Chemotherapy for small intestine cancer

Chemotherapy uses drugs that are cytotoxic to destroy cancer cells. Cytotoxic means the drugs are poisonous to all cells in your body – so these drugs destroy cancer cells, but they can also harm healthy cells. With most types of chemotherapy, the drugs travel through the blood to reach and destroy cancer cells all over the body, including cells that may have broken away from the primary tumour. This is described as systemic therapy.

Chemotherapy is sometimes used to treat small intestine adenocarcinoma, but the primary treatment is surgery. If you have chemotherapy, your healthcare team will use what they know about the cancer and about your health to plan the drugs, doses and schedules.

Chemotherapy may be the only treatment you have or it may be used along with other cancer treatments. You may have chemotherapy to:

• destroy cancer cells left behind after surgery to reduce the risk that the cancer will come back (called adjuvant chemotherapy)

• shrink an unresectable tumour so it can be removed with surgery (sometimes called conversion chemotherapy)
• relieve pain or control the symptoms of metastatic small intestine adenocarcinoma (called palliative chemotherapy)

When chemotherapy is given before surgery, it may be combined with radiation (called chemoradiation).

The most common chemotherapy drugs used for small intestine adenocarcinoma are fluorouracil (5-fluorouracil or 5-FU), oxaliplatin and irinotecan.

Common chemotherapy drugs and chemotherapy drug combinations used for small intestine adenocarcinoma cancer include:

• FOLFOX – leucovorin (folinic acid), 5-FU and oxaliplatin
• CAPOX – capecitabine (Xeloda) and oxaliplatin
• FOLFIRI – leucovorin, fluorouracil and irinotecan
• 5-FU or capecitabine
• FOLFOXIRI – 5-FU, leucovorin, oxaliplatin and irinotecan

All chemotherapy drugs used for small intestine adenocarcinoma are given intravenously (through an IV) except for capecitabine, which is given as a pill.

Side effects of chemotherapy will depend mainly on the drug, the dose, how it's given and your overall health. Tell your healthcare team if you have side effects that you think are from chemotherapy. The sooner you tell them of any problems, the sooner they can suggest ways to help you deal with them.

Common possible side effects of chemotherapy drugs for small intestine adenocarcinoma include:

• diarrhea
• nausea and vomiting
• low blood cell count, which can cause a greater risk of infection, bleeding and easy bruising
• sore mouth and throat
• hair loss
• peripheral nerve damage
• fatigue
• loss of appetite
• skin problems

Find out more about chemotherapy and side effects of chemotherapy. To make decisions that are right for you, ask your healthcare team questions about chemotherapy.

Details on specific drugs change quite regularly. Find out more about sources of drug information and where to get details on specific drugs.