Medical therapy for cancer

Medical therapy is treatment that uses drugs to stop the growth of cancer cells, often in combination with surgery and/or radiation therapy.

Comprehensive care plan: Advocate Health Care offers the latest medications, which maximize the effectiveness of treatment while minimizing unpleasant side effects. Our board-certified medical oncologists will work closely with you and your cancer care team to carefully plan and monitor each treatment. Throughout every phase of care, we’ll also be right by your side to help you feel well and maintain as much as your normal routine as possible.

Leading-edge facilities: Our outpatient infusion therapy centers, near where you live and work, offer flexible appointments to fit your schedule. You can relax during treatment with comfortable chairs, natural lighting and other amenities, plus plenty of space for family and specially trained nurses to meet your needs.

Find an Advocate Cancer Institute near you.

Full range of cancer-fighting treatments

Depending on your unique needs, your medical therapy plan may include one or a combination of:

• Chemotherapy: While surgery and radiation therapy destroy or damage cancer cells in targeted areas, chemotherapy relies on powerful medications to eliminate cancer cells, inhibit growth and ease pain.
  
• Immunotherapy: Uses the body’s immune system to fight cancer cells. Cancer cells are different from normal cells (they change quickly and don’t die normally), and immunotherapy drugs are designed to alert the immune system about these mutated cells so it can locate and destroy them.
  
• Targeted therapy: Targeted therapy drugs help stop cancer from growing and spreading by targeting specific genes or proteins found in cancer cells or blood vessel cells. Targeted therapy is typically used in combination with other treatments.
  
• Hormone therapy: Hormone therapy helps slow or stop cancers, including breast and prostate, that use hormones to grow.