Chemotherapy for Skin Mets
Your medical oncologist is usually the quarterback of your treatment team. He/she will treat your cancer systemically with the appropriate chemotherapy for your specific cancer. If cancer spreads to the skin, you will likely continue with a systemic chemotherapy regimen.
Cancer that has spread to the skin is called cutaneous (or skin) metastases. When cancer spreads to the skin, it is called metastatic disease. Treatment for cancer metastatic to the skin is usually determined by the primary cancer or origin of the cancer. These treatments may include hormone therapy, targeted therapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, or a combination of treatments including radiation and surgery.
Electrochemotherapy (sometimes called ECT)
What is electrochemotherapy?
Electrochemotherapy combines a low dose of a chemotherapy drug with electrical impulses. It’s given directly to the area being treated to relieve symptoms of skin metastases.
Studies have shown that electrochemotherapy can help stop bleeding, broken skin (ulceration) and pain reduce the size of skin metastases,
Using electrical impulses allows the chemotherapy to work in the treated areas only, with little or no effect in other areas. Electrochemotherapy won’t treat any other areas of secondary breast cancer inside the body.
How is Metastatic Cancer to Skin Treated?
The treatment measures for Metastatic Cancer to Skin include:
Usually, treatment for Metastatic Cancer to Skin involves treating the underlying cancer
The treatment methods may include surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy