Radiation therapy uses waves of high-energy rays to destroy cancer cells. Radiation therapy is one of the primary treatments for vaginal cancer. The doctor may use external radiation therapy, internal radiation therapy, or both. In external radiation therapy, the doctor targets the tumor with high energy rays from outside of the body. There are two types of internal radiation therapy commonly used to treat vaginal cancer. In intracavity brachytherapy, the doctor inserts a radioactive cylinder into the vagina, which targets only the tissues it comes into contact with, avoiding damage to nearby healthy tissues. In interstitial brachytherapy, the doctor places radioactive needles into the cancer and surrounding tissues. Vaginal cancer is most commonly treated with both internal and external radiation therapy, with or without low-dose chemotherapy.

Laser Surgery

The doctor may recommend laser surgery to treat VAIN and remove precancerous lesions. This procedure is not commonly used to treat invasive vaginal cancer.

Wide Excision

In this procedure the doctor removes the tumor as well as a margin of healthy surrounding tissue from the vagina. Doctors commonly use this procedure to treat melanomas and sarcomas of the vagina.

Vaginectomy

In this operation the doctor removes either a portion or all of the vagina. When the doctor removes part of the vagina, the procedure is called a partial vaginectomy. When the doctor removes all of the vagina, it is called a total vaginectomy. In some cases, the doctor may need to remove the entire vagina as well as surrounding tissues, which is called a radical vaginectomy. The doctor may also perform a hysterectomy and/or lymphadenectomy at the same time as this procedure, depending on the extent of the cancer.

Vaginal Reconstruction

Vaginal reconstruction surgery may be an option for some women who have had surgery to remove the vagina. The doctor may be able to construct a new vagina from tissue or skin from another part of the body, allowing the woman to have intercourse.

Pelvic Exenteration

Your doctor may recommend a pelvic exenteration to treat very advanced vaginal cancer that has spread outside the pelvis to nearby organs. Your surgeon performs a radical hysterectomy, and also removes the bladder, vagina, rectum, and part of the colon. If your bladder is taken out, your surgeon may form a new bladder out of intestine and drain your urine out of an opening in your abdomen (urostomy). If your rectum or colon is removed, your doctor may attach your intestine to an opening in your abdomen (colostomy) to allow feces to pass out of your body.

Chemotherapy uses cancer-killing drugs that travel through the bloodstream and destroy any cancer cells they encounter. Intravenous chemotherapy may be given alone or combined with radiation therapy to make those treatments more effective or to shrink tumors before surgery. The doctor may also recommend a combination of topical chemotherapy and immunotherapy drugs to treat precancerous lesions on the vagina.

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy is a type of treatment that uses medicine to help your body’s immune system recognize and destroy cancer cells. Normally, your immune system protects you by attacking harmful invaders like germs or abnormal cells. However, cancer cells can sometimes hide from the immune system to avoid being attacked. Immunotherapy works by helping immune cells find and target these hidden cancer cells. It may be an option if your cancer is advanced or if other treatments haven’t been effective. Immunotherapy is commonly used to treat vaginal melanoma.