The Cancer Treatment Map

Educational orientation

Source-checked: 2026-06-05. This page describes treatment categories; it does not choose therapy.

Core Idea

Cancer treatment is not one lane. It can include local therapies such as surgery or radiation, systemic therapies such as chemotherapy, endocrine therapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, cellular therapy, supportive care, surveillance, or clinical trials. The right category depends on disease type, stage, biomarkers, goals, prior therapy, and patient context.

Evidence also matters. A treatment may be approved for one disease and investigational for another.

Essential Vocabulary

• Local therapy: acts mainly at a body site.
• Systemic therapy: travels through the body.
• Line of therapy: treatment sequence position.
• Standard of care: accepted evidence-based approach in a setting.

What This Does Not Mean

A treatment class is not a plan. Treatment decisions belong to qualified clinical teams using full context.

Builder/Data Lens

Therapy data needs drug, dose, schedule, combination, line, start/stop dates, indication, and response criteria.

Go Deeper

• Emerging therapies
• Therapy evidence tracker
• Clinical oncology 101

References

1. National Cancer Institute. Types of Cancer Treatment
2. National Cancer Institute. NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms