Medical Oncology

Meet Your Cancer Care Team Leader

Medical oncologists use medicines, including chemotherapy, to treat cancer. These specialists can also oversee and monitor patients during and after cancer treatment.

Cancer treatment involves a team of specialists. This cancer care team could include medical oncologists, oncology surgeons,radiation oncologists, nurses and other specialists.Learn more about your cancer treatment team.

Medical Oncology Treatments

You have options. Choose Sanford Cancer and partner with your medical oncologist to design a personalized treatment plan for you. Your doctor will guide you through this process, making sure you completely understand your care plan.

Your cancer treatment options include:

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill fast-growing cancer cells. There are a variety of chemotherapy drugs created to target different cancer types. For example, some drugs work best against prostate cancer cells. Chemotherapy drugs can be injected intravenously, by shot, through a cream or using a pill.

There are side effects to chemotherapy since these drugs can’t distinguish between fast-growing bad or good cells. These drugs can affect cells in your hair, skin, nails, mouth and intestines.

Hormone Therapy

激素疗法用于治疗前列腺癌和乳腺癌等使用激素生长的癌症。这种技术减缓或停止激素的产生，从而限制了癌症的生长能力。它也被称为内分泌疗法。

Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy uses your body’s natural defenses to fight cancer. It is usually combined with other treatments. Also called biologic therapy or biotherapy, this therapy boosts your immune system against cancer to treat early-stage cancers or to prevent the disease.

Sanford Cancer offers several immunotherapy options:

• 癌症疫苗。Vaccines designed to train the immune system to fight certain cancers. These shots are a preventive measure that work against a few specific cancers. For example, theHPV vaccinecan prevent several cancers, including cervical cancer.

• Cytokines.细胞因子是一组蛋白质，它指导人体在哪里启动免疫反应。细胞因子疗法包括向体内注射大剂量的人工细胞因子。这些蛋白质激活免疫系统来对抗癌细胞。

• Immune checkpoint inhibitors.Using drugs to teach your immune system to recognize and kill cancer cells.

• Injectable immunotherapies.将蛋白质和化合物直接注入肿瘤激发免疫系统攻击肿瘤。

• Monoclonal antibodies.Intravenously injecting lab-designed monoclonal antibodies. These molecules mimic or enhance the immune system’s ability to identify and fight cancer cells.

• Oncolytic viruses.Viruses engineered in a lab to destroy cancer and encourage the immune system to attack cancer cells.

• Precision immunotherapy.Using a tumor’s genetic information to identify the best immunotherapy approach to fight it.

• 专门的放射治疗。New radiation techniques can boost a patient’s response to immunotherapy.

• Other immunotherapies.These treatments enhance a patient’s immune system to improve its ability to fight cancer.

Precision Oncology

Precision oncology refers to treatments uniquely designed to fight the patient’s specific cancer. It bases treatments on a patient’s genetic mutations, type of cancer, tumor size, location, cancer stage and more. These tailored treatments provide better results faster and with fewer side effects.

Learn more about other treatment options, includingoncologic surgeryandradiation oncology.

Sanford Cancer is Here for You

Here’s what you can expect from your Sanford Cancer team:

• Answers to all your questions

• Help through all the steps you need to take before, during and after treatment

• Discussion of what tests you need and the results of those tests

• Guidance in making treatment decisions to help prepare you and your loved ones for what’s ahead

• Support for coping with the stresses of cancer

• Personalized diagnosis, treatment and care from detection tosurvivorship

Find an Oncologist Close to Home

Find expert, compassionate care attuned to your type of cancer and unique medical needs. You’ll get specialized treatment and emotional support from your medical oncologist.

Find a Medical Oncologist