One of the most important things to do when you are undergoing perimenopause or menopause is exercise. During menopause, most women tend to gain some weight and there are many other signs like osteoporosis they can cause more serious, longer term health problems which can nevertheless be offset by taking regular exercise.

Thus, exercise is absolutely essential to keep a woman fit during her menopause. Although there are many kinds of exercises that you can go for, yoga happens to be a great option because it keeps both your body and your mind healthy.

However, you should not have any misconceptions about yoga being a remedy. It is a way of life. Yoga helps you stay fit and deal with the changes that rush through your body and mind during menopause. There are millions of women who have enjoyed great results by resorting to yoga during perimenopause. It helps keep the body fit and the mind calm.

In order to learn yoga, you might choose to enroll in a class, or you can use one of the many websites where you can learn the basics from the Internet in the comfort of your own home.

There are many experts who teach yoga, you can find out where these classes are held by asking around or searching the internet. You can also get hold of a yoga CD that has detailed instructions about how you can go about practicing yoga at home.

But it is if possible best to learn from a teacher who has a thorough knowledge of yoga and can teach you the postures and the exercises with great skill and patience. You can also get hold of some yoga books which will help you learn yoga better.

Yoga consists of asanas (poses) for all parts of your body and your overall well being. There are many asanas to help you lift your mood that will at the same time keep you in the best of health. Many of the asanas in yoga involve back bending. This increased flexibility is very good for your health in a great many different ways.

However, you need to learn the postures perfectly because if you do them wrong, you could end up getting hurt.
The opinions regarding the kinds of yoga postures you should practice during menopause vary drastically. Some experts are of the opinion that the more gentle yoga gentle postures are what you should be practising because they are very rejuvenating and nurturing.

However, another school of experts say that restorative and gentle postures do not help menopausal women. In fact, they suggest that gentle asanas aggravates certain menopausal symptoms like sudden alterations in the temperament and weight gain. They say that going for a slightly more rigorous regime is a much better option.

But the truth is that the amount of exercise which can keep you healthiest depends on your own body. Every woman is unique, and therefore the amount of exercise that your body needs also depends on your constitution. In order to find out what suits you best, you can start of with a moderate amount of exercise and gradually work yourself up to the next level to establish whether you have energy for more.

Certain yoga postures like the inversion posture are very good for menopausal women because they stimulate the hormone system of your body and help you stay fit. You can try out the special inversion processes like the shoulder stand, headstand or forward bends. These poses help a lot in relaxing your body and mind.

There are many other yoga postures that are best for women who are nearing menopause or are going through it. Postures like the triangle pose, the half moon pose or the extended angle pose are very good for your body and helps reduce cramps.

When you are undergoing menopause, it is very important to keep your body flexible in order to ensure that you do not get cramps. Cramps are immensely painful even during normal periods and more so during perimenopause. Thus, exercise is the best way to steer clear of the pain.

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• 87. Improve your food choices. Many people who eat unhealthy diets believe that they are following a sound nutritional plan. However, those same people often do not include fruits and vegetables with every meal. And they often eat meals on the go without giving it a second thought. If you want your body to perform at high-efficiency, you must provide it with high-efficiency foods. This means more whole, raw foods and as few preservatives as possible.

• 88. Plan your eating ahead of time. This is one of the things that nutritionists will tell you to do when you want to improve your eating habits. For one thing, you will not be hungry if you are prepared with a meal schedule. Also, you will not be tempted by sugar and caffeine throughout the day when you have plenty of healthy alternatives on hand.

• 89. Drink more water. Most people cannot honestly say that they drink nearly enough water. In fact, many people do not realize how much water they need to drink throughout the course of a day. You should focus on drinking half of your body weight in ounces each day. And, this does not include beverages other than water. In order for your body to function at its optimal, you need to make sure that you are drinking enough. Dehydration can occur when you are not getting enough water in your body, and there are many dangerous and bothersome side effects.

