Surgery is the oldest type of cancer treatment. It can also offer key information in the process of
diagnosing cancer and discovering out how far it has spread (a process is called staging). Many advances in
surgical techniques have allowed surgeons to operate on a growing number of patients delivering good results.
Today, operations that involve less cutting and damage to nearby organs and tissues (less invasive surgery) often
can be done to remove tumors while saving as much normal tissue and function as possible.
Surgery can be used to diagnose, treat, or even help prevent cancer in some cases. It normally presents the best chance for cure, especially if the cancer has not spread to other parts of the body.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the use drugs to treat cancer. Chemotherapy is also called "chemo," but it is the same treatment. Chemo was initially used to treat cancer in the 1950s.
It has helped several people live a full life. The chemo drugs our physicians or nurses
administer have been tested numerous times. Research shows
Hundreds of chemo drugs are used today for cancer treatment. Our doctors choose certain types of drugs based on the kind of cancer you have and
the stage of your cancer growth, reviewing all relevant details, and considering your current physical and
emotional state, to achieve the best results in chemotherapy cancer treatment.
Drugs that kill cancer cells directly, cause biological responses, work
via hormone therapy, serve as monoclonal antibodies, or otherwise treat
or cure cancer are all a part of our cancer-fighting arsenal. Because cancer is different for each person, your chemo cancer treatment will be planned just for you.
We also believe symptom relief is vital. Providing patients with the finest
care in a location that eliminates a long drive to an unfamiliar city
will be of great benefit to them. This service is available in a pleasant
and comforting surroundings at North Texas Cancer Center of Wise.
MammoSite Therapy is an excellent choice for early stage breast cancer patients. This radiation option takes place after a lumpectomy has been performed. A small balloon is placed in the tumor cavity, then expanded to allow radiation to be directed precisely into the site. Treatment lasts approximately ten minutes, twice a day for five days. The ease of fewer treatments (5 days vs. traditional 35 days), improved cosmetic outcomes, and a low cancer recurrence rate makes this a viable option for many women. This procedure is available only at the North Texas Cancer Center location.
PET/CT Scanner: Positron emission tomography (PET) With a PET scan, glucose (a form of sugar) that contains a radioactive atom is injected into the bloodstream. Because cancer cells in the body are growing rapidly, they absorb large amounts of the radioactive sugar. After about an hour, a special camera is used to create a picture of areas of radioactivity in the body. A PET scan is useful when your doctor thinks the cancer may have spread but doesn't know where. This procedure is available at our North Texas Cancer Center location.
Computed tomography (CT) A CT scan is an x-ray test that produces detailed cross-sectional images of your body.
Instead of taking a single picture, like a normal x-ray, a CT scan takes multiple pictures as it rotates around your body as you lie on a table.
A computer then combines these pictures into images of slices of the part of your body being evaluated.
We are able to do both a PET and CT scan at the same time (PET/CT scan). This allows the radiologist to compare areas of higher radioactivity on the PET with the appearance of that area on the CT.
At the Las Colinas location, a PET/CT scanner is now open located adjacent to the Cancer Center. It is under the management of Radiology Associates and allows easy scheduling of appointments and provide patients the ease and convenience of returning to a familiar location.
Prostate Seed Implants are
tiny radioactive pellets or seeds that are placed in or near the prostate
cancer tumor. Cancer cells are killed by the energy given off as the
low dose rate radioactive material decays or breaks down over a period
of several weeks or months, leaving no radioactive material in the prostate
gland. The procedure takes about one hour, then the patient walks out
of the clinic and is driven home by a friend or family member. Most
patients are back to a normal routine within a day or two. Sixteen years
of data are available on this method of treatment. It is has proven
to be an excellent option for treating prostate cancer with outcomes
equivalent to surgery for low risk patients and superior to surgery
combined with external beam radiation for intermediate and high risk
patients. This service is available at multiple locations.
Radiation Therapy with intensity-modulated
radiation therapy (IMRT) combines extremely precise tumor imaging
techniques with delivery of hundreds of thin beams of radiation to the
exact tumor location in three-dimensional patterns from any angle. Results
are precise control of radiation delivery, reduced radiation dosages,
declining complication rates, and fewer side effects. This technology
has raised the bar in radiation therapy nationwide. This service is
available at both North Texas Cancer Center and North Texas Cancer Center
of Wise.
Radiation Therapy with Image-guided radiation
therapy (IGRT) is recognized as the finest technology available
in radiation oncology at this time. This technology allows the radiation
beam to be altered depending upon day-to-day movement of the tumor.
It is used in combination with intensity-modulated radiation therapy
(IMRT). This service is available only at the North Texas Cancer Center.
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy is a new technology that delivers highly potent biological doses of radiation to the tumor, improving the cure rate for that tumor, in a manner previously not achievable by standard conventional therapy.
