Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that can help answer the question.
Query: Is there any cancer treatments?
The treatment of cancer has undergone evolutionary changes as understanding of the underlying biological processes has increased. Tumor removal surgeries have been documented in ancient Egypt, hormone therapy and radiation therapy were developed in the late 19th Century. Chemotherapy, immunotherapy and newer targeted therapies are products of the 20th century. As new information about the biology of cancer emerges, treatments will be developed and modified to increase effectiveness, precision, survivability, and quality of life.
Approved cancer drugs and treatments such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy are funded by the NHS without any financial contribution being taken from the patient. Where NICE has approved a treatment, the NHS must fund it. But not all treatments have been assessed by NICE and these treatments are usually dependent on local NHS decision making. In the case of cancer the Cancer Drugs Fund was set up in 2011 after complaints about NICE decisions on new and expensive cancer drugs with limited benefits. Treatment for fertility problems are approved but not always funded by clinical commissioning groups and they may cap the number of rounds.
Because "cancer" refers to a class of diseases,[3][4] it is unlikely that there will ever be a single "cure for cancer" any more than there will be a single treatment for all infectious diseases.[5] Angiogenesis inhibitors were once thought to have potential as a "silver bullet" treatment applicable to many types of cancer, but this has not been the case in practice.[6]
American Cancer Society Cancer and nausea Experimental cancer treatment Global Task Force on Expanded Access to Cancer Care and Control in Developing Countries List of unproven and disproven cancer treatments Timeline of cancer treatment development
The word "chemotherapy" without a modifier usually refers to cancer treatment, but its historical meaning was broader. The term was coined in the early 1900s by Paul Ehrlich as meaning any use of chemicals to treat any disease ("chemo-" + "-therapy"), such as the use of antibiotics ("antibacterial chemotherapy"). Ehrlich was not optimistic that effective chemotherapy drugs would be found for the treatment of cancer. The first modern chemotherapeutic agent was arsphenamine, an arsenic compound discovered in 1907 and used to treat syphilis. This was later followed by sulfonamides (sulfa drugs) and penicillin. In today's usage, the sense "any treatment of disease with drugs" is often expressed with the word "pharmacotherapy".
A distinction is typically made between complementary treatments which do not disrupt conventional medical treatment, and alternative treatments which may replace conventional treatment. 
Alternative cancer treatments are typically contrasted with experimental cancer treatments – which are treatments for which experimental testing is underway – and with complementary treatments, which are non-invasive practices used alongside other treatment. All approved chemotherapeutic cancer treatments were considered experimental cancer treatments before their safety and efficacy testing was completed.
There is no convincing evidence from randomized controlled trials in the scientific literature that antineoplastons are useful treatments of cancer, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved these products for the treatment of any disease. The American Cancer Society has stated since 1983 that there is no evidence that antineoplastons have any beneficial effects in cancer and recommended that people do not buy these products since there could be serious health consequences. A 2004 medical review described antineoplaston treatment as a "disproven therapy".
In 1983, Dr. Alivizatos announced that he had developed a serum that had a 60 percent success rate in arresting most types of cancer, with the exception of extremely advanced cases. He claimed that the serum could attack a protein-like substance that surrounds cancer cells and weaken the body's ability to keep the disease from spreading. Greek health officials ridiculed Dr. Alivizatos's assertions, while the American Cancer Society warned his current patients that there was no evidence that the diagnostic procedures and treatment for cancer proposed had resulted in any benefits for the treatment of cancer in human beings. They concluded that, "there is no evidence that any aspect of the diagnostic test nor the treatment... are effective in the treatment of cancer." In addition they state "Nor is there any evidence that.. the intravenous injections are safe."
Cancer and Palliative Care: Cancer treatment in our country is highly priced and majority of elders are not covered by any form of medical insurance. HelpAge India provides palliative care to end- stage cancer patients, in partnership with a number of credible and competent cancer hospitals and organisations. Over 99,000 treatments have been supported since 1998.
