Chemotherapy, like cancer, is not one thing. Some of it is a matter of poisoning the body in ways that disrupt rapidly-dividing cells. This is why chemo patient

Chemotherapy, like cancer, is not one thing. Some of it is a matter of poisoning the body in ways that disrupt rapidly-dividing cells. This is why chemo patients frequently lose their hair (and other things you don't hear as much about, like gametes, fingernails, mucous membranes/digestive lining). You can call this "cave man medicine". Although that's more dismissive than is warranted, there's no denying that it's a blunt instrument. Other chemotherapy treatments are "holy shit, we live in the future." They're targeted and have almost no side effects. You specifically reference mustard gas. I had lymphoma, and one of my treatments was bendamustine, which is directly related to that class of chemicals, and the subsequent research. It's broadly toxic. The other treatment was rituximab, which is a monoclonal antibody that targets the CD20 protein that manifests on B cells, which are just one of many cells involved in the lymphatic system. I have to say the whole thing was a walk in the park. Bendamustine isn't fun, but I never vomited once, never lost my hair, and outwardly didn't look any different at all. I felt pretty shitty for about three days once a month after treatment. Kinda like a mild flu, but honestly I'd take the bendamustine over the flu any day. I usually took three days off work for it, primarily because I had to be at the chemo infusion center for a few hours to get the drugs. I could have worked through it (not that I should ever have had to, but I could have). The rituximab was a walk in the park. I took that once a month for a year, then every two months for two more years. Aside from an allergic reaction the first time (solved with Benadryl subsequently), I barely noticed it at all. It was, at its worst, nowhere near as bad as a hangover. I know I'm fortunate in that these treatments existed for my cancer, and that my cancer has a high survival rate (I've been clear for over a decade). Many people are far worse off, even if they survive. I like to take these opportunities to dispel some of the misconceptions that are out there.