Medical oncology uses medicine to treat cancer. Medicines include chemotherapy (which may be given intravenously or by pills), hormones, or biologic therapy (antibodies). Infusion and chemotherapy services are provided under the direct supervision of medical oncologists and administered by oncology certified nurses. Our expert oncologists are highly skilled in developing personalized treatment plans to slow or stop the cancer's ability to grow and proliferate.
Medical oncologists are physicians who specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The scope of practice of a medical oncologist is largely directed by the stage of the malignancy (cancer). For example, the treatment of early-stage cancer may involve surgery or radiation, while advanced-stage cancer may require chemotherapy.
Most people are referred to an oncologist if cancer is suspected or confirmed by a primary care doctor or other specialists. The oncologist will begin the investigation by performing additional tests to either confirm the diagnosis or characterize the malignancy.
This will then be followed by cancer staging using X-rays, lab tests, and other procedures to determine the extent of the cancer. This is determined by six factors:
The tumor location
The type of cancer cell (such as basal cell carcinoma or squamous cell carcinoma)
The size of the tumor
Whether the cancer has spread to nearby lymph nodes
Whether it has spread (metastasized) to other parts of the body
The grade of the tumor (a classification of how likely a tumor will grow based on the cell characteristics)
In addition to helping direct the treatment plan, cancer staging can predict survival times and the likely outcomes based on experience in the general population. In some cases, an organ-specific oncologist would be sought, particularly for malignancies that are rare, advanced, or aggressive.
In addition to treatment, oncologists at Burjeel Medical City are trained to manage complications that commonly arise during and after therapy. After the completion of therapy, routine tests will be scheduled to evaluate the response. Even if the cancer is brought into remission, tests may be scheduled every three to six months for two to three years.
To ensure you remain healthy, our medical oncologists will direct you to the appropriate services to aid in your physical and emotional recovery and teach you the survivorship skills to not only cope but thrive over the long term.
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