Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancer develops when the body’s normal control mechanism stops working. Old cells do not die and instead grow out of control, forming new, abnormal cells. These extra cells may form a mass of tissue, called a tumor. Some cancers, such as leukemia, do not form tumors.

What are the most common forms of cancer?
Cancer may occur anywhere in the body. In women, breast cancer is one of the most common. In men, the most common is prostate cancer, in both men and women lung cancer and colorectal cancer affect in high numbers.

There are five main categories of cancer:

  • Carcinomas begin in the skin or tissues that line the internal organs.
  • Sarcomas develop in the bone, cartilage, fat, muscle or other connective tissues.
  • Leukemia begins in the blood and bone marrow.
  • Lymphomas start in the immune system.
  • Central nervous system cancers develop in the brain and spinal cord.

How we treat cancer?
Cancer treatment options depend on the type of cancer, the stage, if the cancer has spread and general health. The goal of treatment is to kill as many cancerous cells while reducing damage to normal cells nearby. Advances in technology make this possible.
There are three main treatments:

  • Surgery: directly removing the tumor
  • Chemotherapy: using chemicals to kill cancer cells
  • Radiation therapy: using X-rays to kill cancer cells

The same cancer type in one individual is very different from that cancer in another individual. Within a single type of cancer, such as breast cancer, researchers are discovering subtypes that each requires a different treatment approach.

Managing side effects of cancer treatment?
Supportive care services describe a broad range of therapies designed to combat side effects and maintain well-being. Treating cancer requires focusing on more than the disease alone; it must also address the pain, fatigue, depression and other side effects that come with it.
Supportive care services include:

  • Nutrition therapy to help prevent malnutrition and reduce side effects
  • Naturopathic medicine to use natural remedies to boost energy and reduce side effects
  • Oncology rehabilitation to rebuild strength and overcome some of the physical effects of treatment
  • Mind-body medicine to improve emotional well-being through counseling, stress management techniques and support groups
  • What does the future hold for cancer treatment?

The future of cancer treatment lies in providing patients with an even greater level of personalization. Our doctors offer treatment options based on the genetic changes occurring in a specific tumor.

An innovative new diagnostic tool, the genomic tumor assessment, examines a patient’s tumor genetically to identify the mechanism that caused the cancer. Genomic tumor assessment may result in a more personalized approach to cancer treatment.

The most common types of cancer are:

