If you are diagnosed with cancer in the gastrointestinal tract....
You have just been told that you have cancer in the gastrointestinal tract. It is a shocking and dreadful news indeed. In a flood of emotions, you are asked to take rational decisions and get the best possible treatment. Your mind is under the shower of million questions regarding the treatment, the outcomes of treatment and family issues. I see patients like you every day. I have written this post to help you and many others make informed decisions regarding the management of cancers in the gastrointestinal tract.
Cancer management is not a guess. For every symptom you have, your doctor will look for whether it is caused by cancer. The exact diagnosis of cancer is made by examination of the suspected cancerous tissue under the microscope. This is called a biopsy.Only with this can the diagnosis be confirmed. To get this you may undergo several procedures, sometimes even an operation. The exceptions are pancreatic and biliary cancers and liver cancers, where we use imaging (CT scans, MRI) to guess the diagnosis.
The second part of the cancer diganosis is the stage of the disease. Cancer staging is know how far the cancer has spread in the body. Once a primary diagnosis is known, we do a series of investigations to find out where the cancer is - only in the primary organ, the lymph node or liver or lungs or all over the body. Only when you know the stage of the disease, you can decide what options you have in your treatment. It is important that you reach this point in your treatment as early as possible.
The third step is to know how healthy you are to under go the operation or the treatment. We call this a performance status. Cancer treatment is not worthwhile if the patient is completely confined to the bed most of the time. Cancer treatment requires the active participation of the patient. Only a relatively healthy patient can undergo the treatment and take it to its conclusion. So even when you have a diagnosis of cancer, keep up all your activites. It will help you face the challenges during treatment.
There are four elements in the treatment of cancer - Surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and palliation. Every element of this treatment has a role in the treatment of your cancer. In most of the gastrointestinal cancers, surgery has a major role. It has a curative aim, a complete removal of the cancerous parts. Removing cancerous tissue by surgery is major work of surgical gastroenterologists. Once the cancer is removed, the removed tissue is again sent for microscopic examination. Based on the spread of cancer, you would be suggested whether you need just a follow up, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or both.
Cancers cannot be operated upon if adjacent organs and vital structures like blood vessels are involved. So the patient is left with the other options to treat the cancer. This is an unfortunate event, but even at this stage, treatment can be given. Rarely, this may make surgery possible.
In all this treatment, support is vital. Medical aspects are indeed a burden to your surgeons and physicians. But you can discuss your personal issues to plan and make your treatment easier. Palliative care is not a negative term. In fact, active involvement of a palliative care specialist in all the steps of your care can make the whole process a little less burdensome.
Cancer management is not a guess. For every symptom you have, your doctor will look for whether it is caused by cancer. The exact diagnosis of cancer is made by examination of the suspected cancerous tissue under the microscope. This is called a biopsy.Only with this can the diagnosis be confirmed. To get this you may undergo several procedures, sometimes even an operation. The exceptions are pancreatic and biliary cancers and liver cancers, where we use imaging (CT scans, MRI) to guess the diagnosis.
The second part of the cancer diganosis is the stage of the disease. Cancer staging is know how far the cancer has spread in the body. Once a primary diagnosis is known, we do a series of investigations to find out where the cancer is - only in the primary organ, the lymph node or liver or lungs or all over the body. Only when you know the stage of the disease, you can decide what options you have in your treatment. It is important that you reach this point in your treatment as early as possible.
The third step is to know how healthy you are to under go the operation or the treatment. We call this a performance status. Cancer treatment is not worthwhile if the patient is completely confined to the bed most of the time. Cancer treatment requires the active participation of the patient. Only a relatively healthy patient can undergo the treatment and take it to its conclusion. So even when you have a diagnosis of cancer, keep up all your activites. It will help you face the challenges during treatment.
There are four elements in the treatment of cancer - Surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and palliation. Every element of this treatment has a role in the treatment of your cancer. In most of the gastrointestinal cancers, surgery has a major role. It has a curative aim, a complete removal of the cancerous parts. Removing cancerous tissue by surgery is major work of surgical gastroenterologists. Once the cancer is removed, the removed tissue is again sent for microscopic examination. Based on the spread of cancer, you would be suggested whether you need just a follow up, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or both.
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| Removal of a pancreatic cancer in progress |
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| Large Bowel cancer |
Cancers cannot be operated upon if adjacent organs and vital structures like blood vessels are involved. So the patient is left with the other options to treat the cancer. This is an unfortunate event, but even at this stage, treatment can be given. Rarely, this may make surgery possible.
In all this treatment, support is vital. Medical aspects are indeed a burden to your surgeons and physicians. But you can discuss your personal issues to plan and make your treatment easier. Palliative care is not a negative term. In fact, active involvement of a palliative care specialist in all the steps of your care can make the whole process a little less burdensome.
Hi, probably our entry may be off topic but anyways, I have been surfing around your blog and it looks very professional. It’s obvious you know your topic and you appear fervent about it. I’m developing a fresh blog plus I’m struggling to make it look good, as well as offer the best quality content. I have learned much at your web site and also I anticipate alot more articles and will be coming back soon. Thanks you.
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Thanks, karthiga Saravanan for your kind words. It took a while for me to reply to your comments. Give my regards to Dr. Mallika and Dr. Subhadra
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