Your Oncology Doctor in Central Pennsylvania

Cancer is a complex disease that requires many specialists working together. At Penn Highlands Healthcare, our team of oncology doctors and other cancer experts work together to plan and implement the treatment plan that is best for you. Your team also will include specialists from other areas to help you deal with additional physical, emotional, and social needs during your treatment. Your cancer team may include:

• Chemotherapy infusionists
• Dosimetrists (to plan the correct dose of radiation)
• Home care nurses
• Medical physicists
• Nutritionists
• Palliative care nurses
• Physical, occupational, and speech therapists
• Oncology doctors, including physicians such as radiation oncologists, medical oncologists, and oncology surgeons. Typically, one physician will be your primary physician and coordinate treatment with other oncologists and also your primary care provider.
• Oncology nurses
• Radiation therapists
• Support Services, including behavioral health specialists, financial counselors, social workers, spiritual care providers, and van drivers (should you need transportation to and from treatment)

At Penn Highlands, we recognize that a cancer diagnosis impacts your entire life and we have developed a support team to help you and your family through this journey. We offer a broad range of services to support your physical, emotional, and social needs. Our support services include nutrition services, behavioral health and spiritual services, palliative care and home care; financial counseling; social workers; and even transportation to and from treatment. Read more.

Traditionally, people who are diagnosed with cancer are referred to a medical oncologist or surgeon for treatment. However, as consumers have become more educated about their health, they have begun to research cancer providers in addition to getting a referral. Online searches using reputable sources such as Healthgrades as well as looking at physician reviews online can be helpful. You can use our "find a provider" app to find a Penn Highlands oncology doctor near you.

Radiotherapy is another name for radiation therapy, a cancer treatment that uses high-energy ionizing radiation to kill cancer cells or damage the DNA of the cells to slow down their ability to divide, grow, and spread. The radiation can be delivered externally, through a machine called a linear accelerator, or internally, by implanting radioactive "seeds" near the tumor site, known as brachytherapy. More than half of all cancer patients receive radiotherapy as part of their treatment plan.

Stage IV cancer is cancer that has spread, or metastasized, beyond its original site. This stage is more common for cancers like pancreatic or lung that do not have symptoms in the early stages, so they often go unnoticed until they have progressed. Stage four cancer treatments usually focus on managing rather than curing the cancer, prolonging life, and improving quality of life. Stage IV cancer can be difficult to treat not only because it has spread, but because genetic mutations in metastatic tumors may make them resistant to treatment. However, more new treatments are being used today that are effectively treating stage four cancers that could not be treated in the past.

Hormone therapy is a treatment used—most often in conjunction with other treatments like radiation or chemotherapy—for breast and prostate cancer that use hormones to grow. This therapy is given orally or by injection to block your body's ability to make a specific hormone or alter how a specific hormone works in the body to either treat the cancer or help alleviate symptoms. Hormone therapy typically involves estrogen, progesterone, or androgens (male sex hormones).

The best treatment option for your specific cancer type will depend on several factors including the type of cancer you have and how advanced it is, as well as your age, overall health, and your personal preferences. Some cancers will respond best to a combination of treatments, such as surgery and radiation. Newer treatments such as immunotherapy and targeted treatments may be best for some types of cancer, but not all so don't be discouraged if your oncologist recommends a more traditional treatment.

Based on the type and stage of your cancer, the goal of treatment might be to cure the cancer, to stop it from spreading, or to reduce symptoms to improve your quality of life (palliative care). Cancer treatments are improving every year—as are screening techniques that help us detect cancer earlier. In Pennsylvania, nearly 65% of people who are diagnosed with cancer live at least five years beyond diagnosis, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Overall U.S. death rates from cancer decreased 31% from 1991 to 2018, according to the American Cancer Society's Cancer Facts & Figures 2021 report.

Side effects of cancer treatment are less severe than just 10 or 20 years ago, and many patients find that medications and integrative therapies such as mindfulness or yoga can help them cope with symptoms. In general, people undergoing radiation often experience skin irritation and fatigue as well as site-specific symptoms such as head and neck: dry mouth, hair loss, difficulty swallowing; chest: shortness of breath, shoulder stiffness, cough; abdomen: loss of appetite, nausea, cramping, diarrhea; pelvis: loose stool, incontinence, rectal bleeding, fertility issues. Patients receiving chemotherapy typically deal with fatigue, pain, nausea and vomiting, constipation or diarrhea, mouth and throat sores, hair loss, brain fog, and fertility issues.

Whether or not your cancer can be cured depends on many factors including the type of cancer, how early it was detected, and how your body responds to treatment. Most oncology physicians refer to cancer being in remission vs. cured if cancer treatment has been successful. That means the cancer is gone but could come back. For this reason, your oncology doctor will want to ensure that you and your primary care provider have information on long-term treatments or health habits that reduce the risk of reoccurrence as well as a customized cancer screening regimen. Thanks to advances in screenings and treatments, deaths from cancer have steadily dropped over the past three decades.