The term oncology comes from an Ancient Greek term, onkos, that means tumor, bulk or mass. Add “ology” to the end of that, which means study of, and you have a term defined as the study of tumors. Doctors who study tumors are called oncologists, and they deal most often with patients diagnosed with cancer.
The field of oncology has several different facets. While they can’t help patients with tasks like pet insurance, oncologists do serve many roles. They need to know more than how to find tumors, they also need to know how to treat tumors and possibly even prevent cancer in the first place.
Diagnosis
A medical history, description of symptoms and a physical exam can help oncologists find the source of the mass. Then, doctors can use various imaging equipment to study the mass further. A biopsy will confirm whether or not the mass is cancer. Imaging studies, such as a CT scan, not only help oncologists determine the size and shape of the mass; it also helps them determine whether or not surgery will successfully remove the entire mass if necessary.
Therapy
The type of therapy an oncologist will recommend for a patient depends entirely on the location of the tumor and the type of cancer the patient has. Surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are the most commonly used procedures.
Follow-Up Care
When treatment is successful, cancer patients will require extensive follow up visits to make sure that the cancer is indeed gone. Patients can expect to sit through additional testing at regular intervals, all under the direction of the oncologist.
For patients with terminal malignancies, oncologists will provide palliative care, which helps relieve the symptoms and the pain associated with the disease itself and with cancer treatment.
Screening
Preventing cancer is a priority for oncologists, so they regularly encourage screening, especially if you have a relative diagnosed with cancer.