Overview
Cancer treatments overview
Each cancer is different. Your treatment depends on the type, size and location of the cancer, whether it has spread, and your age and overall health.
Your oncologist might recommend to remove the cancer, slow its growth, or manage symptoms. Some people may get one, multiple, or all types of treatments. Your care team will explain what’s right for you.
Types of treatment
| Standard cancer treatments | Other treatment options |
| Systemic therapies: Medicine that travels through the body and destroys cancer cells (e.g. chemotherapy, hormone therapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and biological therapy) Radiation therapy: High energy x-rays that destroy cancer cells Surgery: Removes cancer from your body | Complementary therapies: Natural ways to support overall health and well-being alongside standard cancer treatments Alternative therapies: Other therapies to use instead of standard cancer treatments |
Clinical trials
Clinical trials are research studies that test new ways to prevent, detect, and treat cancer. They also explore ways to improve the quality of life for people living with cancer. Every cancer treatment that is available today was first tested in a clinical trial. Ask your doctor if a clinical trial is right for you. Being in a clinical trial or research study is always your choice.
Coming to your appointments
What to bring to your clinic visits:
- Your OHIP card
- Pharmacist and primary care provider contact information
- A written list of your medications, as well as all current medicines in their original containers (i.e. over-the-counter drugs, herbals, minerals, vitamins, and eye, ear, and nose drops)
- Your Cancer Care Journey Planner–use to to track questions, medications, and take notes
For your appointments with your doctor, you can bring
- One support person to join you at your appointments to take notes and help you
remember what was said (they may need to wait during treatment visits) - Indigenous Patient Navigator (available upon request for Indigenous patients)
- A snack, drink and/or something to read in case of wait times
Staxi chairs
Available at hospital entrances with a $1 deposit (refunded when returned). Please return after use so others can access them. Ask staff for help if needed.
Call Ahead for Volunteer Assistance (CAVA)
Need assistance getting around the hospital? Call or email up to 24 hours before your visit to reserve CAVA. A volunteer will meet you upon your arrival to help you get to your appointment.
Medication during your treatment
Before starting treatment, you will meet one-on-one with a pharmacist (for about 20–60 minutes) to review your cancer and current medicines. Please bring all your current medications or an up-to-date list. This is your chance to:
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- Ask about side effects to watch out for
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- Learn how to take your medications properly
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- Discuss how medications or supplements may affect your treatment
It is important to keep your cancer care team informed about any medicines you are taking, including pills, vitamins, eye drops, herbal/natural health products, creams, and injections.
You can join group teaching sessions where you can learn:
- Who to contact if you have any questions
- Common side effects and how to manage them
Be ready with questions. These are suggestions of questions you may want to ask your care team:
- Can I continue to take my usual medicines?
- How do I take new new cancer medicine(s) and for how long?
- How can I help lessen side effects?
- What medicine do I need to continue or stop and why?
Use your Cancer Care Journey Planner or MyChart to list your prescription and non-prescription medicines.
Tell your cancer care team about any medicines you take and if you have any allergies. Be sure to tell them about any changes to medicines you take at every visit.
If you have a regular pharmacy, share their contact info with your care team.
Services after your clinic visit
As part of your cancer care plan, we may arrange community services that you may need after your clinic visits. Here are some of the services we may be connecting you with, or that you may want to learn more about.
Assist people of all ages with cancer care support or support with managing complex medical conditions at home through:
Services in your home, including health professionals visiting you in your home; personal care; home-making; family-managed home care/self-directed care; and end-of-life care at home
Services in your community, including community clinic visits, exercise and falls prevention classes, and Assisted Living Services
Contact Ontario Health atHome: Call 310-2222
If your function or movement has decreased because of an illness that required hospital admission, you may be entitled to OHIP-funded physiotherapy (you can’t already be accessing physiotherapy services through any other program and you will need a referral from a doctor).
You’re not eligible if this decrease is due to a stroke, heart attack, or joint replacement. Speak to your healthcare team about rehabilitation options specifically designed for these conditions.
Find a clinic near you: ontario.ca/physiotherapy
If you do not have or can’t be seen by a family doctor, SHN’s Urgent Care Centre at our Centenary Hospital offers walk-in medical attention from experienced doctors and nurses for non-life-threatening conditions that do not need to be seen in the Emergency Department.
Learn more: SHN.ca/urgent-care-centre
Systemic Therapies
Systemic therapies
Systemic therapy is medicine that travels through your body to destroy cancer cells wherever they are. Systemic therapies include chemotherapy, hormone therapy, targeted cancer therapy, immunotherapy, and biological therapy.
Chemotherapy
It’s normal to feel worried about starting chemotherapy. Learning more about what it is, how it works, and what to expect can help ease some of those concerns.
Chemotherapy is a common type of cancer treatment that uses different types of medicines to:
- Kill cancer cells
- Slow cancer growth
- Prevent cancer from spreading
- Manage symptoms like pain
- Cure cancer
It may be used on its own or combined with other treatments like radiation therapy. The type of treatment you receive—and the order in which you receive it—depends on the specific details of your cancer.
Your medical oncologist will explain the goal of your chemotherapy based on your individual situation. Don’t hesitate to ask them what the purpose of your treatment is—they’re there to help you understand and feel more confident about your care.
