Oncology

Cancer diagnosis abroad

Advanced technologies and equipment are available for diagnosing oncology abroad, thanks to which doctors detect cancer at the earliest stages and ensure the accuracy of the process. However, patients should understand that only proper examinations can lead to successful treatment. Among the modern diagnostic methods, it is worth highlighting:

• Ultrasound 4D -the latest diagnostic method using ultrasound to suspect a malignant neoplasm and find out its size and some other features;
• Computed tomography (CT) with intravenous contrast (usually in 3 areas - abdominal cavity, chest and pelvis, sometimes, if necessary, brain CT) — gives a complete picture of the size and location of the tumour and the presence of metastases in other organs or lymph nodes;
• MRI with a high resolution of 3 Tesla performs the same function as CT but gives more accurate information about nerve structures and the involvement of blood vessels in the process;
• PET-CT is a device for accurate diagnosis of cancer at the earliest stages. It helps the doctor to search for metastases anywhere throughout the body and is relatively often used in foreign clinics compared to domestic ones;
• Endoscopic and FUSION biopsy is taking a sample of the material and studying it under a microscope to establish an oncological diagnosis and determine the properties of the tumour. At the same time, in most cases in foreign clinics, oncologists also check for gene mutations and other tumour features to verify the cause of the disorder and select a targeted treatment. But unfortunately, there are cases when patients come with the wrong biopsy results.

The undoubted advantage of oncology treatment abroad is the time spent on the examination: the patient undergoes the entire diagnosis in about 24 hours and, after a few days, receives a treatment program developed based on the results of the examinations.

Advanced treatment solutions in oncology

Doctors have used chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and oncological surgery to treat cancer for many years. Today, however, these methods are fundamentally different from what they used to be or still are in less developed countries.

New radiotherapy and radiosurgery units have appeared that require fewer irradiation courses, have maximum exposure accuracy and are safe for healthy tissues:

• Gamma Knife and CyberKnife are the "gold standard" for treating tumours and small neoplasms, primarily single and multiple cancer metastases. High doses of radiation, delivered with an accuracy of up to 0.04 mm, destroy cancerous cells.
• Proton therapy uses proton beams and does not damage surrounding healthy tissues compared to traditional radiotherapy.
• Radioembolization is a method of introducing radioactive antitumor drugs directly into the arteries feeding the malignant neoplasm.

These are cancer vaccination with dendritic cells, the use of targeted drugs (biological and immunological), and local chemotherapy:

• Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) - the introduction of drugs into the vessels feeding the tumour and blockage of this artery.
• Transarterial chemoperfusion (TACP) - is the administration of antitumor drugs into the vessel to the malignant neoplasm. In this case, chemo drugs do not unfold their effect in the whole body (systemic) but mainly in the affected area (regional).

Local treatment methods such as cryotherapy (icing), interstitial laser photocoagulation (laser heat), percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI), and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) are an option as an alternative to surgery. Cancer can be attacked directly and targeted in this case, so the surrounding healthy tissues are not harmed.

Increasingly, surgeons use robotic technologies for oncology treatment. For example, the removal of tumours with the help of the da Vinci robot. Robotic surgeries have been carried out for more than ten years in the world's leading clinics. Now it is not only prostate cancer surgery but also interventions in gynaecology, otolaryngology, cardiac surgery and general surgery.

Recently developed nuclear medicine approaches, such as Lutetium treatment and radioiodine, brings fantastic results for advanced cases. Lu-177 is a newly FDA-approved option for metastatic prostate cancer with proven benefits. Patients all over the world come for targeted solutions.