Chemotherapy for thyroid cancer

What is chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy uses anti cancer (cytotoxic) drugs to destroy cancer cells. The drugs circulate throughout the body in the bloodstream.

When you might have chemotherapy for thyroid cancer

Doctors don't often use chemotherapy to treat thyroid cancer. But you might have this treatment for a type of thyroid cancer called anaplastic thyroid cancer.

You might also have chemotherapy as part of a clinical trial.

Your doctor will discuss chemotherapy with you if they think it can help you. They can explain how you have it and for how long.

Types of chemotherapy

The most common chemotherapy drugs for thyroid cancer are:

• doxorubicin (Adriamycin)

• cisplatin

You might have these drugs together as a combination.  Or you might have one of these drugs with another chemotherapy drug.

Find out about these chemotherapy drugs and their side effects

How you have chemotherapy

You have the treatment through a drip into your arm or hand. A nurse puts a small tube (a cannula) into one of your veins and connects the drip to it.

You might need a central line. This is a long plastic tube that gives the drugs into a large vein, either in your chest or through a vein in your arm. It stays in while you’re having treatment, which may be for a few months.

Treatment cycles

You take some cancer medicines in treatment cycles. This means you take the drug for a set period, followed by a break. For example, you might take a drug every day for a week and then not take it for 2 weeks. This 3 week period in total is one cycle of treatment.

Take your cancer drugs exactly as your doctor, specialist nurse or pharmacist has told you to. The break from treatment is important too. For many cancer drugs, it allows your body to recover.

Before you start chemotherapy

You need to have blood tests to make sure it’s safe to start treatment. You usually have these a few days before or on the day you start treatment. You have blood tests before each round or cycle of treatment.

Your blood cells need to recover from your last treatment before you have more chemotherapy. Sometimes your blood counts are not high enough to have chemotherapy. If this happens, your doctor usually delays your next treatment. They will tell you when to repeat the blood test.

Where you have chemotherapy

You usually have treatment into your bloodstream at the cancer day clinic. You might sit in a chair for a few hours so it’s a good idea to take things in to do. For example, newspapers, books or electronic devices can all help to pass the time. You can usually bring a friend or family member with you.

You have some types of chemotherapy over several days. You might be able to have some drugs through a small portable pump that you take home.

For some types of chemotherapy you have to stay in a hospital ward. This could be overnight or for a couple of days.

Some hospitals may give certain chemotherapy treatments to you at home. Your doctor or nurse can tell you more about this.

Watch the video below about what happens when you have chemotherapy. It is almost 3 minutes long.

Side effects of chemotherapy

Common chemotherapy side effects include:

• feeling sick

• loss of appetite

• losing weight

• feeling very tired

• increased risk of getting an infection

• bleeding and bruising easily

• diarrhoea or constipation

• hair loss

Side effects depend on:

• which drugs you have

• how much of each drug you have

• how you react

Tell your treatment team about any side effects that you have.

Most side effects only last for a few days or so. Your treatment team can help to manage any side effects that you have.

Dietary or herbal supplements and chemotherapy

Let your doctors know if you:

• take any supplements

• have been prescribed anything by alternative or complementary therapy practitioners

It’s unclear how some nutritional or herbal supplements might interact with chemotherapy. Some could be harmful.

Read about the safety of complementary and alternative therapies

When you go home

Chemotherapy for thyroid cancer can be difficult to cope with. Tell your doctor or nurse about any problems or side effects that you have. The nurse will give you telephone numbers to call if you have any problems at home.