There are more than 100 types of chemotherapy medicines. You may receive one or a combination, depending on your cancer.t
Unlike surgery or radiation, which treat specific areas, chemotherapy targets fast-growing cells, like cancer cells, and travels through your bloodstream to reach the entire body.
While it destroys cancer cells, chemotherapy can also harm healthy cells—especially those in the blood, gut, mouth, hair, and reproductive system (needed to produce children)—causing side effects. The good news is that these cells can recover, so most side effects are temporary and go away after treatment ends.
Everyone reacts differently to chemotherapy—even people getting the same medicines. Talk to your medical oncologist or nurse about what side effects you may experience.
There are many ways to prevent or manage some of these side effects. Speak to your cancer care team about tips, medications, or other tools to help manage your side effects during treatment.
Common side effects include:
- Fatigue
- Low blood counts
- Nausea (feel like throwing up) or vomiting (throwing up)
- Diarrhea (loose or watery poo)
- Constipation (trouble pooping)
- Mouth sores
- Hair loss
- Skin and nail changes
- Brain fog (trouble thinking)
Your treatment will take place at either our Centenary or General Hospital Cancer Care and Hematology clinic.
Other systemic therapies:
- Hormone therapy: A way to slow down the growth of your cancer. A hormone is a chemical in your body that helps different parts of your body know how to work or grow.
- Targeted therapy: Medicine that blocks the specific molecules that help cancer cells grow and spread.
- Immunotherapy: Uses your immune system to find and kill cancer cells.
Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy
Radiation is a common cancer treatment that uses high energy x-rays to kill cancer cells. This means it only affects the area being treated. It can be used alone or with other treatments.
Radiation therapy can kill cancer cells, slow cancer growth, and manage cancer symptoms, like pain.
Types of Radiation Therapy
- External beam: Machine aims radiation directly at the cancer
- Internal (brachytherapy): Places radiation inside or near the cancer
- Ingested/injected: Radiation taken as a pill or with injection
The goal of your treatment depends on your cancer and overall health. Speak with your care team for more information.
Radiation Therapy side effects will depend on the type of treatment you have and where the treatment is done in your body. Ask your care team what side effects you can expect from your radiation treatment.
Radiation therapy is provided at one of our Cancer Centre partner sites: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Lakeridge Health Oshawa, or Princess Margaret.
Surgery
Surgery
Cancer surgery removes cancer from the body to:
- Prevent cancer : If you are at high risk of getting cancer, your doctor may suggest preventative or prophylactic surgery to lower that risk. In this type of surgery, a surgical oncologist may remove the tissue or a body part that is likely to develop cancer—even if there no cancer present. This can reduce the chances of cancer forming in the future.
- Diagnose cancer: In some cases, surgical biopsy is the only way to know for sure if someone has cancer and what type it is. In this procedure, the surgeon removes a small piece of tissue. That sample is then sent to a lab, where it is tested to see if it contains cancer cells and to find out what kind of cancer it is.
- Stage cancer: Staging shows how much cancer is in the body and if it has spread. During surgery, the surgeon will remove tissue and lymph nodes near the cancer to test in a lab. This helps decide the best treatment plan.
Surgery may be your main treatment if the cancer is only in one part of the body and it can be totally removed. During surgery, the surgeon will remove the tumour or cancerous tissue and a small amount of normal tissue around where the cancer was (called surgical margin). By removing some of the normal tissue, the surgeon can ensure that no cancer cells are left behind.
Sometimes, if not all the cancer can be removed, the surgeon can still try to remove as much of the cancer as possible—this is called debulking surgery. Other treatments (such as chemotherapy or radiation) may be recommended after your surgery to target any remaining cancer.
Side effects and risks from surgery depend on:
- Where the surgery is done in your body
- The type of surgery
- Your overall health
Most side effects go away with time, but some may last longer or be permanent.
Possible side effects include:
- Sore throat
- Pain
- Nausea or vomiting
- Bruising oe bleeding
- Swelling
- Fatigue
- Scarring
- Loss of movement or feeling
Recovery takes time, and you may feel tired or weak. Before your surgery, your cancer care team will talk to you about how to deal with pain and they may give you a prescription (medicine ordered by a doctor) for medicines to take afterwards. Tell your care team if you experience any side effects you think may be from the surgery. They can help improve many side effects with treatment.
Your surgery will most likely be at our Birchmount, Centenary, or General Hospital.
Other treatments
Complementary therapies
Complementary therapies usually don’t involve surgery or medication. They often focus on natural ways to support overall health and well-being. Many people use them during and after cancer treatment, alongside standard treatments like chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery. People may use them to help reduce stress and treatment side effects and feel more in control of their health.
Types of complementary therapies:
- Acupuncture
- Music therapy
- Natural and herbal products
- Traditional Indigenous medicines
- Indigenous ceremonies and healing practices
If you have any questions on how this treatment may affect your overall care, speak with your doctor.
Alternative therapies
Alternative therapies are not the same as complementary therapies. Complementary therapies are used alongside standard cancer treatments, while alternative therapies are used instead of them. There is currently not enough evidence to support the effectiveness of alternative therapies. If you choose to delay standard treatment to try an alternative therapy, the standard treatment might not work as well. Talk to your care team first if you want to take an alternative therapy.