Intravenous chemotherapy is one of the most widely used chemotherapy methods as it permits the medication to rapidly enter into the blood and circulate it. It is also one of the most common methods for treatment. Chemotherapy intravenous allows the drug to be absorbed easily after it enters the blood stream through the chemotherapy injection.

The absorption time for the blood is very fast. The treatment time for each setting lasts from a few minutes to several hours. The treatment is taken for a few days or may also last for weeks at a stretch. Here are a few methods through which intravenous chemotherapy can be given:

• Angiocatheter: This is generally placed in the arm vein and removed later on after giving the medication. This devise is inserted into the veins before the treatment and removed once a professional nurse completes the treatment. The treatment time varies from a few minutes and could stretch to a few days.

• PICC line: The PICC line, although considered temporary, can be used for six weeks to a few months before it is stopped. A long plastic catheter is placed to one of the large veins located in the arm. The procedure is non-surgical, which involves taking an x-ray to confirm that the inserted PICC line is in the right direction.

• Non-tunneled catheters: Non-tunneled catheters are put directly into the subclavian or jugular vein through the skin. They reach the superior vena cave vessel at the right atrium of the heart. They are also inserted non-surgically at the bedside. They are mostly used for short-term or emergency situations, as the long term treatment would lead to infection. These catheters are known as “jugular” or “subclavian” according to the vein in which they are inserted. The catheters need to be well maintained and requires proper dressing changes.

• Tunneled Catheters: These catheters are placed in the middle of the chest through the skin. They move through the subcutaneous tissue that is inserted into the right atrium of the heart passing through the superior vena cava blood vessel. The chances of infection are very less with these catheters and so can be placed for month’s together or even years but proper maintenance and dressing changes are essential. The catheters have a number of entrances also known as lumen to draw blood and infuse medicines. A single lumen has only one entrance for medicines, double lumen has two whereas a triple lumen has three entrances. The catheters are often used for extensive regimes of chemotherapy such as procedures involving bone marrow transplant.

• Port-a-cath: Port-a-cath for chemotherapy is placed on the chest through the skin. It can be placed by a radiologist or a surgeon by performing an operation. The entire procedure takes approximately an hour. The catheter is inserted into the superior vena cava at the right atrium entrance of the heart. A port-a-cath can be kept for as long as five years. It can also be felt under the skin. The important thing about port-a-cath is that it permits the medication to be given for several days at the comfort of one’s home rather than taking the treatment at the hospital. Dressing changes are not required but it needs to be well maintained.

Intravenous chemotherapy is much more effective than the pills are therefore very common to treat cancers.