Health Library Explorer

Brain Tumors: Chemotherapy

What is chemotherapy?

Chemotherapy uses anticancer medicines to kill cancer cells. The medicines are made to attack and kill cancer cells that divide quickly. Cancer cells divide quickly. But so do some normal cells. Because of this, chemotherapy can also affect those normal cells in the body. This can lead to side effects.

Chemotherapy tends to work better on fast-growing tumors. It is often used along with other treatments. These can include surgery or radiation therapy.

How is chemotherapy given for brain tumors?

Chemotherapy medicine can be given in several ways:

  • As pills taken by mouth

  • Into a vein in the arm (IV)



Healthcare providers usually give chemotherapy in cycles. That means you take the medicines for a certain amount of time. Then you have time off to recover. This pattern will continue over the course of the treatment. You may have treatment in 1 of these places:

  • The outpatient part of your hospital

  • A doctor’s office

  • A chemotherapy clinic

  • Your home

What types of medicines are used to treat brain tumors?

Temozolomide is the medicine most often used. It is used for many types of brain tumors.

You may also be given any of these medicines:

  • Carmustine (BCNU)

  • Irinotecan

  • Lomustine (CCNU)

  • Procarbazine

  • Vincristine

  • Carboplatin

  • Cisplatin

  • Etoposide


Possible side effects 

Side effects depend on the type and amount of medicines you take, and the length of your treatment. Because the medicines kill cells that divide quickly, the medicines can also damage healthy cells that divide quickly. This includes cells in the bone marrow where new blood cells are made. This can result in low numbers of blood cells. This can cause problems such as:


  • Bruising or bleeding easily, due to low levels of platelets

  • Fatigue, due to low levels of red blood cells

Chemotherapy can affect other cells that divide quickly. These include cells in the mouth, skin, and digestive tract. This can cause other side effects such as:                                                                                                                                                                                

  • Hair loss

  • Loss of appetite

  • Weight loss

  • Mouth sores

  • Nausea and vomiting

  • Diarrhea

  • Pain

  • Constipation

You may want to ask your healthcare team in advance about the specific side effects of the medicines and how best to prevent or manage them. Most of these side effects go away after treatment is done. Your healthcare team may prescribe medicines to help reduce the side effects so that you can recover from them more quickly. 

Some medicines also affect fertility. They may also damage hearing, and organs such as the kidneys or lungs. Your healthcare team will review the medicines and their side effects with you.

It's helpful to keep a log of side effects and share them with your healthcare team. This information can help you and your team manage symptoms more quickly. 

Working with your healthcare team




Online Medical Reviewer: Alteri, Rick, MD
Online Medical Reviewer: Jasmin, Luc, MD
Date Last Reviewed: 1/1/2018
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