Normal cells grow and die in a controlled way. Cancer occurs when cells become abnormal and keep dividing and forming more cells without control or order.

Chemotherapy destroys cancer cells by stopping them from growing or multiplying at one or more points in their life cycle. A chemotherapy drug can be given alone or in combination with other chemotherapy drugs, which is called combination chemotherapy.

Other types of drugs may be used to treat your cancer, including certain drugs that block the effect of hormones (hormonal therapy) or other drugs that will boost the body’s natural defenses against cancer (biological therapy).

Depending on the type of cancer and its stage of development, chemotherapy can be used to:

• cure cancer
• keep the cancer from spreading
• slow the cancer’s growth
• kill cancer cells that may have spread to other parts of the body from the original tumor
• relieve symptoms that may be caused by the cancer.

Chemotherapy spreads throughout the body and is considered a "systemic" treatment, while surgery and radiation therapy are considered "local" treatments because they are treating a specific area.

Chemotherapy is given at Coborn Cancer Center and St. Cloud Hospital by registered nurses trained in chemotherapy administration. Many of the nurses are nationally certified in oncology nursing (OCN) and all have chosen cancer care as their specialty.