Treatment Advances

Worldwide millions of people are affected by cancer. While the numbers of certain kinds of cancer are reduced in some countries; in others there is a continued burden of the rising number of cancer cases. The genetic factor in cancer is intensely studied. Factors of aging still play a role in cancer. And, in all countries, environmental and lifestyle factors continue to contribute to cancer diagnoses.  Environmental factors include exposure to chemicals and radiation as well as certain bacteria and viruses. Lifestyle factors that influence cancer risk are diet, alcohol, tobacco, obesity and lack of exercise. The effort to gain control on global cancer has been hampered by financial and political issues. And cancer is a very complex disease. Scientists continue to outline the many mechanisms of cancer and it’s spread; the variation can be overwhelming. Yet the last decade has also produced many discoveries. Some of those are discoveries that lead to earlier diagnosis. Some revolve around methods of treating cancer and preventing its further spread in the body. All of them require knowledge and state of the art medical care. 

Some examples of new advancements include the following: medications for leukemia and lymphoma that show promise in patients who are not responding to the traditional therapies, immunotherapy specifically designed to keep bladder cancer from recurring after surgery and new drugs for a type of lung cancer that before had no response to medication. Now available is super technology that finds and then radiates prostate cancer that has spread or metastasized to other tissue. There is also a combined chemo- and immunotherapy for a certain kind of cancer of the esophagus and stomach for which doctors could previously offer no real treatment. Oncologists even have new ways to predict from a blood test which therapies will work for your cancer. There are more cases of additional drug uses where drugs typically used for one type of cancer are used for another. 

These many complex factors in cancer and its treatment make it even more important that patients have access to the most knowledgeable and up-to-date cancer doctors and their treatments. As discoveries come faster and greater in number and sophistication, the need for doctors who stay informed on medical advancement increases. PrecisCa offers the much-needed access to doctors who are involved in complicated cases and their advanced treatments. PrecisCa makes their expertise in cancer advancements and discoveries, especially in the face of treatment dilemmas, available to a global audience. 

PrecisCa convenes the world’s leading cancer specialists to analyze individual cancer cases. These cases are submitted by both the oncologists and the patients. Looking for a second opinion, additional options, or confirmation of your planned course of treatment? Contact us to have your case reviewed in our multidisciplinary tumor board setting.