A chemo pill is a type of oral chemotherapy which is a cancer fighting drug that is taken by mouth in a liquid form, tablet form or capsule form.
Chemotherapy pills or oral chemotherapy drugs are prescribed by your doctor or a nurse practitioner or phsyician's assistant.
Oral chemotherapy drugs or chemo pills have the same benefits and risks as chemotherapy drugs that are taken by infusion.
Some examples or oral chemotherapy drugs are altretamine, capecitabine, cyclophosphamide and etoposide.
Altretamine is an oral chemotherapy drug that is used for treating ovarian cancer.
Capecitabine is an oral chemotherapy drug that is used for treating colorectal cancer and breast cancer.
Cyclophosphamide is an oral chemotherapy drug that is used for treating multiple myeloma, leukemia, lymphoma, ovarian cancer and breast cancer.
Etoposide is an oral chemotherapy drug that is used to treat small cell lung cancer.
Chemo pills or oral chemotherapy can be better than normal chemotherapy for some people and some types of cancer although they are made to achieve the same effectiveness as IV chemotherapy.
Oral chemotherapy and chemo pills can also cause the same side effects as IV chemotherapy and every person is different and every drug is different so different people can experience different side effects from the chemotherapy drugs including oral chemotherapy and IV chemotherapy.
Some common side effects of oral chemotherapy and IV chemotherapy include fatigue, low blood counts, diarrhea, rash, vomiting and nausea.
Hair loss is also possible with oral chemotherapy just like with IV chemotherapy but you're less likely to experience hair loss from oral chemotherapy than with IV chemotherapy.