Together we will beat cancer Donate Menu Search Treatment for cancer Your treatment depends on where your cancer is, how big it is, whether it has spread, and your general health. There are different types of treatment you might have. Understanding your treatment and the side effects can help you to cope. Go to our information about different types of cancer for details about their treatment Home About cancer General cancer information Treatment for cancer Preparing for treatment and life afterwards (prehabilitation) There are things you can do to help you feel more in control of your physical and mental health when preparing for treatment. In the hospital, preparing for treatment is also called prehabilitation or prehab. Surgery Surgery is one of the main treatments for many types of cancer. Find out about when and why you might have it and what to expect before and after your operation. Chemotherapy Chemotherapy is anti cancer drug treatment. Find out about when you might have it, how you have it and possible side effects. Radiotherapy Find out about cancer treatment with radiotherapy, including external radiotherapy, internal radiotherapy, side effects, radiotherapy for symptoms and follow up after treatment. Cancer drugs Find out about individual cancer drugs, cancer drug combinations, possible side effects and how to cope with them. Hormone therapy Hormone therapy blocks or lowers the amount of hormones in the body to stop or slow down the growth of cancer. Stem cell and bone marrow transplants Bone marrow or stem cell transplant are treatments for some types of cancer. You have them with high dose chemotherapy and sometimes radiotherapy. Targeted cancer drugs Targeted cancer drugs work by ‘targeting’ those differences that help a cancer cell to survive and grow. Immunotherapy Immunotherapy uses our immune system to fight cancer. It's a standard treatment for some types of cancer and is in trials for other types of cancer. What is personalised medicine? Personalised medicine involves using information about a person’s cancer to help diagnose, treat and find out about how well treatment is working. Bisphosphonates Find out how bisphosphonates work and about possible side effects. Other treatments These are cancer treatments using medical technologies (interventional treatments) including laser treatment, photodynamic therapy and cryotherapy. Complementary and alternative therapies Learn what complementary and alternative therapies are, how they're used and what research there is. Palliative treatment In advanced cancer, palliative treatment might help someone to live longer and to live comfortably, even if they cannot be cured. The palliative care team can support people with any stage of cancer and help with symptoms or side effects of treatment. Access to treatment There are several decisions to be made about a cancer treatment before you can have it on the NHS. Last reviewed: 15 Jul 2021 Next review due: 15 Jul 2024 Coronavirus and cancer We know it’s a worrying time for people with cancer, we have information to help. Read our information about coronavirus and cancer About Cancer generously supported by Dangoor Education since 2010. Find a clinical trial Search our clinical trials database for all cancer trials and studies recruiting in the UK Cancer Chat forum Talk to other people affected by cancer Nurse helpline 0808 800 4040 Questions about cancer? Call freephone 9 to 5 Monday to Friday or email us Speak to a nurse Nurse Helpline 0808 800 4040 Questions about cancer? Call freephone 9 to 5 Monday to Friday or email us Quick links Find local shops Shop online Contact us Jobs Follow us About our information Terms and conditions Privacy Modern Slavery Statement Cookies Accessibility Sitemap Cancer Research UK is a registered charity in England and Wales (1089464), Scotland (SC041666), the Isle of Man (1103) and Jersey (247). A company limited by guarantee. Registered company in England and Wales (4325234) and the Isle of Man (5713F). Registered address: 2 Redman Place, London, E20 1JQ. Cookies are small bits of information that we place on your device. We use necessary cookies to make the site work, and others to help us do things like monitor site usage and personalise advertising. Read more about the different cookies we use in our cookies policy. You can continue to the site and accept all cookies. Or you can manage how we use them. › Manage cookies ✓ OK, continue to site