Signet Cell Cancer Treatment

Signet cell cancer is a rare type of cancer that effects the stomach. Signet cell cancer grows in the grandular cells that line the stomach and can spread to other parts of the body.

Treatments

• Signet cell cancer is treated as stomach or colon cancer, depending on the exact location of the cancer cells.

Types

• The most common form of treatment for cancer is chemotherapy. Other methods include radiation therapy, medication therapy and surgery.

Treatment Function

• Each of these treatments focus on removing the cancer from the stomach. Surgery removes the cancer with medical instruments by cutting the cells out, and chemotherapy, radiation and medicine therapy kill the cancers through different types of medication.

Alternative Treatments

• According to Mayo Clinic, if the signet cell cancer is found in the colon and is in its early stages, doctors may be able to remove it during a colonoscopy rather than surgery or chemotherapy. An endoscopy may be performed as well for cancer in the stomach.

Risks

• Some of the treatment options, such as medication therapy, chemotherapy and radiation may leave the immune system weakened and the patient prone to infections.