What no one tells you about chemo?

0 votes
asked Feb 9, 2024 in Diseases Conditions by message15 (3,900 points)
What no one tells you about chemo?

1 Answer

0 votes
answered Jul 9, 2024 by Alexxa12901 (13,130 points)
What no one tells you about chemo is that chemo can bring on several physical changes to the body which may not be apparent immediately until after the chemotherapy treatment ends.

Some of the physical changes to the body that can occur after chemo are changes in skin tone, weight fluctuations, long term changes in taste perception and even hair loss.

You cannot be denied chemotherapy or cancer treatments if you have cancer and can't afford it.

Even without being able to pay or without health insurance you cannot be denied cancer treatments or chemotherapy and will be billed instead.

Resources are available through the cancer hospital, local agencies, nonprofit organizations and cancer drug manufacturers to help you pay for the chemotherapy and cancer treatments.

Chemo is not recommended when the potential risks of chemo outweigh the benefits.

Chemotherapy has considerable side effects and it may not be safe for some people that have underlying conditions.

If someone has undergone three or more chemotherapy treatments for your cancer and the tumors continue to grow or spread, it may be time for them to consider stopping chemotherapy.

People  over age 65 with cancer can have a stronger reaction to chemotherapy treatments.

This means that they may have worse side effects or take longer to recover after chemotherapy treatment ends.

It is important to remember that chemotherapy can be a treatment option for patients of any age.

The higher the risk of recurrence, the greater the potential benefit of chemotherapy.

If the risk of recurrence is low, the side effects of chemotherapy are more likely to outweigh the potential benefits.

Chemo is covered by insurance as chemo is a medically necessary procedure although you may need to pay a small portion of the chemo cost although some chemo is covered by some health insurance policies.

Radiotherapy is cheaper cancer treatment than chemotherapy although radiotherapy is mostly used for treating rectal cancer and chemotherapy is used for treating other forms of cancer.

The price of chemotherapy ranges from $1,000.00 to as much as $12,000.00

With insurance you may only pay $136.00 to $169.00 out of pocket for the chemotherapy treatment.

Most people will start chemotherapy within 30 days to 90 days after surgery.

Some people may start chemo within a few weeks after surgery but most people wait until at least 30 days after surgery to begin chemotherapy.

Chemotherapy is most often used when the cancer gets into stage 2 after any other treatments don't help.

Although even at stage 1 cancer chemotherapy may be used as the sooner you start chemotherapy the higher chance you have at getting rid of the cancer before it progresses.

108,717 questions

117,721 answers

1,359 comments

7,058,500 users

...