Progesterone was first found to be effective in the treatment of endometrial hyperplasia in 1951, and progestins were first found to be effective in the treatment of endometrial cancer in 1959. MGA was reported to be effective in the treatment of endometrial hyperplasia in the mid-1960s. It first started to be studied as a treatment for endometrial cancer in 1967, with findings published in 1973. MGA was reportedly introduced for the treatment of endometrial cancer in the United States in 1971. Progesterone was studied in the treatment of breast cancer in 1951 and 1952, but with relatively modest results. MGA was first studied in the treatment of breast cancer in 1967, and was one of the first progestins to be evaluated for the treatment of this disease. A second study was conducted in 1974. A "breakthrough" and surge of interest in progestins for breast cancer occurred in 1978 when a study using a massive dosage of medroxyprogesterone acetate to treat breast cancer was published. A third study of MGA for breast cancer was published in 1980, and this was followed by additional studies in the 1980s and beyond. MGA was approved for the treatment of breast cancer in the United States by at least 1983.
The American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute do not advise the use of Hoxsey Therapy, as neither has found any objective evidence that the treatment provides tangible benefit to people with cancer. Reviews by the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and M. D. Anderson Cancer Center found no evidence that Hoxsey Therapy is effective as a treatment for cancer. A controlled experiment in lab mice did not find any difference in tumor growth between untreated mice and those given the Hoxsey tonic. An FDA review of 400 people claiming to have been cured by the Hoxsey method found that many of the patients never in fact had cancer, or had received successful medical treatment elsewhere before being treated with Hoxsey Therapy. Those who had cancer at the time they used Hoxsey Therapy were uniformly either deceased or alive with active cancer. There were no cases of actual cures among those promoted as such by the Hoxsey clinic.
Experimental cancer treatments are non-medical therapies intended to treat cancer by improving on, supplementing or replacing conventional methods (surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy). Experimental cancer treatments cannot make medical claims. The term experimental cancer treatment could thus be substituted for "non FDA approved cancer treatment."
Virginia Livingston (1906–1990) was an American physician and cancer researcher who advocated the unsupported theory that a specific species of bacteria she named "Progenitor cryptocides" was the primary cause of cancer in humans. Her theories about "P. cryptocides" have not been duplicated by researchers, and a clinical trial of her therapy did not show any efficacy in the treatment of cancer. The American Cancer Society, which did not support Livingston's treatment protocol for cancer, categorically denied her theory of cancer origins.
Specific follow-up depends on, for example, the type and stage of ovarian cancer, the treatment, and the presence of any symptoms. Usually, a check-up appointment is made about every 2 to 3 months initially, followed by twice per year for up to 5 years. For epithelial ovarian cancers, the most common test upon follow-up is CA-125 level. However, treatment based only on elevated CA-125 levels and not any symptoms can increase side effects without any prolongation of life, so the implication of the outcome of a CA-125 test can be discussed before taking it. The recommendation as of 2014 is recurrent cancer may be present if the CA-125 level is twice normal. Treating a recurrence detected by CA-125 does not improve survival.
Medical research for cancer begins much like research for any disease. In organized studies of new treatments for cancer, the pre-clinical development of drugs, devices, and techniques begins in laboratories, either with isolated cells or in small animals, most commonly rats or mice. In other cases, the proposed treatment for cancer is already in use for some other medical condition, in which case more is known about its safety and potential efficacy.
A review of Issels' claims by the American Cancer Society concluded that there was no evidence that treatment with Issels Combination Therapy or any related treatments were effective against cancer.
Genotoxic chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with the use of one or more genotoxic drugs. The treatment is traditionally part of standardized regime. By utilizing the destructive properties of genotoxins treatments aims to induce DNA damage into cancer cells. Any damage done to a cancer is passed on to descendent cancer cells as proliferation continues. If this damage is severe enough, it will induce cells to undergo apoptosis.
