What is Oncology?

What is cancer?

Each cell of the body has a carefully controlled system that manages their development, maturity, reproduction, and ensuing death. Cancer is initiated when cells in an area of the body begin to grow out of hand. There are many types of cancer, however, they all begin due to the out-of-hand development of abnormal cells.

How common is cancer?

Presently, millions of individuals are living with cancer or have had it. Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the US, behind heart disease. About half of all men and a third of all women in the US are going to develop cancer throughout their lifetimes.

How long has cancer existed for?

Some of the initial records of cancer are located in human mummies in Egypt, fossilized bone tumors, and in ancient scripts. Signs indicative of bone cancer known as osteosarcoma have been found in mummies.

Amid manuscripts the first known description of cancer is found in the Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus and is a duplicate of part of an ancient Egyptian manual on trauma surgery. It accounts for eight cases of ulcers or tumors of the breast that were dealt with by cauterization with a tool known as the fire drill. Dating back to about 3000 BC. The surgical papyrus describes the ailment as “incurable”.

An oncologist’s role

Medical personnel that practice oncology is referred to as Cancer specialists or oncologists. These oncologists have a multitude of certain roles. They assist in diagnosing cancer, aid in staging the cancer and grading the hostile nature of it.

Tools for Oncology diagnostic

The most critical diagnostic tool remains the clinical record of the patient. Typically, symptoms that aim towards cancer can comprise of fatigue, loss of weight, unexplainable anemia, fever from an unknown source etc.

Oncology relies on diagnostic instruments such as biopsy or removal of pieces of the tumor tissue and examining it under a microscope. Other diagnostic tools can comprise of endoscopy for the gastrointestinal tract, diagnostic studies like X-rays, MRI scans, CT scans, ultrasound and other radiological methods, SPECT scan, Scintigraphy, nuclear medicine techniques, and Positron emission tomography, etc.

Common methods comprise of blood tests for tumor or biological markers. Increase of these markers in blood could be an indication of cancer.

Cancer therapy

Based upon the grade and stage of the cancer, oncologists assist in planning the therapy that is appropriate for each of their patients. This might be by chemotherapy, surgery, radiation therapy and other conditions.

Other specialists

Cancer treatment might additionally involve other specialists. This includes surgeons, a radiation oncologist, or a radiotherapist, etc. The whole of the cancer therapy nevertheless is coordinated by the oncologists.

Relapse and remission

After initial therapy is completed, the oncologist is responsible for following up on the patient to detect relapse and/ or remission. The preceding means return or recurrence of the cancer whereas being in remission means staying cancer-free.

Palliative care

The oncologist is also responsible for symptomatic or alleviatory care in patients with incurable malignancies. This and other matters of treatment option have assorted moral issues including patient freedom and choice that the oncologist needs to be interested in.

Cancer screening

Oncology and cancer research includes screening the general public for cancer and screening the family members of patients (in kinds of cancer that are considered to have a congenital basis. For instance, in breast cancer both public screening by routine mammography and genetical screening by genetic examination of the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes is carried out.

Progress in oncology

There is an enormous amount of research being carried out on all sectors of oncology, spanning from chemotherapy treatment schedules to cancer cell biology and optimal alleviatory care and pain relief. This makes oncology a steadily changing and emerging field.