Treatment Options

We are dedicated to providing you or your loved one with advanced treatment methods available using technologically sophisticated equipment. Treatment may consist of surgery, chemotherapy, traditional radiation, or a combination of the three. Depending on your diagnosis, surgery may be used to remove as much of the tumor as possible. Radiation may be used to kill tumor cells in a localized area. Chemotherapy kills tumor cells systemically through medications that are administered through an intravenous injection or taken orally over a period of time. We keep pace with the latest innovative treatment options.  Here are a few of the highlights:

• Our Radiation Oncology Department offers advanced radiation therapy, including the Lance Armstrong Shaped Beam Surgery program, a noninvasive treatment methodist featuring Novalis that allows physicians to treat tumors with high-dose radiation while minimizing harm to the surrounding healthy tissue.

• A cone beam CT was added to the Varian Linear Accelerator, an image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) machine. The cone beam CT creates real-time 3D images of a patient's tumor before treatment to make sure the radiation is aligned properly. This allows the therapists and doctors to deliver a more targeted radiation while sparing more healthy tissue.

• We use IMRT for selected tumors, including head and neck tumors and prostate cancer. IMRT is a way of using mulitiple beams to reduce the amount of high dose radiation received by healthy tissue.

• We have the ability to do stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), a method of delivering targeted radiation to brain tumors.

• We are in the process of acquiring stereotactic body radiosurgery (SBRT), which delivers high dose per treatment radiation to tumors of the lung, spin, and prostate. Patients can finish their therapy in as few as three treatments.

• Medical Oncology features a brand new chemotherapy infusion center. Patients have the option of using a private room or one of the open bays if they want to spend time with other patients during their treatment. The nurses in this unit are certified by the Oncology Nurses Society.