• 90. Eliminate the color white from your diet. In general, foods that are white in color contain little in terms of health benefits and are in fact better eliminated completely. This includes white bread, white pastas, potatoes, crackers that are not made from whole wheat and white rice. You can eliminate these items or replace with foods that have a higher nutritional value like whole wheat bread and pasta, sweet potatoes and brown rice.

• 91. Eat more foods that are acidic and alkaline. Consider modifying your diet to include foods that are acidic and alkaline, because many holistic experts believe that this is one of the keys to maintaining a healthy body. Foods like meat are high in acid. Fruits and vegetables tend to contain a high alkaline content. One of the reasons that this will improve your health is that your body will contain far less bacteria when it is acidic than when it is not.

• 92. Don’t overdo the grains.Consider reducing the amount of grains and other carbohydrates that you are eating on a daily basis. The typical food pyramid emphasizes eating a large quantity of starches, however nutritionists believe that focusing more on fruits and vegetables will keep you healthier overall.

• 93. Consider adopting a raw food diet. This is where you eat only unprocessed and uncooked foods. Often, the damage done to the body by food occurs because of the additives and preservatives that are used in the preparation. While most people find that they cannot sustain this type of diet for an extended time period, some have transformed their life and health through raw food consumption.

• 94. Avoid foods with added supplements. Believe it or not, nutritionists do not recommend supplements for the sake of adding more nutrients. You should try to obtain the nutrients you need through the foods that naturally contain them. And, if you require supplements, you are far better off just taking supplements. One nutrient that seems to be added to everything these days is calcium. The amount of calcium being added to products like orange juice is so minimal that it really will not help you to overcome a deficiency.

• 95. Eat a teaspoon of honey every day. Honey is known for its amazing healing properties, and because it contains 100% natural sugars it is a safe and effective way to give yourself an energy boost. Honey is good for your skin, your circulation and for the cells of your body due to a high content of antioxidants.

• 96. Nourish your body. Holistic healers believe that malnutrition is often responsible for many commonly occurring health problems, meaning that if the body does not get what it needs, illness will be the result. Imagine of completely avoided calcium. The result would be brittle and broken bones and teeth. Well, the same applies for many other important nutrients. So, be sure to keep giving your body what it needs to stay healthy.

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• 61. Get more vitamin D. Supplements are one way to increase your Vitamin D intake, however quite honestly the best way to get this nutrient is from sunshine. The human body synthesizes Vitamin D that is absorbed through the skin when exposed to sunlight. Many people are not getting the sun exposure that they require because of the risk of skin cancer; however in moderation – about 5 minutes a day – sunlight is very beneficial.

• 62. Take vitamin C prior to sun exposure. Getting a sunburn is definitely unpleasant. By taking an extra dose of vitamin C prior to beginning your sun exposure, you are boosting your skin’s natural defenses. If you would like increased protection, consider adding vitamin E as well.

• 63. Sooth your stomach with oranges and fennel seed. Make a mixture of a tablespoon each of orange peel and fennel seed added to two cups of water. Boil and then steep this tea. Add honey to sweeten the tea and drink it when you are suffering from indigestion. The tea should refrigerate for about 48 hours, and will taste primarily like fennel.

• 64. Drink rosemary tea. Rosemary is a kitchen herb known for its ability to stimulate the senses. If you are feeling tired, but have a lot to get accomplished you might do well to drink some Rosemary Tea. Rosemary Tea is also an excellent remedy for headaches.

• 65. Use ipecac syrup to stop vomiting. While this is one of the common ingredients in most home first aid kits, you may not realize that it is also a homeopathic remedy for vomiting when taken in very tiny doses. While ipecac will not do much for patients experiencing nausea, it will work wonders for you if you are experiencing continuous vomiting. A homeopathic physician or pharmacist can recommend exact dosages for you.

• 66. Take Ginkgo for better concentration. Gingko is known for its ability to stimulate the mind and to help the brain to metabolize nutrients correctly. In some cases, the herb has been noted to reduce the effects of aging and to slow the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Gingko leaves are ground into a powder and the extract can be used in many different forms. A few years ago, it became very common to see Gingko added to just about everything in the supermarket. A homeopathic physician can help you to determine whether you would benefit from a Gingko supplement.

