Chemotherapy is a viable option either after surgery, in which it is called adjuvant therapy, or alone. It can be an especially useful treatment option along with radiation therapy if surgery is not an effective option because the melanoma has spread beyond the initial growth site. Chemotherapy, in essence, is the use of anticancer drugs to kill the cancerous cells in the body and shrink the tumors that can result from the growth of these cancerous cells.

Administering Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is usually given by mouth or through injection. The anticancer drugs work by entering into the bloodstream and kill the cancer cells throughout the body. This is why chemotherapy is so effective for patients whose melanoma has spread to other tissues and organs in the body, since chemotherapy treats the body systemically instead of locally.

Chemotherapy can be rough on a patient, so it is usually given in cycles. The patient will receive a treatment cycle, and the length of the cycle will depend upon the patient’s health and extent of the melanoma. This treatment will be followed by a recovery period. Chemotherapy is very effective, but sometimes the side effects resulting from the drugs can cause a short hospital stay to become necessary. These side effects can also diminish the quality of life of someone who has cancer, since they can often make the patient feel more sick than the disease does.

Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy for skin cancer is a more localized form of treatment. Radiation therapy can be very useful along with chemotherapy in terms of treating patients whose cancer has spread. If the cancer has spread to the brain, for example, radiation therapy may be used, and the type of radiation can be determined by performing a brain scan and other diagnostic procedures.

Radiation therapy and chemotherapy can help to improve a person’s chance of eradicating the melanoma from his body, but effective treatment varies from patient to patient, just as each cancer patient is different. Melanoma will not affect everyone the same, and a patient may be able to tolerate some forms of treatment, like radiation, better than others. Consult your doctor for more advice about whether chemotherapy or radiation is right for your cancer.