If Cancer Treatments Stop Working
Cancer treatments can help stop cancer from growing or spreading. But sometimes treatment does not work well or stops working. It’s important to understand your options so you can decide what’s best for you.
When cancer progresses or comes back
Maybe treatment ended a while ago and was successful at first, but cancer has come back. Or maybe one type of cancer treatment has stopped working and the cancer has kept growing. If this happens, your doctor might say your cancer has progressed or gotten worse.
There may or may not be other treatment options that your doctor recommends. But if different treatments have been tried and are no longer controlling the cancer, it could be time to check the benefits and risks of trying new treatments again.
On the other hand, if the treatment is controlling the cancer but not curing it, and the side effects are becoming too much to bear, it’ll be helpful to think about your goals and what’s best for you.
Deciding whether to continue cancer treatment
Here are some points to consider when deciding whether to continue cancer treatment.
If another treatment is available
If you have cancer that keeps growing or comes back after one kind of treatment, it’s possible that another treatment might still shrink the cancer, or at least slow its growth to help you live longer and feel better.
Clinical trials also might offer chances to try newer treatments that could be helpful.
If you want to try more treatment, it’s important to think about the risks and benefits. Your doctor can help give you an estimate on how likely it is for the cancer to respond to a certain treatment.
In some cases, the chances might be good that another treatment might work. But if the likelihood is low, it’s important to be realistic. Be sure you also understand the risks, side effects, costs, schedule of treatments and visits, and effects on quality of life, of any treatments you consider.
When no other treatments are available
When someone has tried many treatments and the cancer keeps growing, even the newest options may no longer be helpful. This can be one of the hardest parts of the cancer journey – realizing that treatments are no longer working. At some point you may need to consider that further treatment is not likely to improve your health, change your outcome, or extend your life.
Think about and talk through the:
- Possible benefits
- Risks
- Side effects
- Costs
- How often you’ll need treatment
- How it could affect your quality of life
It's important to trust your cancer care team and discuss all options with your loved ones during this not so easy time as you decide whether to continue treatment.
Getting the support you need
Deciding whether to continue treatment — or try a new treatment — is your decision. But it’s not a decision you need to make alone. Talking through your options with your cancer care team, your loved ones, and even getting a second opinion can help you find the clarity you need.
Trusting your cancer care team
You will have a better feeling about treatment decisions if you trust the doctors who make the suggestions. It is very important to talk with your doctor and cancer care team while trusting them to be honest, open, and support you.
Try to avoid asking your cancer care team questions like, "What would you do?" or "If you were in my place, would you try another treatment?"
Instead, try asking questions like:
- What is the current status of the cancer?
- Can you tell me all of my treatment options, please?
- What do you recommend based on your experience treating my type of cancer?
- Do I need to start a new treatment right away?
- How is this treatment different from the others I’ve had?
- If treatment is successful, what is the chance my cancer will come back?
- Will I need to receive this treatment in the hospital, or can I receive it in a doctor’s office or clinic?
- What are the potential risks and benefits of the treatment?
- What are the possible side effects of this treatment, both in the short term and the long term?
- Would you recommend joining a clinical trial?
- What will happen if I choose not to have another type of treatment?
Talking with your loved ones
Be open with your loved ones about your cancer and the news you've been given. If you feel you need their input, ask. Listen to their thoughts, feelings, and suggestions. Talk to them about the options you have been given, along with the decisions you have made or are thinking of making. If you don’t feel you need their input to make decisions, be firm that you would like to make your own decision.
Thinking about a second opinion
When faced with deciding whether to continue cancer treatment, some people or their loved ones may want to get a second opinion. Even when you place full trust in your cancer care team, you might wonder if another doctor could offer another treatment option or more information that might help your decision. Talk to your cancer care team about getting a second opinion. They may have a recommendation for who you could talk to. Remember that your cancer care team wants you to be sure about the decisions you make. You can read more in Seeking a Second Opinion.
What else can be done
Whether or not you continue treatment, there are things you can do to help maintain or improve your quality of life. It’s important that you feel as good as you can. Be sure to ask about and get treatment for any symptoms you might have, such as nausea or pain.
Palliative care
Palliative care can be used whether you are getting cancer treatment or not. And it can be used at any stage of your illness. Palliative care can help ease symptoms and side effects.
Hospice care
If the decision to stop treatment is made, at some point, you might benefit from hospice care. At the end of life, hospice care focuses on your quality of life rather than its length and helps you manage your symptoms. Hospice care treats the person rather than the disease.
While getting hospice care means the end of treatments meant to control the cancer, you can still get treatment for the problems caused by your cancer or other health conditions. In hospice the focus of your care is on living life as fully as possible and feeling as well as you can at this difficult time.
Staying hopeful
Even if cancer treatment is no longer working, or you choose to stop treatment, there is still room for hope. There can still be meaningful moments ahead, good times with family and friends that bring joy and connection. Pausing at this time in your cancer treatment gives you a chance to refocus on the most important things in your life. Now might be the time to do some things you’ve always wanted to do and to stop doing things you no longer want to do. Though the cancer might be beyond your control, there are still choices you can make.
To learn more
You can learn more about planning ahead for yourself and your family in Advance Directives, and about the changes that happen when curative treatment stops working in Nearing the End of Life.
- Written by
- References
Developed by the American Cancer Society medical and editorial content team with medical review and contribution by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). Palliative care in oncology. Accessed at cancer.net. Content is no longer available.
American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). When the first treatment does not work. Accessed at cancer.net. Content is no longer available.
Ferrell BR, Temel JS, Temin S, Smith TJ. Integration of palliative care into standard oncology care: ASCO clinical practice guideline update summary. J Oncol Prac. 2017; 13(2):119-121.
Salama H, Al Mutairi N, Damlaj M, Alolayan A, Binahmed A, Salama H, et al. Reducing futile acute care services for terminally ill patients with cancer: The dignity project. JCO Oncol Prac. 2021 Nov;17(11):e1794-802. https://doi.org/10.1200/OP.20.00922
Sanders JJ, Temin S, Ghoshal A, Alesi ER, Ali ZV, Chauhan C, et al. Palliative care for patients with cancer: ASCO guideline update. J Clin Oncol. 2024 Jul 1;42(19):2336-57. https://doi.org/10.1200/JCO.24.00542
Last Revised: July 31, 2025
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