What’s the Difference Between Immunotherapy and Chemotherapy?

Navigating a cancer diagnosis and your treatment plan can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to. At AdventHealth, we’re here to provide expert care and guidance when approaching your cancer diagnosis and are committed to giving our best for your health.

Traditionally, chemotherapy has been the most common route for cancer treatment. However, recent studies from the National Library of Medicine show that immunotherapy, or a combination of the two, known as chemo-immunotherapy, is a new trend in cancer treatment and has demonstrated high success rates.

Keep reading to learn more about chemo-immunotherapy and the differences between immunotherapy and chemotherapy.

Immunotherapy 101

Our immune system is often considered our body's first line of defense against sickness. It destroys abnormal cells, protecting us from germs and cell changes that can make us ill.

Immunotherapy is an innovative treatment that helps treat cancer by utilizing the body's immune system in two primary ways. First, immunotherapy stimulates the immune system to target cancer cells, helping it identify and attack the cancerous cells. This treatment can also infuse you with immune system components, such as human-made immune system proteins, to help strengthen your immune system's response.

Side Effects of Immunotherapy

With any treatment, there are risks of side effects. According to the National Cancer Institute, side effects of immunotherapy include:

• Diarrhea
• Flu-like symptoms
• Heart palpitations
• Itchiness
• Organ inflammation
• Pain
• Rash
• Sinus congestion
• Soreness
• Swelling
• Weight gain

It’s difficult to know what side effects each patient will receive, so it’s important that you talk to your care team if you notice any developing symptoms.

How Immunotherapy Is Administered

There are several ways immunotherapy can be administered, including:

• Checkpoint inhibitors: Our immune system has checkpoints that keep immune responses from being too strong. The inhibitors block those checkpoints, allowing for a stronger reaction to the treatment.
• Immune system modulators: These modulators enhance the body's immune response.
• Monoclonal antibodies: These are lab-created proteins that bind to specific targets on cancerous cells to help the immune system identify them or work to attack the cells.
• T-cell transfer therapy: T-cells are part of our immune system and protect against cancer cells. This therapy boosts the T-cells' ability to fight cancer.
• Treatment vaccines: Unlike traditional vaccines that help prevent disease, these vaccines enhance the body’s immune response to cancer cells.

Every patient's approach to immunotherapy is unique. Your oncology team will work with you to identify the best treatment method.

While immunotherapy is an emerging and successful approach to cancer treatment, there’s another way to treat cancer that’s been in practice for decades.

Chemotherapy 101

Chemotherapy, often shortened to chemo, is a type of cancer treatment that utilizes a combination of drugs to destroy cancer cells by interfering with cell division. It aims to prevent cancerous cells from rapidly spreading, slowing their growth and destroying the cells that have spread to other parts of the body. It’s important to note that chemotherapy is also known to destroy healthy cells that grow and divide rapidly.

Depending on the type of cancer you’ve been diagnosed with and your overall health, chemo might be the only treatment you need. However, it’s common for your oncology team to pair this treatment method with others, like surgery, radiation therapy or immunotherapy.

Side Effects of Chemotherapy

According to the American Cancer Society, side effects of chemotherapy include:

• Anemia (low red blood cell counts)
• Appetite changes
• Diarrhea
• Easy bruising and bleeding
• Fatigue (most common side effect)
• Fertility issues
• Hair loss
• Mood changes
• Mouth, tongue and throat problems, such as sores or pain when swallowing
• Nerve issues such as numbness, tingling and pain
• Urine, bladder and kidney problems
• Weight changes

Chemotherapy's side effects differ from immunotherapy's in that it produces symptoms quicker as it targets rapidly dividing cells. However, this doesn’t make its side effects worse. Symptoms for both vary based on the patient's health and the type of cancer.

The side effects of both treatment methods can range from mild to severe. It’s best to discuss these with your care team to develop the best treatment plan for you.

How Chemotherapy Is Administered

The most common way to administer chemotherapy is through an IV. However, IV treatment may also be given through a catheter or port, which is a surgical disk placed under your skin for the length of your treatment.

Other common ways chemotherapy can be administered include:

• Injection: This method uses a shot given in your arm, thigh or hip right under the area's fatty portions.
• Intra-arterial (IA): This method injects the drugs directly into the artery that leads to the cancer.
• Intraperitoneal (IP): This injection goes directly into the peritoneal cavity, which is the region of the body containing the intestines, stomach and liver.
• Intrathecal: The injection site is between tissue layers covering the brain and spinal cord.
• Oral: Chemotherapy can be delivered via pills, capsules or liquids that you ingest.
• Topical: There are certain instances where you can be treated with chemo through a cream that you rub onto your skin.

We know every patient is unique, so discussing these treatment options with your care team to develop the right plan for you is important.

Combining Chemo and Immunotherapy

As the wealth of knowledge in the medical field continues to grow, there’s been a rise in combining both chemotherapy and immunotherapy to treat patients with various cancers.

According to the National Library of Medicine, chemo-immunotherapy aims to increase the efficacy of cancer treatment by simultaneously targeting cancer cells through chemotherapy and boosting the immune system’s response to fight cancer through immunotherapy. Essentially, these two treatment methods work in tandem to fight cancer while boosting the other.

While several studies have shown high success rates of this treatment method, more research is needed to determine its overall success and effectiveness in treating various types of cancer.

Specialized Cancer Care With Your Whole Health in Mind

We know the weight a cancer diagnosis can put on you and your family and how navigating your treatment can feel overwhelming. But you aren’t alone.

Our cancer care experts are here to deliver the whole-person health care you deserve and help you confidently navigate your healing journey.

Visit us here to learn more about our immunotherapy treatment or learn more about chemotherapy. You deserve to feel whole.