• Hair loss is a common side effect of chemotherapy"In hospital with Neutropenia" is Copyrighted by Flickr user: jennifrog (Jenny Mealing) under the Creative Commons Attribution license.
  
  

Effectiveness

• Chemotherapy is very effective at destroying harmful cells and shrinking tumors. The dosage can be changed depending on the desired effect, such as reducing the size of a tumor or eliminating any cancer cells that remain after an operation.
  
  

Length

• An advantage of chemotherapy is that it can be an outpatient procedure so it does not necessarily require an overnight stay in the hospital.
  
  

Treatment Types

• Chemotherapy is advantageous because it can be applied in a variety of ways including creams, pills and infusions. In addition, if the chemotherapy is being administered to eliminate any cancer after surgery, a small disc can be put in at the end of the surgery.
  
  

Short-Term Side Effects

• When you undergo chemotherapy you will likely experience a variety of short-term side effects including hair loss, feeling tired and dizzy, reduced blood counts and throwing up.
  
  

Long-Term Dangers

• Chemotherapy can cause infertility as well as damage to the heart, lungs and kidneys. It can also lead to decreased bone density.