• 67. Mix garlic and honey. If you are at risk for, or suffer from high blood pressure, consider eating a teaspoon of minced garlic mixed with 2 teaspoons of honey every day. Honey and garlic are known for being healing foods, and when combined they are extremely beneficial to the circulatory system.

• 68. Soothe diaper rash with beeswax. Beeswax is the base for a homeopathic diaper cream solution. By adding in other herbs such as chickweed and marshmallow, you are creating a cream that is not only developed perfectly from nature – but one that will not stain and stick to your hands. This cream is far gentler than the conventional diaper rash creams currently on the market.

• 69. Try magnesium for leg cramps. Many people suffer from cramps in their legs, particularly in the calves. Drinking more water will probably help to relieve the frequency and adding magnesium to your diet is a great way to eliminate these cramps forever.

• 70. Try belladonna for ear pain. If you have an ear infection or ear pain, belladonna extract could possible help to alleviate this pain. This extract helps to reduce inflammation in the blood vessels, one of the common causes of ear pain. Other ailments for which belladonna will help include toothaches, fevers, restlessness or insomnia and eye pain resulting from dryness.

• 71. Take St. John’s Wort for stress. This plant extract is known for its ability to help relieve the symptoms of depression, grief and anxiety. You can also try taking St. John’s Wort for any injury that causes sharp pains  or a repetitive stress injury. This supplement is commonly added to teas, and is also widely available in capsules and tablets.

• 72. Consider poison ivy for an ankle sprain. Although it is not commonly thought of as a good thing, poison ivy extract is actually an excellent pain reliever for sprains and strains. Sometimes, the extract is given to patients with severe flu symptoms or even arthritis.

• 73. Use chamomile for teething. Homeopathic remedies for teething contain this extract, which is known for its calming effects. The safest way to use this extract is in a cream or gel designed specifically for teething babies. There are specifically designed capsules that are placed under the baby’s tongue to induce calmness and relieve pain.

• 74. Use onions to relieve allergy symptoms. Onions are an excellent treatment option for those suffering from allergies because the root is completely natural and proves to be very effective at opening nasal passages. It’s not as simple as eating an onion however. Because onions cause the same symptoms that allergy sufferer’s dread, an extract should be taken in tiny doses, until the body begins to ignore the irritant and to develop a defense against the patients other allergens.

• 75. Try lavender on your feet. If you suffer from athlete’s foot, you already realize that there is little you seem to be able to do in order to stop the affliction. That is true with traditional medications. However, using oils of lavender, garlic and tea-tree in an alcohol solution will help to ward off the problem once and for all.

• 76. Try peppermint oil for headaches. If you get chronic tension headaches and have found conventional medications to be failing, it might be a good idea to consider trying peppermint oil. A few drops of this oil can be placed on a cotton ball and applied to the forehead. Take a few minutes to relax and allow the oil to penetrate the skin.

• 77. Sleep better with a sesame oil scalp massage. Warm a small amount of sesame oil, and massage into the scalp before washing your hair in order to induce sleep. This can also be an effective technique to stop a headache. Scalp massage in general is a good treatment option, however when combined with sesame oil the effects are better felt.

• 78. Try Passion Flower extract. If you suffer from anxiety disorder, depression or hyperactivity this extract can help eliminate daily anxiety, calm hyperactivity and relieve stress. The calming effects of this extract are also thought to help with high blood pressure.

• 79. Reduce stress naturally. One of the most commonly treated medical conditions in the world today is anxiety disorder. Thankfully, nature provided us with natural stress relievers like passion flower, lemon balm, lavender and valerian to name a few. Consider trying these various extracts to test their effect on your anxiety and stress levels ith essential oils, teas and other forms.

• 80. Try feverfew for headaches. Feverfew has been used for centuries by medical experts to treat rheumatoid arthritis and migraine headaches. This root is known for its ability to reduce swelling and fevers as well. You can try a tablet, or even a feverfew tea.

