It is known that cancer, which is briefly defined as the uncontrolled proliferation of cells and their spread throughout the body, can be seen in almost every organ. For this reason, although they are collected under one heading, the symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of cancer vary greatly depending on the organ where the cancer is located and the extent of its spread. As a result, it is not possible to treat and monitor cancer by a single doctor or specialty. The science of oncology has a multidisciplinary structure that includes many branches of science, and cancer disease must be treated and followed up in centers with a multidisciplinary structure.
There is a wide range of scientific knowledge regarding the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, which is the second leading cause of death all over the world. Research is carried out and information is constantly updated. Monitoring such an increase in information and applying it to the patient when necessary is a very important element in the fight against cancer. Today, the fight against cancer is done with combined treatments. Previously, if a patient with cancer could be operated on, they would be operated on; if not, they would be sent to chemotherapy or radiotherapy. In cases that recurred after surgery, he had no choice but chemotherapy and radiotherapy. However, today, cases that have lost the chance of surgery because they have progressed are made eligible for surgery with chemotherapy and radiotherapy. After surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are given together to increase treatment effectiveness. By performing chemotherapy or radiotherapy before surgery, the scope of surgery can be reduced and organ losses can be prevented. For example, breast cancer can be regressed to a state that can be treated with surgery without removing the patient's breast, or in rectal tumors, the patient can avoid having to carry a colostomy for life by receiving neoadjuvant treatments before surgery.
Radiology and pathology in the diagnosis phase of cancer, surgery, radiation oncology and medical oncology in the treatment phase. During the follow-up and support phase, areas of expertise such as nuclear medicine, psychology, nutrition, pain, and physical therapy should follow the developments in their fields and this information should be shared when evaluating cancer patients. In order to be able to talk about a truly multidisciplinary structure, these experts must gather around a table, discuss the case together and make decisions together. I must. Even if they are under the same roof, it is not considered a multidisciplinary approach in the modern sense if these specialists evaluate the patient separately and make decisions on their own without coming together. It starts working with . The doctor requests some tests to diagnose the disease. Depending on the examinations performed at this stage, laboratory sciences such as radiology, pathology, biochemistry and nuclear medicine come into play. After the relevant units evaluate the examination results individually, if a tumor is diagnosed, the patient is taken to the oncology council. The patient, who was previously evaluated separately by the relevant doctors, is evaluated together in the oncology council and a decision is made for the treatment together. It is decided which treatment option is most suitable for the patient, such as surgery, radiotherapy or chemotherapy, and the doctor responsible for the treatment to be applied first takes over the patient. When the relevant treatment phase, such as surgery, is completed, the patient is discussed again in the council. The effect of the applied treatment and the patient's response to the treatment are evaluated and, if necessary, a decision is made together to move on to the next treatment step, the patient is taken over by the doctor of the relevant treatment step, and so on. While there are centers in Turkey that work in accordance with truly multidisciplinary principles, there is a practice in which patients are "sent" to another clinic or doctor after a treatment phase (for example, surgery) is completed and their treatment is continued there, which is not a truly multidisciplinary practice. . It complies with true multidisciplinary principles when the relevant doctors come together and make decisions together at every stage of the patient's treatment and follow-up. It is observed that the treatments of cancer patients treated in multidisciplinary centers provide better results.
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