A 44-year-old member asked:
How does treatment shrink your malignant tumors?
3 doctor answers • 5 doctors weighed in
Dr. David Milleranswered
Family Medicine 12 years experience
Kills them: Cancer treatments target rapidly-growing cells, killing them faster than other cells. By killing the tumor cells, the tumor shrinks as the body attacks the dead tissue and destroys it.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.8k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Dr. Devon Websteranswered
Medical Oncology 24 years experience
By targeting growth: Tumors grow faster than normal cells. Chemotherapy and radiation work by interfering with the machinery that helps tumor cells divide. It's a little like weeds in your lawn. Weedkiller acts on rapidly-growing weeds, but usually doesn't harm the grass. Faster-growing tumors are often easier to kill with chemotherapy compared to slower-growing tumors.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.8k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Dr. Weili Sunanswered
Pediatric Hematology and Oncology 28 years experience
Shrink tumor: Chemotherapy or radiation therapy can cause cell death. Cancer cells are more sensitive to these treatment than normal healthy cells. When cell die, the tumor size decrease.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.8k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
Similar questions
A 40-year-old member asked:
How does a benign tumor differ from a malignant tumor? Does the same therapy shrink both of them?
2 doctor answers • 3 doctors weighed in
A Verified Doctoranswered
Surgical Oncology 20 years experience
No: Most benign tumors are not capable of spreading an invading distant organs. That being said, there are rare examples of benign tumors that get so big that they can cause major symptoms and medical problems. Thankfully, these are pretty unusual.
Chemotherapy is not usually effective for benign tumors; surgical removal is a better option.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.8k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
Last updated Jul 23, 2019
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