• 81. Try vitamins C and B for a hangover. If you happen to overindulge with alcohol, you should immediately drink a glass of water and take some Vitamins B and C. This combination will start to remove the alcohol from your bloodstream and start the process of recovering so that you feel better faster

• 82. Try bee products for arthritis and joint pain. If you suffer from stiff joints or arthritis, consider trying bee venom in any of its popular forms. You might try a cream made from royal jelly, eating raw honey or even using bee venom itself. If you are interested in experiencing the healing relief of bee venom, contact an apitherapist, who will actually administer bee stings to your affected joints. If you are allergic to bee stings, you should not consider this treatment.

• 83. Try ginger for joint problems. If you experience joint pain or stiffness, you might benefit from ginger caplets, or simply more ginger in your diet. Ginger is an antioxidant that is known to assist the body in preserving cartilage. You can find ginger supplements in any health food store. Botanic Choice Joint Health Formula Sale – glucosamine, chondroitin and more…

• 84. Try coriander oil for joint pain and stiffness. Coriander oil or extract can be added to mineral oil for massaging sore joints, or it can be brewed into a tea. Try making a 1 to 5 solution in an oil of your choice, letting it sit for 24 hours and then applying to sore joints. Botanic Choice Joint Health Formula Sale – glucosamine, chondroitin and more…

• 85. Stop sneezing with Echinacea. This herb has been used for thousands of years to treat the symptoms of the common cold. It is thought to be an excellent immunity booster. There are many different forms of Echinacea currently on the market. Depending on whether you are taking it as a preventative supplement or to treat current symptoms, the dosage may differ.

• 86. Add more B to your diet. Foods rich in the B vitamins and B supplements are thought to be some of the most beneficial to the human body. B vitamins are excellent for the nervous system, the skin and are even used to treat respiratory problems including asthma. Foods like brown rice, baked potatoes and fish contain vitamin B. Try adding more to your diet today.

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The reason we get old is because we don’t dispose the acid wastes and toxins from our body. The food that we are eating every day is nothing but the combination of carbon, nitrogen,hydrogen and oxygen. Once these nutrients are burnt in the cells, they turn into carbonic acids, uric acids, lactic acids, fatty acids, ammonia, etc.

We dispose these acidic wastes and toxins as urine or perspiration after being dissolved into our blood. Due to our life style and environments, we can not get rid of all the acid wastes. These left over acid wastes within our body is the process of getting old.

Some parts of our body build up more acids than others, and they can clog up capillary vessels around those acidic areas. This causes some body organs to function in a sluggish manner. We feel tired and run down sometimes for no reason whatsoever, and adult diseases such as high blood pressure, arthritis, diabetes, asthma, allergies, etc. start to set in WE SIMPLY ACCEPT THESE PHENOMENA AS “GETTING OLD.”

When these acidic elements are build up in our body, they start to destroy the healthy cells around them. The body can get rid of them quickly and easily if you maintain a normal pH of around 7.4.  Some of these cells change their formula in order to survive in an acidic environment and that is beginning of cancer.

Cancer cells are acidic while healthy cells are alkaline. Even if the cancerous tumors are completely removed surgically, as long as the acidic conditions in the area remain, the chances are that new tumors will develop around the same area.

So how does anti-aging process works?  There are two steps to anti-aging process. The first step is to develop a good disposal system and the second step is to pull out the old wastes from their hiding places.

Since the waste disposal is done in liquid form by urine and perspiration, we need to drink lots of water. We hear this from our doctors all the time to drink 8 glasses of water every day but they don’t tell us what kind of water to drink. Since all these waste products are acidic, the best kind of water is acid free  alkaline water.

Water treated by electrolysis to increase its reduction potential is the best solution to the problem of providing a safe source of free electrons to block the oxidation of normal tissue by free oxygen radicals. We believe that reduced water, water with an excess of free electrons to donate to active oxygen, is the best solution because the reduction potential of water can be dramatically increased over other antioxidants in food or vitamin supplements and the molecule weight of reduced water is low, making it fast acting and able to reach all tissues of the body in a very short time.

