How MMJ Health can help Patients with Chemotherapy Side Effects

What is Chemotherapy?

Normally, a healthy body will function as it should to constantly create and replace cells by dividing and growing. When cancer occurs, the body’s cells reproduce in an uncontrolled manner and take over the space meant for the good cells.

Chemotherapy is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more powerful anti-cancer drugs to kill fast-growing cells in the body. Doctors recommend chemotherapy as a cancer treatment because the drugs it uses can kill dividing cancer cells and prevent new ones from growing.

How does chemotherapy work?

Chemotherapy treatments typically either attack cancer cells in the body, target the processes by which the cells are dividing or target the sites they divide at. It accomplishes this by preventing cell division, targeting the cancer cell’s food source, or by triggering apoptosis (self-destruction of cancer cells).

Some new treatments even attempt to hinder new blood vessel growth connected to tumors in order to starve them and stop them from producing cancerous cells.

Doctors use chemotherapy at different stages of the disease, in different ways to treat different symptoms.

These may include:

Before surgery or radiation therapy to shrink tumors
After surgery or radiation therapy to destroy remaining cancerous cells
As the only treatment for some cancers of the blood or lymphatic system
To treat recurrent cancer
To treat metastatic cancer

Why use chemotherapy?

Your doctor may recommend chemotherapy to try to shrink a tumor before surgery or after surgery and remission to remove remaining cancer cells and delay or prevent a recurrence. It may also be recommended in order to slow the progression of cancer and reduce symptoms in late-stage cancers, sometimes called palliative chemotherapy.

Even though it may have severe adverse effects, it is one of the only known therapies to stop the growth of cancer cells and can help patients go into remission. Chemotherapy is usually used in addition to radiation therapy and sometimes surgery. While these treatment plans can be effective, the overall effectiveness will depend on the stage of cancer, and other factors.

Types of Chemotherapy Treatments

There are several types of chemotherapy, they include:

Chemotherapy Side Effects

If you suffer from chemotherapy side effects or notice any of these symptoms while undergoing chemotherapy, you should schedule an appointment with your doctor.

Diagnosing Cancer

The doctor may start by asking about personal and family health history when diagnosing cancer. You may need to do a physical exam and undergo laboratory tests, imaging tests (scans), or other procedures. Cancer patients may also need to have a biopsy performed to be able to determine which type of cancer a patient is suffering from.

Please see a licensed doctor in order to be diagnosed with cancer. MMJ Health has professional and knowledgeable Medical Marijuana Specialists that can create a treatment plan that works for your lifestyle.

What can a Florida Medical Marijuana clinic do for someone who needs chemotherapy?

Under Amendment 2, undergoing chemotherapy may be a qualifying condition for a medical marijuana card in Florida. Getting your Florida medical marijuana card could help reduce the side effects of chemotherapy in cancer patients. While marijuana has been used in herbal remedies for centuries, there is some scientific evidence to support that it may also help with curbing pain, nausea, and other side effects of chemotherapy.

There is even some evidence to suggest that THC and other cannabinoids such as CBD, could potentially slow the growth of and/or cause the death of certain types of cancer cells. While more research needs to be done, medical marijuana is still a good alternative remedy for the side effects of chemotherapy compared to other pain medicines that may be habit-forming.

If you are currently suffering from chemotherapy side effects and would like to talk to our certified Florida Marijuana doctors, you can book an appointment and come to any of our 10 convenient MMJ Health locations.