Principles of Cancer Treatment

Surgeons often play a pivotal role in the treatment plans for cancer patients, especially when the plan of action includes resection. Locoregional therapies have the advantage of treating the tumor and its local environment while minimizing systemic effects. Other examples of local treatment include radiotherapy and chemotherapy delivered with isolation techniques. In contrast, systemic chemotherapy, systemic radiation, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy are administered throughout the body. Systemic therapy is most useful in treating disease distant to the site of origin but can be limited by systemic side effects. This chapter explores each of these treatment arms in more detail and provides examples of when such options may be deployed. This review contains 1 figure, 2 tables, and 67 references. Key Words: Biopsy, Cancer, Chemotherapy, Directed therapy, Hormone therapy, Immunotherapy, Lymph nodes, Proton therapy, Radiation therapy, Staging