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Surgery
This aims to remove all or as much as possible of the cancer growth. You will probably want to discuss exactly what will happen with your doctor. Some hospitals have specialist nurses who can discuss the operations and their effects with you.
Radiotherapy
Radiotherapy uses high energy rays to destroy cancer cells. Treatment can be given either from outside the body or from within by placing a radioactive material close to the tumour. Receiving radiotherapy does not usually involve a hospital stay, but a series of visits instead. The treatment is painless, but there can be side-effects. Some people feel tired and low, or get swellings, and many get a skin reaction similar to sunburn in the area being treated. Most side-effects should disappear soon after treatment has ended, but very rarely they can be severe and long-term.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is treatment with strong drugs which destroy cancer cells. The drugs are often given by injection or drip, and this sometimes involves a hospital stay. Chemotherapy can have side-effects because the drugs used cause some damage to healthy cells as well, and these can include hair loss, tiredness, feeling sick, vomiting and a lowering of immunity. People's sex lives can also be affected. There are medicines which can help reduce some of these unwanted effects.
Other treatments
Other forms of treatment include hormone therapy, bone marrow transplants and peripheral blood stem cell transplants. There are several specialised treatments for particular types of cancers, and new treatments currently being researched. Your doctors and some cancer organisations will be able to provide you with more details of these.