If you are diagnosed with cancer, the news can be staggering. But thankfully, today’s advances in cancer treatments offer better remission rates and patient outcomes, which are quicker, life-prolonging, and far less debilitating.
Learn here about immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and other cancer treatment innovations.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy for cancer utilizes the body’s own defenses, or immune system, to seek out and eradicate cancer cells or to block the path cancer cells take to locate and attack healthy body cells. In particular, immunotherapy can take many forms, some of which are:
- Vaccines against particular kinds of cancer, such as cervical cancer
- Checkpoint inhibitors, which are proteins that tell T-cells when to activate their cancer-killing actions and when to de-activate them to spare healthy cells
- Cytokines, proteins such as interferon, which increase the lifespan of healthy body cells and boost response of immune system cells
Immunotherapy can be highly individualized according to the patient, the cancer itself, or other health-related factors. Often, it helps control the spread and lethality of certain cancers and assists people whose cancer has relapsed under other kinds of therapies. It may be used to increase the effects of surgery, radiation, and other traditional methods of treatment.
Targeted Therapy
One of the most frequent and devastating side effects of certain cancer treatments, such as radiation, can be damage to healthy body cells and tissues. Often termed precision medicine, targeted therapy drugs help mitigate those side effects by sending oncology medications directly to cancer cells alone.
These medications seek out cancer cells and inhibit their ability to increase in number and size. This is different from conventional chemotherapy drugs, which only kill cancer cells and do not deactivate their ability to replicate.
Leukemia, multiple myeloma, and some head and neck cancers, among others, respond well to this highly specialized cancer treatment.
Robotic Surgery
Frequently used with urological and gastrointestinal cancers, robotic surgery utilizes specialized, three-dimensional imaging techniques and software that guides the doctor in removing cancerous tumors. Incisions are small, blood loss and damage to healthy tissue is minimized, and patients can return to home quicker and in less pain than with conventional open surgeries. The robotic instruments assist the surgeon in making finer, more accurate cuts quickly and smoothly.
CRISPR
This amazing treatment for a wide range of cancers works on the genetic level. With it, researchers change the actual DNA code present in body cells by removing certain parts and replacing them with others. This variation in the DNA then avoids the possibility of certain cancers taking hold in the body. While this is still in the research and trial stage, it is showing promising results as a future treatment.
AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) is helping oncologists, surgeons, and researchers search through data to find trends in the patient’s unique physiology. This data can then be interpreted for use in refining what cancer treatment may work best for the individual.
While AI solutions for cancer are early in development, artificial intelligence may predict patient outcomes as associated with a wide range of cancer treatments. It also shows promise in screening people more precisely for cancers such as colon cancer, high-risk pancreatic and breast cancer, and more.
Oncology and Hematology Services at Your Cancer Center in Sarasota, FL
At Intercoastal Medical Group, our oncology and hematology team, headed by Dr. Andrew Marple and Dr. Galina Vugman, stays abreast of the latest developments in cancer research, treatments, and patient care. We treat a long list of cancers, including multiple myeloma, Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and many solid tumors.
Find out more about our diagnostic and treatment capabilities at our Cattleridge Medical Building II in Sarasota, FL by calling (941) 200-1125, or request an appointment online. We know how stressful cancer can be, but we work hard to deliver the ways and means to help you regain your health and to keep cancer from returning. Call today!
