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Cancer occurs when normal body cells get out of control, multiply and spread.
Chemotherapy drugs work by damaging cancer cells so that they can't grow and multiply. The cells eventually die, and the cancer may then shrink, or go away completely.
Unfortunately, these drugs don't just affect cancer cells. They can damage any cells that are actively growing and dividing. For example, cells in the mouth, bone marrow, bowel and hair roots are growing all the time. Chemotherapy may damage these normal cells, causing side effects such as a sore mouth or hair loss.
Normal cells recover quite quickly, so any damage they suffer is usually temporary. This is why most side effects go away once treatment is over.
