Chemotherapy is called a systemic treatment because the drug enters the blood stream, travels through the body, and can kill cancer cells throughout the body. When more than one drug is given to kill tumor cells, the treatment is called combination chemotherapy. For treating the Ewing's family of tumors, surgery or radiation is often used to remove the local tumor and chemotherapy is then given to kill any cancer cells that remain in the body. A supplement to the treatment options listed above is myeloablative therapy with stem cell support. Myeloablative therapy is a very intense regimen of chemotherapy designed to destroy all cells that divide rapidly.
Stem cells are self-renewing cells that create all of the other various types of blood cells.
Stem cell support involves enriching the stem cells to increase the number of these important cells circulating in the blood after the chemotherapy has been given to kill the remaining tumor cells. Treatment by Stage Treatment for the Ewing's family of tumors depends on where the cancer is located, how far the cancer has spread, the stage of the disease, and the age and general health of the patient. A patient may receive treatment that is considered standard based on its effectiveness in a number of patients in past studies, or may choose to go into a clinical trial. Not all patients are cured with standard therapy and some standard treatments may have more side effects than are desired. Clinical trials for the Ewing's family of tumors are ongoing in many parts of the country.