Your doctor will recommend treatment for the cancer depending on a few things:
- where the cancer is
- what type of cancer it looks like (i.e. cell type)
- how unwell you are
- your general health
- your preferences.
Most people with cancer of unknown primary are treated with chemotherapy. They may also receive other treatments, including surgery, radiotherapy and other medicines that can help you feel better.
If you have cancer of unknown primary, you might have one of these treatments or a combination of them.
Your doctors will talk to you about what treatments they recommend before starting them.
Yarn with your doctor, nurse or Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health worker about which treatment you might have and how to include traditional healing, bush medicines, Women’s Business, Men’s Business and cultural practices into your treatment plan.
Surgery
Surgery is a procedure done to remove the cancer from the body. This can help to stop it from spreading to other parts of the body and also to help you feel better. Surgery involves staying in hospital and having an anaesthetic and an operation.
The type of surgery you have for cancer of the unknown primary will depend on your situation.
Yarn with your doctor, nurse, or Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health worker. If you need to travel away from home for surgery, assistance is available for travel and accommodation for you and your family.
Read more about surgery.
Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy uses X-rays to destroy cancer cells in one part of your body.
Most people who have radiotherapy have it 5 days a week for 4-6 weeks, and each session can take 15 minutes. But it might be different for you.
You can only have radiotherapy in cities and some big towns – see this list. If your doctor thinks radiotherapy would help, and you don’t live near a radiotherapy site, assistance is available for travel and accommodation for you and your family.
Yarn with your doctor, nurse or Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health worker.
Read more about radiotherapy.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy or ‘chemo’ involves you taking strong drugs to kill or slow the growth of the cancer cells.
Many people have chemo in cycles – usually two days every three weeks, or one day every three weeks. Some people have chemotherapy tablets at home, but most need to go to a hospital or clinic. But you usually don’t need to stay in hospital for chemo.
Most chemo comes as injections into your arm or hand that drip in over a few hours and some need you to take home a small bottle home for two days then come back to take it off again. If you’re having chemo, your doctor will tell you exactly how it will work for you.
Chemo can make people feel sick for a while, but there are things they can do to help. Yarn with your doctor, nurse or Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health worker. Mob who have had chemo say that spending time on Country, traditional healing, bush medicines, Men’s Business, Women’s Business and engaging in cultural practices can help with the symptoms of chemo.
Read more about chemotherapy and side effects.