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Chemotherapy drugs are pretty numerous and they fall into various categories following such criteria as the way they work, the relationship they establish with other drugs and the chemical structure they have. Most drugs are based on chemicals obtained from plants and this very origin or source leaves room to further classification. And, last but not least, one drug may be found in various categories as they may have several effects on the body of the patient. Doctors have a very precise duty of getting fully informed about chemotherapy drugs and know how to combine them or in what order to prescribe them to cancer patients.

A first category of chemotherapy drugs is the one relying on alkylating agents. These drugs are pretty damaging to the bone marrow because they damage the DNA to prevent the cancerous cells from reproduction. This type of chemotherapy drugs is used in a wide variety of cancers and it is recommended only in small dosage to reduce the risk of leukemia that may appear 5 or 10 years after following the recommended chemotherapy treatment. The platinum based drugs are sometimes included in the same category because they act in a very similar manner against the disease.

Another category of chemotherapy drugs is the one consisting of antimetabolites. They are used in treating leukemia, breast tumors, ovary and intestinal cancers and they also interfere not only with the DNA but also with the RNA.

The anthracyclines are another type of chemotherapy drugs being part of the antibiotic group. They work against enzymes that help in DNA replication and they are encountered in a wide variety of cancer treatments.

Next is the category of inhibitors. The topoisomerase inhibitors help in separating and copying strands of DNA being helpful for the treatment of leukemia besides many other types of cancer. The mitotic inhibitors are more natural-based derived from plants and they help in preventing enzymes from producing proteins required in cell reproduction. However, there is one huge risk that patients take when following such a treatment: these chemotherapy drugs may cause peripheral nerve damage to mention just one the health threats one may fear.

Last but not least, the corticosteroids are chemotherapy drugs based on hormones meant to treat lymphoma, leukemia and myeloma together with other diseases. Besides reducing the speed of cell growth, they also have a good impact on the way the body reacts to chemotherapy by preventing nausea, vomiting or other types of allergic reactions. These types of drugs may be used as chemotherapy ones or not, depending on the purpose they are supposed to serve.

Cancer is a disease that gains more and more of the ground we used to own in health matters especially now, in the 21st century. As a result, it is highly important that not only chemotherapy patients understand the risks and side effects of treatments but also those who are healthy and may or may not come in contact with cancer patients.

The most widely used treatment of cancer is chemotherapy either followed or preceded by surgery. Chemotherapy patients usually face a great deal of problems they have to go through. To begin with, there are the physical aspects that will break down their morale. The side effects that they will experience may eat away at their self-esteem, since they may include alopecia, constant nausea and dizziness, pains and infections of all sorts depending on the part of the body that is affected or on the type of medication that has been prescribed to follow. Some chemotherapy patients feel that they are somewhat physically impaired since they can no longer perform certain activities that have previously defined their life or that have brought smiles on their faces.

Another level of impact on chemotherapy patients is the psychological one. They need to receive the moral needed support from their family and friends and the trouble is that many choose not to share this burden with their loved ones. Because of this, they will most likely lack in support and will have to carry this burden by themselves. Not being able to talk about it as they would, not being able to share will make them feel marginalized, separated from the people in their lives and will break their morale.

On the other hand, those chemotherapy patients that initially build rapport with family and friends and choose to communicate about it and share the burden, may end up feeling guilty for spoiling family life and for being set on the top priority list, a list that is usually not considered a pleasure bringing one. They themselves may end up feeling that they have turned into a burden to their family putting strain on relationships and may choose to seclude themselves as a result of this feeling.

All these considered, it is highly obvious that family and friends of chemotherapy patients should get informed about what their beloved ones are going through and about how help can be provided in such situations. The moral strength of chemotherapy patients can be kept above surface level or increased only by psychologists and people who honestly display affection and interest in helping.

Breast chemotherapy refers to the treatment applied to patients who suffer from breast cancer. Its purpose is to kill or to reduce in size the tumor consisting of cells that multiply very quickly compared to the normal rate of multiplication of normal cells. Breast chemotherapy can be of very many kinds depending on the combination of drugs that the doctor has selected for you. That is why it is highly important that patients and their family ask for clarifications from their doctors in case they haven’t understood how it all works and that they also know what side effects may be expected as a result of the medication.

