Oncologist or Gynecologic Oncologist?
Monday March 26, 2007
Q. "I have stage III cervical cancer and have been advised to see a gynecologic oncologist. However the closest one to me is two hours away. My insurance company will also allow me to see an oncologist (not gynecologic) that is much closer to me. Is there really a difference in a regular oncologist and a gynecologic oncologist?"- Bette R., Rhode Island
A. Bette's question is not uncommon. While an oncologist is trained to treat cancer with chemotherapy, a gyn oncologist is specially trained to treat gynecologic cancers. Find out more about gynecologic oncologists and if you should see one.
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Ovarian cancer patients are now living longer than they did in the past, but this is almost certainly owing to better and more aggressive surgery. Surgery is generally used if it can cure the cancer. It is most useful in cancers that have not spread. Even if the cancer has spread to only one area or is small, then it may be possible to remove it completely with surgery.
Surgery is an integral part of the multimodality treatment of many cancers. In the case of ovarian cancer, proper patient selection will ensure the benefit of surgery for those who need it and avoid its morbidity and delay in the commencement of chemotherapy for those who are unlikely to benefit from it.
It is recommended that patients with ovarian cancer undergo aggressive de-bulking surgery up front, prior to chemotherapy. It has long been observed that those patients whose tumors can be resected without any visible residual disease tend to live longer than those who are left with residual tumor after de-bulking surgery. Based upon this, up front, de-bulking surgery has become the standard of care.
Elderly women with ovarian cancer tend to survive longer when treated by gynecologic oncologists than by general surgeons, according to results of a meta-analysis published in the February 1, 2006 Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Craig C. Earle, one of the investigators from Dana-Farber Cancer Center in Boston concluded, “Our data support professional societies’ recommendations that it is preferable for ovarian cancer patients to be operated on by gynecologic oncologists when possible.”
Source: J Natl Cancer Inst 2006;98: 163-180