A targeted therapy is one that is designed to treat only the
cancer cells and minimize damage to normal, healthy cells.
Cancer treatments that “target” cancer cells may offer the
advantage of reduced treatment-related side effects and improved
outcomes. Conventional cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy
and radiation therapy, cannot distinguish between cancer cells
and healthy cells. Consequently, healthy cells are commonly
damaged in the process of treating the cancer, which results in
side effects. Chemotherapy damages rapidly dividing cells, a
hallmark trait of cancer cells. In the process, healthy cells
that are also rapidly dividing, such as blood cells and the
cells lining the mouth and GI tract are also damaged. Radiation
therapy kills some healthy cells that are in the path of the
radiation or near the cancer being treated. Newer radiation
therapy techniques can reduce, but not eliminate this damage.
Treatment-related damage to healthy cells leads to complications
of treatment, or side effects. Thes