Breast chemotherapy is administered either orally or intravenously and it is usually given in cycles. The drug reaches in the blood and then travels throughout the entire body to locate and attack the sick cells meant to be destroyed. Even though breast chemotherapy is directed at breast cancer, the drugs that are recommended as treatment may act on whatever other unhealthy cells that may have already developed somewhere else than the breast. From this perspective doctors call breast chemotherapy a systemic form of treatment precisely because it may act all throughout the patient’s organism.

Breast chemotherapy may be recommended after lumpectomy or mastectomy and in this case it is known as adjuvant treatment. The patients undergo this type of treatment only when doctors are certain from analyses that cancer has not yet spread to any other parts of the body but the breast.

Another case when breast chemotherapy becomes necessary is when cancer has spread from the lymph nodes or breast to other parts of the body. This particular spread is known as metastatic breast cancer and women rarely have this form at the time of the diagnosis.

Whichever of the breast chemotherapy treatments you are to receive it is important to know how you can figure out if it has any effect. This does not mean however that it is mandatory for you to experience side effects or otherwise your treatment is inefficient. This would be the wrong approach to it all. Adjuvant breast chemotherapy may have no side effects but it has always proved to be very helpful as it impedes unhealthy cells from spreading or redeveloping in your body.

All in all, breast chemotherapy is no easy treatment. That is why our world today fights strongly against breast cancer trying to teach women how to avoid it and how to manage or identify it in its early stages when it can be treated.

Melanoma is a type of cancer that affects the skin and is recognized by the dark spots that appear on the dermis. In order to treat melanoma, diagnostic tests must first be completed and then the cancer team will be able to recommend one or maybe more treatment options. Melanoma chemotherapy is one of the possibilities here. Anyway, patients should consider these treatment variants carefully, without rushing into one of them. First of all, patients ought to understand everything about the treatments. It is obvious that the choice of the procedure depends on the thickness of the primary tumor and the stage of the disease mainly.

Among the treatments for melanoma there are options like surgery and chemotherapy. There are different choices in as far as surgery is concerned, depending on where and how advanced the melanoma is. Thus doctors might consider re-excision, amputation or lymph node dissection. If melanoma has spread from the skin to distant organs, then surgery will not be a curable option to use. Therefore, melanoma chemotherapy might be the solution. Systemic chemotherapy that is normally involved in the procedure uses injectable anticancer drugs.

These are usually injected into a vein or taken orally. Melanoma chemotherapy drugs travel through the bloodstream to all parts of the body. They attack cancer cells which have already spread beyond the skin to lymph nodes or other organs. The drugs kill cancer cells but, unfortunately they also destroy some normal cells as well. Among these normal cells that can be killed are blood-producing cells of the bone marrow, cells that line the gastrointestinal tract and cells of hair follicles. As a result, patients will go through temporary side effects like nausea and vomiting, mouth sores, loss of appetite and loss of hair.

Melanoma chemotherapy drugs include temozolomide, cisplatin, vinblastine, DTIC, BCNU and tamoxifen. DTIC can be used alone or with other chemotherapy drugs like BCNU and cisplatin. The above three combined with tamoxifen, which is a hormonal therapy drug commonly used in treating breast cancer, bear the name Dartmouth Regimen. Then there is another combination of DTIC, cisplatin and vinblastine to use against melanoma. Temozolomide is a newer medicine, whose mode of function is similar to that of DTIC, except that it is used in the form of a pill.

Since melanoma chemotherapy drugs kill normal blood cells as well, patients might experience low blood cell counts and this can lead to bleeding or bruising after even minor cuts or injuries; excessive tiredness (frequently because of low red blood cell counts but also because of chemotherapy itself) and an increased chance of infection (because of white blood cell shortage).

Cancer patients may have no other choice but to resort to chemotherapy in order to treat their illness. In oncology, adjuvant chemotherapy will have quite a special role for the patient because it is related to other cancer treatments. Adjuvant chemotherapy is an additional treatment given to the patient after surgery to help prevent any cancerous cells that may have not been completely removed during surgery from developing or increasing in number. The patient may relapse even if surgery has been performed because unfortunately, medicine is not sufficiently developed to be able to foresee whether cancer cells will reoccur or not.

