• Question: how long does a mild case of cancer take to be fully rid of in the body? i\'m thinking around 3 years because someone in my family had it and its been that long.

    Asked by thatswhatshesaid to Gioia, Iain, Jo, Leo, Mariam on 21 Jun 2010 in Categories: . This question was also asked by sallyho.
    • Photo: Joanna Watson

      Joanna Watson answered on 15 Jun 2010:

      I think it depends on what kind of cancer it is and what kind of treatment is given, but with a lot of cancers, if it has been gone for 5 years then the person is no more likely to get cancer again then someone who hasn’t had cancer before.

    • Photo: Mariam Orme

      Mariam Orme answered on 21 Jun 2010:

      I’m glad to hear that your family member is in the clear now.

      I don’t think it’s so much that it takes however many years for the body to be rid of cancer. It’s more that it can be hard to tell, after treating a cancer patient, whether they are completely clear or not. Just a few cancer cells left would be enough to allow the cancer to come back again. So that’s why doctors have to wait a few years to tell a patient they’re clear: they have to give it time to see if the cancer will come back.

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