Specific Cancers:
• Acute granulocytic leukemia
• Acute lymphocytic leukemia
• Acute myelogenous leukemia
• Adenocarcinoma (Lung cancer)
• Adenosarcoma (Lung cancer)
• Adrenal cancer
• Adrenocortical carcinoma (Adrenal cancer)
• Anal cancer
• Anaplastic astrocytoma (Brain cancer)
• Angiosarcoma Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Appendix cancer
• Astrocytoma (Brain cancer)
• Basal cell carcinoma (Skin cancer)
• B-Cell lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL))
• Bile duct cancer
• Bladder cancer
• Bone cancer
• Bone marrow cancer (Multiple myeloma)
• Bowel cancer (Colorectal cancer)
• Brain cancer
• Brain stem glioma
• Brain tumor
• Breast cancer
• Carcinoid tumors (Stomach cancer)
• Cervical cancer
• Cholangiocarcinoma (Bile duct cancer)
• Chondrosarcoma (Bone cancer)
• Chronic lymphocytic leukemia
• Chronic myelogenous leukemia
• Colon cancer (Colorectal cancer)
• Colorectal cancer
• Craniopharyngioma (Brain cancer)
• Cutaneous lymphoma (Skin cancer)
• Cutaneous melanoma ( Melanoma)
• Diffuse astrocytoma (Brain cancer)
• Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) (Breast cancer)
• Endometrial cancer (Uterine cancer)
• Ependymoma (Brain cancer)
• Epithelioid sarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Esophageal cancer
• Ewing sarcoma (Bone cancer)
• Extrahepatic bile duct cancer (Bile duct cancer)
• Eye cancer
• Fallopian tube cancer (Ovarian cancer)
• Fibrosarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Gallbladder cancer
• Gastric cancer ( Stomach cancer)
• Gastrointestinal cancer
• Gastrointestinal carcinoid cancer
• Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST)
• General
• Germ cell tumor (see Brain cancer)
• Gestational Trophoblastic Disease (GTD)
• Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) (Brain cancer)
• Glioma (Brain cancer)
• Hairy cell leukemia
• Head and neck cancer
• Hemangioendothelioma
• Hodgkin lymphoma
• Hodgkin’s disease (Hodgkin lymphoma )
• Hodgkin lymphoma
• Hypopharyngeal cancer (Throat cancer)
• Infiltrating ductal carcinoma (IDC) (Breast cancer)
• Infiltrating lobular carcinoma (ILC) (Breast cancer)
• Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) (Breast cancer)
• Intestinal Cancer
• Intrahepatic bile duct cancer (Bile duct cancer)
• Invasive / infiltrating breast cancer
• Islet cell cancer (Pancreatic cancer)
• Jaw cancer (Oral cancer)
• Kaposi sarcoma (Oral cancer)
• Kidney cancer
• Laryngeal cancer (Throat cancer)
• Leiomyosarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Leptomeningeal metastases
• Leukemia
• Lip cancer (Oral cancer)
• Liposarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Liver cancer
• Lobular carcinoma in situ (Breast cancer)
• Low-grade astrocytoma (Brain cancer)
• Lung cancer
• Lymph node cancer (Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL))
• Lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL))
• Male breast cancer (Breast cancer)
• Medullary carcinoma (Breast cancer)
• Medulloblastoma (Brain cancer)
• Melanoma
• Meningioma (Brain cancer)
• Merkel cell carcinoma (Skin cancer)
• Mesenchymal chondrosarcoma (Bone cancer)
• Mesenchymous
• Mesothelioma
• Metastatic breast cancer (Breast cancer)
• Metastatic melanoma (Melanoma)
• Metastatic squamous neck cancer
• Mixed gliomas (Brain cancer)
• Mouth cancer (Oral cancer)
• Mucinous carcinoma (Breast cancer)
• Mucosal melanoma (Oral cancer)
• Multiple myeloma
• Mycosis Fungoides (Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL))
• Myelodysplastic Syndrome (Leukemia)
• Nasal cavity cancer (Throat cancer)
• Nasopharyngeal cancer (Throat cancer)
• Neck cancer (Head and neck cancer)
• Neuroblastoma
• Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs)
• Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL)
• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL))
• Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) (Lung cancer)
• Oat cell cancer (Lung cancer)
• Ocular cancer
• Ocular melanoma
• Oligodendroglioma (Brain cancer)
• Oral cancer
• Oral cavity cancer
• Oropharyngeal cancer (Throat cancer)
• Osteogenic sarcoma (Bone cancer)
• Osteosarcoma (Bone cancer)
• Ovarian cancer
• Ovarian epithelial cancer (Ovarian cancer)
• Ovarian germ cell tumor
• Ovarian primary peritoneal carcinoma
• Ovarian sex cord stromal tumor
• Paget’s disease (Breast cancer)
• Pancreatic cancer
• Papillary carcinoma (Breast cancer)
• Paranasal sinus cancer
• Parathyroid cancer (Thyroid cancer)
• Pelvic cancer
• Penile cancer
• Peripheral nerve cancer (Brain cancer)
• Peritoneal cancer (Ovarian cancer)
• Pharyngeal cancer (Throat cancer)
• Pheochromocytoma (Adrenal cancer)
• Pilocytic astrocytoma (Brain cancer)
• Pineal region tumor (Brain cancer)
• Pineoblastoma
• Pituitary gland cancer (Brain cancer)
• Primary central nervous system (CNS) lymphoma
• Prostate cancer
• Rectal cancer (Colorectal cancer)
• Renal cell carcinoma (Kidney cancer)
• Renal pelvis cancer (Kidney cancer)
• Rhabdomyosarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Salivary gland cancer (Oral cancer)
• Sarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• Sarcoma, bone (Bone cancer)
• Sarcoma, soft tissue
• Sarcoma, uterine (Uterine cancer)
• Sinus cancer
• Skin cancer
• Small cell lung cancer (SCLC)
• Small intestine cancer
• Soft tissue sarcoma
• Spinal cancer
• Spinal column cancer
• Spinal cord cancer
• Spinal tumor
• Squamous cell carcinoma (Skin cancer)
• Stomach cancer
• Synovial sarcoma (Soft tissue sarcoma)
• T-cell lymphoma (Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL))
• Testicular cancer
• Throat cancer
• Thymoma / thymic carcinoma
• Thyroid cancer
• Tongue cancer (Oral cancer)
• Tonsil cancer (Head and neck cancer)
• Transitional cell cancer (Bladder cancer)
• Transitional cell cancer (Kidney cancer)
• Transitional cell cancer (Ovarian cancer)
• Triple-negative breast cancer (Breast cancer)
• Tubal cancer
• Tubular carcinoma (Breast cancer)
• Undiagnosed Cancer
• Ureteral cancer (Bladder cancer)
• Ureteral cancer (Kidney cancer)
• Urethral cancer
• Uterine adenocarcinoma (Uterine cancer)
• Uterine cancer
• Uterine sarcoma (Uterine cancer)
• Vaginal cancer
• Vulvar cancer