Radiotherapy or regular chemical-based treatments are included in the adjuvant chemotherapy category and they are recommended by the doctors based on some statistical evidence which is employed in order to figure out whether there is low or high risk in relapse for the patient. Statistics show that about a third of the patients who have received adjuvant chemotherapy treatment have already been completely cured with the help of the surgery alone. For those who are not included in the above mentioned third, the long term purpose of the adjuvant chemotherapy is to lengthen the life of the cancer patients.

The types of cancer in which adjuvant chemotherapy is used are quite various and here we may include colon cancer, lung, pancreatic, breast and prostate cancer as well as some forms of gynecological cancers.

Beside the adjuvant chemotherapy, there is also another type of treatment that resembles the former in name; that is, neo-adjuvant chemotherapy. The latter is given to patients before the primary treatment and it may take the form of chemical drug-based treatment. For example, neo-adjuvant chemotherapy may be prescribed to a patient suffering from breast cancer who will have to undergo surgery for breast removal. The aim of such a type of therapy is to minimize the size of the tumor so that the surgery may be performed more efficiently and with less risk.

All in all, adjuvant chemotherapy has been identified as more effective when it is prescribed after the tumor removal rather than before it because the remaining cancer cells are fewer in number and, as a result, the drug is more powerful on them. The drugs specific to this type of treatment are most efficient when they are administered directly into the blood of the patient, that is, intravenously; another way of increasing drug efficiency is to insert it directly into the part of the body that is affected by cancer.

Cancer refers to the uncontrolled growth of cells combined with malignant behavior – invasion and metastasis. The cause for this disease is believed to be the interaction of environmental toxins and the genetic susceptibility. Basically, the chemotherapy drug’s functioning principle is to impair cell division (mitosis), targeting rapidly-dividing cells. The fact that these drugs destroy cells leads to their being named cytotoxic.

Chemotherapy, generally speaking, implies the treatment of a disease by means of chemicals which kill the sick cells. Particularly speaking, chemotherapy is used to kill the cells of micro-organisms or cancer. Chemotherapy usually refers to antineoplastic drugs which are used to treat cancer or to the combination of these drugs into a cytotoxic standardized treatment regimen. From a non-oncological perspective, the term chemotherapy also refers to antibiotics – this is known as antibacterial chemotherapy.

A chemotherapy drug, or better a combination of such drugs, functions by destroying cells that divide quickly. Unfortunately, these drugs also affect/attack other healthy cells that divide rapidly. These other cells that get attacked by the chemotherapy drug are cells in the hair follicles, bone marrow and digestive tract. The results on the normal rapid-dividing cells are the side effects of chemotherapy: alopecia – hair loss, myelosuppression – decreased production of blood cells, and mucositis – inflammation of the digestive tract.

Among the other uses of the chemotherapy drug and cytostatic chemotherapy agents there are the treatment of autoimmune diseases (multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis) and the suppression of transplant rejections. There are newer anti-cancer drugs which were designed to act directly against abnormal proteins in cancer cells; this treatment option is known as targeted therapy.

When talking about a chemotherapy drug, we should be aware that there are different types available at present. Most of the drugs can be divided into alkylating agents, antimetabolites, plant alkaloids, topoisomerase inhibitors, anthracyclines, and other antitumor agents. Some newer agents, like monoclonal antibodies and tyrosine kinase inhibitors, do not interfere directly with the DNA as do the above mentioned ones.

These ones target a molecular abnormality in particular types of cancer such as gastrointestinal stromal tumors or chronic myelogenous leukemia. Besides these, there is also the category of drugs that modulate the tumor cell behavior without directly attacking those cells. Within these adjuvant therapies the option very commonly used is the hormone treatment.

Depending on the stage of the disease and the aim of the treatment, doctors will choose to administer one chemotherapy drug or a combination of drugs according to one or another of the existing strategies.