Chemotherapy for Oral Cancer
The standard treatments for oral cancer are surgery and radiation therapy. But chemotherapy is increasingly being used as well.1 Chemotherapy uses anticancer drugs that are given in a vein or muscle or taken by mouth. The drugs enter the bloodstream, which carries them around the body. This lets them reach not only cancer in the head and neck area, but also any that has spread to other sites.2
Your doctor might suggest chemotherapy to treat oral cancer in several situations:
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You are having radiation for larger cancers confined to the head and neck. In recent studies, combining radiation and chemotherapy worked better than radiation alone. It helped people live longer. And there was less chance of the cancer coming back.2
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You are planning to have surgery or radiation later, and your doctor wants to shrink the tumor first. Getting chemotherapy beforehand may make the cancer easier to treat.2,3
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You have had surgery already, but the cancer was too large to be removed completely. Chemotherapy, often combined with radiation, may help relieve some symptoms.2
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Your cancer has spread to another part of the body. Chemotherapy hasn’t been shown to improve survival in this situation, but it may reduce symptoms and help you feel better.4
1 “Lip and Oral Cavity Cancer Treatment (PDQ): Treatment Option Overview.” National Cancer Institute, August 27, 2008. www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/lip-and-oral-cavity/Patient/page4 Accessed 2010.
2 “Treating Oral Cavity and Oropharyngeal Cancer: Chemotherapy.” American Cancer Society, September 28, 2007. www.cancer.org/Cancer/OralCavityandOropharyngealCancer/DetailedGuide/oral-cavity-and-oropharyngeal-cancer-treating-chemotherapy Accessed 2010.
3 “Lip and Oral Cavity Cancer Treatment (PDQ): Stage III Lip and Oral Cavity Cancer.” National Cancer Institute, May 22, 2008. www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/lip-and-oral-cavity/HealthProfessional/page8 Accessed 2010.
4 “Oral Cavity and Oropharyngeal Cancer: Treatment Options by Stage.” American Cancer Society, September 28, 2007. www.cancer.org/Cancer/OralCavityandOropharyngealCancer/DetailedGuide/oral-cavity-and-oropharyngeal-cancer-treating-by-stage Accessed 2010.