Cancer is not one disease
There are more than 100 types of cancer. Even cancers that start in the same organ can have different features that affect how they grow and which treatments may help.
Cancer develops from our own cells. Changes in the genes controlling those cells allow them to grow and survive abnormally. Those changes are not identical in every cancer, or even in every cell within one tumour.
This helps explain why two people with apparently the same cancer may have different treatment. A treatment that addresses one cancer's biological features may not suit another.
Treatment already offers the possibility of cure
Surgery, radiotherapy and drug treatments may be used alone or together. The plan depends on the diagnosis and how far the cancer has spread.
Different treatments work in different ways. Surgery removes cancer; radiotherapy damages cancer cells using radiation. Drug treatments include chemotherapy, hormone therapy, targeted treatments and immunotherapy. Some interfere with cancer growth, while others help the immune system act against it.
The name of the treatment does not tell you its aim. Ask whether your particular plan is intended to cure the cancer, control it or relieve symptoms.
Why are some cancers harder to cure?
Where the cancer is, how far it has spread and its biological features all matter. Many cancers are more readily curable when found early, but the stage alone does not tell the whole story.
Cancer cells can also continue to change over time. Differences between cells and their interactions with surrounding tissues and the immune system make treatment more complicated than finding a single weakness shared by every cancer.
For an individual, general health and the response to treatment also affect the outlook. A broad headline about cancer research cannot tell you which options are appropriate for your diagnosis.
Cure and remission are different terms
Cure means that the cancer has gone and will not return. It is often difficult to know that with certainty immediately after treatment.
Remission means that signs of cancer have reduced or disappeared. Complete remission does not always mean cure: cancer can sometimes return after a period when it could not be detected.
There is no five-year rule that guarantees cure for every cancer. Follow-up and the language your team uses depend on the particular disease. Population survival figures also cannot predict exactly what will happen to one person.
When cure is not the aim
Treatment may still help control cancer or relieve symptoms. Palliative cancer treatment describes treatment with a non-curative aim; it does not mean that care has stopped.
Palliative care can address symptoms, treatment effects and emotional or practical concerns alongside cancer treatment, including treatment intended to cure. Support should reflect what matters to the person, as well as what is happening to the cancer.
Questions for your clinical team
- Is my treatment being given with the aim of cure?
- Which features of my cancer influence that possibility?
- What would a complete response or remission mean in my case?
- How will you assess whether treatment is helping?
- If cure is not possible, what benefits can treatment realistically offer?
The useful conversation is about what current treatment can achieve for your particular cancer, and where uncertainty remains.