In March 2005, Allen was informed that she had breast cancer. Unable to be treated in Kansas, Allen sought treatment at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. After, twelve rounds of chemotherapy, thirty-three radiation treatments, and surgery, doctors said that they could not detect any cancer.
The Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center lists cancer treatment as one of the "purported uses" of soursop. According to Cancer Research UK, "Many sites on the internet advertise and promote graviola capsules as a cancer cure, but none of them are supported by any reputable scientific cancer organisations" and "there is no evidence to show that graviola works as a cure for cancer" and consequently they do not support its use as a treatment for cancer.
AG is used as an anticonvulsant in the treatment of petit mal epilepsy and as a steroidogenesis inhibitor in the treatment of Cushing's syndrome, postmenopausal breast cancer, and prostate cancer. It is also used to treat secondary hyperaldosteronism, edema, adrenocortical carcinoma, and ectopic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) producing tumors. When used as a steroidogenesis inhibitor to treat breast cancer and prostate cancer, AG is given in combination with hydrocortisone, prednisone, or an equivalent corticosteroid to prevent adrenal insufficiency. AG is a second- or third-line choice in the treatment of hormone-sensitive metastatic breast cancer. While effective in the treatment of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, it is not effective in premenopausal women and is not an effective ovarian steroidogenesis inhibitor, probably because it is not a potent enough aromatase inhibitor. The medication is effective in the treatment of prostate cancer, but its effectiveness is low and inconsistent, likely due to its relatively weak steroidogenesis inhibition and poor pharmacokinetics. Nonetheless, AG was found to be non-significantly different in effectiveness from surgical adrenalectomy in terms of prostate cancer tumor regression. In any case, AG is not recommended as a first-line therapy in prostate cancer, but instead only as a second-line therapy. It has only rarely been used in the treatment of prostate cancer.
• Stage III and IVA: In this stage the cancer cells metastasize into the local tissues and cervical lymph nodes. The treatment used in these cases is chemo radiation. Any remaining cancer cells post chemoradiation are surgically removed. Lymphadenectomy may also be done after treatment with chemoradiation if the cancer cells have infiltrated the cervical lymph nodes. Another method of treatment includes, first, surgical removal of tumor as well as cervical lymph nodes followed by chemoradiation or radiation to decrease the chances of recurrence.
Systemic therapy uses medications to treat cancer cells throughout the body. Any combination of systemic treatments may be used to treat breast cancer. Standard of care systemic treatments include chemotherapy, endocrine therapy and targeted therapy.
Decision-making on any cancer and other physical risks may be intertwined with "normalizing" rationales. In a major Parliamentary report in Australia, published in October 2013, the Senate Community Affairs References committee was "disturbed" by the possible implications of current practices in the treatment of cancer risk. The committee stated: "clinical intervention pathways stated to be based on probabilities of cancer risk may be encapsulating treatment decisions based on other factors, such as the desire to conduct normalising surgery... Treating cancer may be regarded as unambiguously therapeutic treatment, while normalising surgery may not. Thus basing a decision on cancer risk might avoid the need for court oversight in a way that a decision based on other factors might not. The committee is disturbed by the possible implications of this..."
Because cancer is a class of diseases, it is unlikely that there will ever be a single "cure for cancer" any more than there will be a single treatment for all infectious diseases. Angiogenesis inhibitors were once incorrectly thought to have potential as a "silver bullet" treatment applicable to many types of cancer. Angiogenesis inhibitors and other cancer therapeutics are used in combination to reduce cancer morbidity and mortality.
There is extensive experience, over many years, of the use of radioiodine in the treatment of thyroid overactivity and this experience does not indicate any increased risk of thyroid cancer following treatment. However, a study from 2007 has reported an increased cancer incidence after radioiodine treatment for hyperthyroidism.