The length of chemotherapy treatment depends on various factors. It depends upon the type of the cancer, the type of drugs that are prescribed under chemotherapy, the stage of cancer, toxicity of drugs and the time required recovering from these toxicities. Two individuals with the same type of cancer might take different time to recover. There is also a possibility that the drugs might also differ.

There have been a lot of research done through clinical trial to determine the most beneficial treatment and the one which is most tolerated by the human body. However, the results still differ from person to person.

Generally, chemotherapy is given in cycles. This practice is quite effective as the cancer cells are attacked when they are most vulnerable. It also gives time for the patient’s body to recover during the rest period. During the rest period, the normal healthy cells also tend to grow. As chemotherapy drugs do not work similarly, the number of cycles, its frequency, and length of chemotherapy changes as per the prescribed drugs and its effectiveness.

Cycle Duration: Chemotherapy involves the intake of either a single drug or a combination of drugs. The drugs are either

given on a single day, consecutive days that might last for several days or even regularly on a daily basis. The treatment could last for days, hours, or even minutes depending upon the type of drugs and the cancer type along with its stage. Proper chemotherapy schedules have been fixed for chemotherapy drugs.

Cycle Frequency: The frequency of the cycle might repeat weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. The general practice to define a cycle is on monthly basis. For Example, four weekly chemotherapy sessions make one cycle, or two bi-weekly sessions make one cycle.

Number of Cycles: The number of cycles and the time taken for each cycle depends upon various factors:

• Adjuvant chemotherapy might last for 4-6 months after the visible cancer is removed through surgery. Adjuvant chemotherapy is quite common in breast cancers and colon cancers. The treatment of testis cancer might last up to a year. This includes Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma and leukemia. These treatments are generally done to cure the cancer completely without further lapse.

• When the disease is visible, chemotherapy treatment usually depends upon how the disease responds to the therapy. If it is recovered completely, doctors might discontinue the treatment after another 1-2 cycles to make sure that even the minute microscopic cells are destroyed.
• If the cancer shrinks but still is not completely cured, chemotherapy is continued as long as the disease does not grow and is tolerable to the patient.
• If there is growth in the disease, chemotherapy is stopped. Different drugs would be prescribed to the patients depending upon the patient’s health and wishes. Patients’ comfort level is generally kept in mind during the treatment.

In some cases, the patients might also suffer from many side effects. If the side effects cannot be controlled, chemotherapy is stopped for a while and then continued as the patient’s body is accustomed to the drugs. If side effects persist, a different drug is prescribed.