Medical
oncology is the subspecialty of oncology which deals with the medical
management of cancer using anti-cancer drugs. Anticancerdrugs are of various
types like chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, Immunotherapy, targeted
Monoclonal antibodies etc.
Normal cells grow and die in a controlled way. When cancer occurs, cells in the body that are not normal keep dividing and forming more cells without control. Anticancer drugs destroy cancer cells by stopping them from growing or multiplying. Healthy cells can also be harmed, especially those that divide quickly. Harm to healthy cells is what causes side effects. These cells usually repair themselves after chemotherapy. Often chemotherapy is the only treatment that a patient receives. But at times it is used in conjunction with other modalities of treatment. It could be used prior to surgery or radiation therapy in order to shrink a tumour to make it more manageable in size.(Neo-adjuvant therapy) It is sometimes used to help destroy any remaining cancerous cells after surgery or radiation.(Adjuvant therapy)
Headed by the legendary Dr.S.Subramanian, the department of medical oncology at V.S.Hospital is one of the best in this part of the world. He has evolved a team of thorough professionals of the highest caliber, carefully chosen to deliver his brand of cancer care- life saving, life changing care with an extra touch of compassion.
At V.S.Hospital, the medical Oncologists work closely with a team of consultants in the Cancer Center including surgical oncologists, radiation oncologists, pathologists, radiologists, plastic/reconstructive surgeons and oncology nursing staff to develop individualized cancer treatment plans. The vast experience of the team helps take critical staging decisions and customize treatment regimes to the specific physical and mental condition of the patient and the stage of the disease.
The oncology team is well backed by an ideal infrastructure specially built to meet the strenuous requirements of chemotherapy administration. Utmost care goes into every minute detail of the treatment, ensuring safety levels of the highest standard, with patient satisfaction and comfort the primary objective at all times. Chemotherapy is made available to everyone irrespective of their economic standings. Patients have a wide variety of accommodation options to chose from. The well planned general wards can accommodate multiple patients, yet provide a clean and airy environment. The semi private wards, provide that extra bit of privacy at an almost negligible cost; The private rooms have been tastefully designed to create a homely atmosphere, making even extended stays a pleasant experience. Each room is equipped with a television, telephone, air-conditioner, medicine cabinet, dining table, attached rest-room and required furniture for the patients as well as the accompanying attendees. Deluxe accommodations with additional visitor area, refrigerator and furniture are also available.
A four bedded intensive care unit, equipped with state of the art patient monitoring devices, ventilators, cardiac resuscitation devices, central medical gas system etc provides a robust backup for the department of medical oncology. The ever-alert, emergency trained medical and para-medical staff are always on the lookout for sudden emergencies caused due to adverse reactions to medication or complications encountered during patients on terminal care. The curative/control aspect of the treatment is not the only challenge facing the medical oncologist. Pain management and palliative care are also major responsibilities of the team.
What Is Chemotherapy And How Does It Work?
The
American Cancer Society defines Chemotherapy as the use of medicines or
drugs to treat disease. Many times this treatment is called just "chemo."
Surgery and radiation therapy remove, kill, or damage cancer cells in a
certain area, but chemo works throughout the whole body. Chemo can kill
cancer cells that have metastasized or spread to parts of the body far away
from the primary (original) tumor. More than 100 chemo drugs are used in many combinations. A single chemo drug can be used to treat cancer. But for the most part, the drugs work better when used in certain combinations. A patient’s chemo treatment will likely include more than one drug. This is called combination chemotherapy. A combination of drugs with different actions can work together to kill more cancer cells. It can also reduce the chance that the cancer may become resistant to any one chemo drug.
The patient and the doctor will decide what drug or combination of drugs you will get. The doctor will choose the doses, how the drugs will be given, and how often and how long the patient will get treatment. All of these decisions will depend on the type of cancer, where it is, how big it is, and how it is affecting the normal body functions and overall health of the patient.
What is Hormonal Therapy?
Wikipedia defines Hormonal therapy as one of the major modalities of medical treatment for cancer, others being cytotoxic chemotherapy and targeted therapy (biotherapeutics). It involves the manipulation of the endocrine system through exogenous administration of specific hormones, particularly steroid hormones, or drugs which inhibit the production or activity of such homones (hormone antagonists). Because steroid hormones are powerful drivers of gene expression in certain cancer cells, changing the levels or activity of certain hormones can cause certain cancers to cease growing, or even undergo cell death. Surgical removal of endocrine organs, such as orchiectomy and oophorectomy can also be employed as a form of hormonal therapy.
Hormonal therapy is used for several types of cancers derived from hormonally responsive tissues, including the breast, prostate, endometrium, and adrenal cortex. Hormonal therapy may also be used in the treatment of paraneoplastic syndromes or to ameliorate certain cancer- and chemotherapy-associated symptoms, such as anorexia. Perhaps the most familiar example of hormonal therapy in oncology is the use of the selective estrogen-response modulator tamoxifen for the treatment of breast cancer, although another class of hormonal agents, aromatase inhibitors, now have an expanding role in that disease.
What is Immunotherapy?
Wikipedia
defines Immunotherapy, in medicine, as an array of treatment strategies
based upon the concept of modulating the immune system to achieve a
prophylactic and/or therapeutic goal. Cancer immunotherapy attempts to
stimulate the immune system to reject and destroy tumorsWhat is a Monoclonal Antibody?
It is an antibody produced by means of recombinant DNA technology which can specifically bind to the compound of interest. Hence in the treatment of cancer, it is directed against cancer cells and can be used to deliver drugs, toxins, or radioactive material directly to the cancer cells.
