrested For Beating Man To Death Over A Pesticide
Leave a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

about us

We influence 20 million users and is the number one business and technology news network on the planet.

Recent Posts

  • One police officer shot dead, two injured in Nakuru gang attack
  • Homeless seek refuge at Madrid airport as rents soar
  • Jubilant PSG party into night with Champions League trophy
  • Two suspected criminals arrested in Kiambu
  • South African man arrested after Nairobi teen lured to Nairobi hotel via Tinder

Recent Comments

No comments to show.
Newsunplug KenyaNewsunplug Kenya
© Newsunplug Kenya. All Rights Reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?